Following nearly two hours of heated debate, a divided St. Paul City Council voted 4-to-3 on Wednesday to move forward with a three-lane conversion of Ayd Mill Road that will add a new protected pedestrian/bicycle trail alongside vehicle travel.

The $7.5 million road reconstruction project could begin in July and wrap up in November, said Paul Kurtz, interim St. Paul Public Works director.

The 1.5-mile, pothole-addled highway connector will be reduced from four to three lanes, halving the width of a previously proposed bike-and-pedestrian trail from 24 feet to 12 feet due to cost and engineering concerns.

“We don’t have the necessary right-of-way out there to put a trail in and keep the four lanes that are there,” Kurtz said.

Council Member Dai Thao, a critic of the mayor’s proposal for a bikeway, said he had concerns about air pollution, public input, the accuracy of traffic modeling and impacts upon surrounding streets.

Council Member Rebecca Noecker acknowledged “the road is falling apart” and needs reconstruction but the revised bikeway design falls far short of the mayor’s original plans for a greenway, she said. It also ties up 40 percent of dedicated bike corridor funding for the next 10 years, at least as currently budgeted.

Noecker then introduced an amendment that would repave the four-lane road in the short-term and delay the bikeway design for further study.

“In an attempt to bring our costs down, we’re looking at basically a sidewalk right along Ayd Mill Road,” Noecker said. “We’re settling. And I believe we can do a lot better.”

Her voice rising with emotion, Council Member Mitra Nelson said Noecker’s proposal would undermine years of advocacy for pedestrian-friendly improvements and “kick the can down the road” indefinitely.

Noecker’s amendment failed, 4-3, with Council President Amy Brendmoen, Jane Prince, Mitra Jalali and Nelsie Yang in the majority. Noecker, Thao and Chris Tolbert voted in favor of her amendment.

The council then voted 4-3, along the same lines, to approve the overall road reconstruction project.

TRAFFIC FORECAST

Kurtz said Ayd Mill Road will likely be at or over-capacity during rush hours, but “should function just fine” at other hours. In the morning, some 20 to 25 percent of traffic — or 400 vehicles — will have to divert elsewhere, most likely Lexington Parkway and Hamline Avenue.

In the evening, about 15 percent of traffic will peel off toward Snelling Avenue and elsewhere.

With further study, traffic signal re-timing, new lane configurations at intersections and restricted turn moments during peak travel times could help mitigate some traffic issues, Kurtz said.

Many cycling advocates have asked that the 45 mile per hour speed limit be reduced to as much as 25 miles per hour, but “25 miles per hour might be too slow for the corridor,” said Kurtz, who promised further study of the speed limit question. “I think we might land somewhere between there.”

Following an initial public presentation several months ago on traffic modeling and road configuration, about 51 percent of respondents responded positively, and 41 percent responded negatively, Kurtz said.

Others shared comments unrelated to the three-lane design concept, a pedestrian/bicycle trail or traffic modeling. Public Works also posted online Powerpoint presentations and conducted additional outreach.