Neighbors V

Thousands of people travel through New Brighton every day, but most of the traffic keeps on going. The eastern edge of the city borders on I-35W, one of the busiest and most important north/south routes in Minnesota. About in the middle of the city, I-694, the primary bypass road for east/west traffic in the Twin Cities, bisects the city. This interchange is one of the busiest and most congested places in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, although this image doesn't indicate that. I drive through this interchange several times a week:

694, looking west

While the interstate highway system has made it much easier to travel across the country, it's also made it easier for some places to become little more than exit ramps. And when you enter New Brighton on these major thoroughfares, you don't get much of a sense of place. The landscape on 35W is mostly industrial, while the 694 route has traffic noise calming walls that block any view of the surrounding neighborhoods. Unless you are specifically aware of a destination you'd like to see in New Brighton, the average motorist isn't likely to stop. More to come.