With the recent burst of warmth, it's suddenly road construction season in Minnesota.
Motorists across the state will feel the pinch for the next six months as the Minnesota Department of Transportation closes lanes and puts drivers on detour — and the agency plans to use a federal cash infusion to get even more work done in 2024 and beyond.
"Get ready for the orange cones to arrive," MnDOT spokeswoman Anne Meyer said Wednesday as the agency released its projects for 2023. "We know there is inconvenience with construction, but we are making roads better for years to come."
The first weekend closure will take place Friday through Sunday on Hwy. 169 in Golden Valley and New Hope as crews demolish the Rockford Road overpass. It's the start of an ambitious slate of projects that includes new bridges, putting down new pavement on some highways and expanding others, installing cable median barriers and adding other safety improvements.
In all, MnDOT will carry out 171 road and bridge projects statewide, and 52 others to improve airports, water ports, railroad crossings and transit infrastructure. And that does not include local projects in cities and counties.
At a cost of $1.3 billion, the size and scope of MnDOT's planned work this year is comparable to recent years. But drivers can prepare for even more headaches beginning next year, as the agency plans to tackle a greater number of projects with money from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — an average of $170 million a year for the next five years.
But this year first.
For the second — and last — summer, Hwy. 10 through Anoka will be reduced to a single lane between 7th and Thurston avenues as MnDOT completes the $98 million project to transform the highway into a freeway.
In the east metro, the busy I-94 corridor from Oakdale to the St. Croix River will have only two lanes open this summer and next while the freeway is resurfaced and a new auxiliary lane is built from the I-94/I-494/I-694 interchange to County Road 19 in Woodbury.
South metro drivers will feel the squeeze, too, as two projects on I-494 from Edina to Eagan threaten to snarl traffic. Crews will rebuild five bridges between Pilot Knob Road and 24th Avenue by the Mall of America. To the west, work will begin to replace bridges between Cedar Avenue and W. Bush Lake Road, all ahead of a major overhaul of the I-35W/494 interchange, the busiest in the state.
Drivers outside the metro won't escape headaches, either. MnDOT will continue resurfacing, repairing bridges and installing cable median barriers on Hwy. 52 between Rosemount and Cannon Falls. On I-35 near Faribault, traffic will be reduced to one lane and shifted to one side of the freeway for most of the summer.
Other big projects include expanding Hwy. 14 from two lanes to four between New Ulm and Nicollet, rebuilding interchanges at Hwys. 10 and 23 in St. Cloud and at Hwy. 53/I-35 in Duluth, and resurfacing I-94 west of Alexandria.
None of this year's projects resulted from the harsh winter that left roads everywhere in tough shape — they've all been on the drawing board for six to 10 years, Meyer said.
"We have transitions from winter and snow plows to summer and road construction," said Jake Loesch, MnDOT's communications director. "We know road construction can be a headache and a pain. If there was a magical way to do it [without causing disruptions], we'd do it in a heartbeat."
MnDOT officials are reminding motorists that work zones can be dangerous. From 2019 to 2021, there were more than 7,800 work zone crashes, leading to 92 serious injuries and 28 deaths, according to MnDOT records.
Work zones often include lane closures, lane shifts, uneven road surfaces, heavy equipment and slow or stopped traffic. Drivers caught speeding in a work zone face a $300 fine.
"We need motorists' help to keep everyone safe: Obey speed limits and slow down in work zones, put away cellphones and other distractions," said Transportation Commissioner Nancy Daubenberger. "Be patient, and plan ahead for detours."
