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Old 07-26-2013, 12:08 PM
 
Location: Minnesota
5,147 posts, read 7,482,323 times
Reputation: 1578

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This will be a less argumentative issue. The Twin Cities have a bunch of road projects going on right now. On 494, west of 34th Avenue, on 694 from highway 100 eastward. Then there's the replacement of the Penn Avenue bridge on the Crosstown (Highway 62) and another project northbound on highway 169. So that means loss of lanes and displacement of traffic from one artery to another. It necessitates planning to drive another route going the same way or planning for the extra time to get through the construction zones. Basically, money has been freed up on the state and federal level, and road crews are upgrading various pieces of the system.

A separate, though related, issue is the direction of mass transportation. Rail lines and rapid bus transit experiments are underway to provide an alternative to driving everywhere. The choice of the first Bus Rapid Transit hasn't been universally welcomed. And the project cost for a light rail line to Southwestern suburbs seems to constantly go up. Latest estimates were approaching $2 billion, and the future seems dubious to me. Getting from downtown Minneapolis to the city boundary seems laden with difficulty. The route through Bryn Mawr, the planners' favorite annoys the neighborhoods and conflicts with freight traffic. One mayoral candidate is trying to make the route follow the Midtown Greenway as part of his campaign. Time alone will tell where that will go.
Winton offers plan to break Minneapolis-St. Louis Park stalemate over light rail | MinnPost
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Old 07-26-2013, 06:57 PM
 
Location: Minnesota
5,147 posts, read 7,482,323 times
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They are closing 62 at 10pm tonight. Go 394, 494, or even highway 7.
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Old 07-26-2013, 09:29 PM
 
Location: Minnesota
5,147 posts, read 7,482,323 times
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Totally forgot about 511. Like 411 and 911, but all about travel and roads. For smartphones, you can install an app for this from here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...crc.carsapp.mn

With that app you can keep track of accidents and projects to keep from being surprised by slowdowns.
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Old 07-26-2013, 10:29 PM
 
Location: Middletown, CT
993 posts, read 1,768,797 times
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I hope at least some of these are finished when I get back! I should probably keep dreaming though.

Has anyone heard if the Central Corridor still planning on opening in March?

Also, are they doing any work on the 35W 494 interchange? I always hate driving through that one with the stupid wall that it forces you to squeeze through.
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Old 07-27-2013, 07:36 AM
 
391 posts, read 660,436 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RC01 View Post
Has anyone heard if the Central Corridor still planning on opening in March?
I think so. It's 95% complete right now
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Old 07-27-2013, 01:25 PM
 
Location: Minnesota
5,147 posts, read 7,482,323 times
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Southwest LRT costs jump again to up to $1.82 billion | StarTribune.com

I really think it is time for Metro Transit to seriously consider the question "What is the most affordable way to get from downtowns to the SW suburbs". Yeh, sure, the feds will finance hundreds of millions. But everyone please remember that is STILL a burden on taxpayers. We shouldn't be making decisions on "maxing federal money". Efficient ways of loosening up the traffic jams should be the benchmark. Call me crazy, but $1.82 billion sounds outrageous to me. I sure hope that is not the cheapest way to the goal. I'm pretty convinced it is not. We just have to get the stars out of the eyes of certain activists who have some personal reason of wanting to ram the thing through Bryn Mawr and don't ask for alternatives.

http://metrocouncil.org/Transportati...LRT/Route.aspx
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Old 07-27-2013, 10:39 PM
 
Location: Twin Cities
367 posts, read 546,249 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RC01 View Post

Also, are they doing any work on the 35W 494 interchange? I always hate driving through that one with the stupid wall that it forces you to squeeze through.

Although 494 is currently being reconstructed to add a fourth lane westbound between 35W and Highway 100, the interchange at 35W unfortunately is not part of the project. However, this awful intersection should be improved in the near future. The flyover concept that was originally proposed there was scrapped due to cost, but the new "turbine" approach that will likely get approved should make navigating this stretch much better. The link below has more details.

Street construction: I-35W/I-494 Interchange Improvements
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Old 07-28-2013, 12:57 PM
 
Location: Minnesota
5,147 posts, read 7,482,323 times
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I don't know why, but this makes me think of the history of the Crosstown when politics put the huge swerve into I35 and the shared roadway that was then a traffic pain for decade after decade. Now it seems this confounded SW light rail is a clash of interests and egoes with a very good chance some really annoying "solution" will be forced.

Tensions rise as Twin Cities nears decision on Southwest Corridor light-rail line | StarTribune.com
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Old 07-28-2013, 04:48 PM
 
1,000 posts, read 1,866,157 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Beenhere4ever View Post
I don't know why, but this makes me think of the history of the Crosstown when politics put the huge swerve into I35 and the shared roadway that was then a traffic pain for decade after decade. Now it seems this confounded SW light rail is a clash of interests and egoes with a very good chance some really annoying "solution" will be forced.

Tensions rise as Twin Cities nears decision on Southwest Corridor light-rail line | StarTribune.com
I can't stand this project anymore.
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Old 07-28-2013, 04:54 PM
 
573 posts, read 1,051,053 times
Reputation: 481
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beenhere4ever View Post
Southwest LRT costs jump again to up to $1.82 billion | StarTribune.com

I really think it is time for Metro Transit to seriously consider the question "What is the most affordable way to get from downtowns to the SW suburbs". Yeh, sure, the feds will finance hundreds of millions. But everyone please remember that is STILL a burden on taxpayers. We shouldn't be making decisions on "maxing federal money". Efficient ways of loosening up the traffic jams should be the benchmark. Call me crazy, but $1.82 billion sounds outrageous to me. I sure hope that is not the cheapest way to the goal. I'm pretty convinced it is not. We just have to get the stars out of the eyes of certain activists who have some personal reason of wanting to ram the thing through Bryn Mawr and don't ask for alternatives.

Metropolitan Council - Route
If federal money is not spent on our transportation network than what will it be spent on? Somebody else's? But hey, we can hold are head up high knowing that we didn't use federal money here.
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