You can sum it up this way:  the Minnesota Department of Transportation has big plans for the 2023 summer road construction season. From the details they recently shared about their statewide plans, Minnesota drivers can expect major improvements in the roads and highways they travel on; they should also anticipate impacts on their routes - some of them significant in nature.

According to MNDOT, their work crews will take care of more than 200 major construction projects statewide. Of that work, 171 are specifically road and bridge related, while another 52 projects will "improve airports, water ports, railroad crossings, and transit infrastructure".

And while spending for this year appears significant in nature, the state agency fully expects even larger budget years in the next few to follow:

"The 2023 state construction program remains largely unchanged by the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Although Congress passed that federal appropriation bill in March 2022, authority for MNDOT to spend the additional dollars was only approved by the Minnesota Legislature in February 2023. The agency expects the size of construction programs in 2024 and future years to be larger with the additional federal funds provided by the IIJA."

While many of the significant road construction projects MNDOT has planned reside in in greater Minnesota, there are two larger local projects include:

Meanwhile, here's a run down of some of the other significant road construction projects MNDOT will work on this summer:

  • Twin CIties/RochesterHighway 52 - work on the multi-year project will continue.  This includes resurfacing concrete, repairing and updating bridges, and installing a cable median barrier. This also includes the final year of the three-year project on Highway 52 between Zumbrota and Cannon Falls
  • AnokaHighway 10 - continued work on a multi-year project to replace and repair bridged
  • Elk River Highwy 169 - the multi-year project here will continue, with work central to four new interchanges this summer
  • New Ulm and Nicollet Highway 14 - this will be the final year of the project that expands this roadway from two lanes to four lanes
  • Thief River FallsHighway 59 - resurfacing, culvert replacements, shoulder widening, and a roundabout at the intersection of Highway 59 with Pennington County Road 3
  • St. CloudHighway 10 and 23 interchange - this summer will be the start of a two year project to reconstruct this area, including new road surces, bridges, drainage structures, pedestrian, and motorist acess
  • Alexandria: Westbound I-94 near Highway 114 and I-94 and the I-94-Highway 27 Interchange - includes construction of roundabouts and ramps
  • Faribault: I-35 - this summer will be the start of a two-year project to resurface 4.6 miles of the interstate and other added improvements
  • New London to Paynsville Highway 23 - this summer will be the start of a two-year project to expand the highway from two to four lanes

At the same time, the state agency will also perform various other projects - although those aren't large enough to be considered "significant" in nature.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation offers complete details about all of their road construction - including these projects - on their website.

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