Martin Olav Sabo Bridge, Cable-stayed pedestrian bridge in Phillips neighborhood, Minneapolis, United States
The Martin Olav Sabo Bridge is a cable-stayed footbridge in Minneapolis that crosses over Hiawatha Avenue and the METRO Blue Line light rail tracks. It links several neighborhoods on either side and gives people on foot or on a bike a direct path without crossing any traffic signals.
The bridge opened in 2007 as a new crossing connecting neighborhoods that had previously been separated by the avenue and the rail line. Some years later, problems with the cable system led to repairs and a temporary closure before the bridge reopened to the public.
The bridge takes its name from Martin Olav Sabo, a Minnesota congressman who personally pushed for the project to receive federal funding. Today it is a crossing that people from nearby neighborhoods use daily, on foot or by bike, as a direct connection through the city.
The bridge is easy to reach on foot or by bike, and the path across is flat and straightforward with no major inclines. Those traveling with wide cargo bikes or large objects should be aware that the usable width of the crossing is limited.
The bridge's single tower rises about 100 feet (30 meters) and its steel cables are anchored directly into the limestone bedrock beneath the street, which was an uncommon approach in Minnesota at the time it was built. This anchoring method was chosen specifically to handle the wide span over both the road and the rail tracks below.
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