Biking, walking up sharply in Twin Cities metro

Transit for Livable Communities says bike riding in the Twin Cities area has climbed more than 50 percent in the past five years, while walking has jumped 20 percent, Minnesota Public Radio reports. That's according to volunteers who counted bikers, walkers and cars at 40 metro locations in September.

MPR says the data showed the most popular places to bike are the University of Minnesota and downtown Minneapolis.

Transit for Livable Communities administers $28 million in federal grant money in the Twin Cities. It has funded more than 40 bicycle and pedestrian improvement projects, including a dozen more projects set to be complete this year.

Steve Clark, who manages the biking and walking program at Bike Walk Twin ­Cities, told the Star Tribune he expects the growth to continue through at least next year.

“As we improve the overall network, it becomes easier to go wherever you want to go by bike or by foot. People are just catching up to where the ­network exists,” Clark said.