As highway construction projects go, this is a big one, with a big head-ache potential. Highway 10 sees more than 60,000 vehicles a day, and now it’s down to one lane in each direction as the two year project to remove stop lights and improve traffic flow and safety gets underway.
“People are going to have to get used to that, it’s going to slow things down. We’re going to have congestion and delays up here,” said MnDOT spokesman Kent Barnard. “One lane in each direction until November.”
The project impacts roughly 2.5 miles of Highway 10 between Seventh Avenue and Thurston in Anoka. Stoplights will be removed at two intersections and overpasses will be built, making Highway Ten work more like a freeway. The bridge over the Rum River will be taken down and rebuilt. Other intersections will be re-aligned.
Lanes closed at the end of March.
“There could be impacts on the rest of the system possibly on Anoka County Road 14, Main Street,” said Barnard. “Round Lake Boulevard will probably see some additional traffic and Bunker Lake Boulevard may get a little extra traffic up in this area. It’s hard to predict in the beginning but we know that traffic has to go somewhere.”
Barnard recommends avoiding the area entirely, which could mean taking Highway 610 and Interstate 94 to the west, instead.
One place where drivers are not wanted, is cutting through Anoka’s neighborhoods. MnDOT is already getting complaints from neighbors worried about the impact. Signs are going up on some possible routes saying they are closed to through traffic.
“It’s a safety issue. We’ve got kids out, potentially playing in the yards and maybe in the streets this summer. We don’t want people racing up and down the city streets. We want people to stay out of the neighborhoods and respect the people that live here,” Barnard said.
Mn-DOT has also reached out to businesses to see what can be done to help get them through the construction. But it won’t be easy.
“It’s definitely going to be challenging for a couple years. Quite honestly,” said Dan Pinewski of Pinewski’s Ski Shop on Main Street.
The store is in the heart of the construction zone. But he also says he’s optimistic about the long term impact on a stretch of highway known for daily back-ups and more than 100 accidents a year. “We know that it’s going to affect our business. But I’m truly looking forward to the end result because the end result is should be fantastic.”
When the work is finished in 2024, one study predicted delays will be reduced by 75 percent.
If you have to travel in that direction, MnDOT suggests checking on road conditions. There are several ways to do that:
Highway 10 webpage: mndot.gov/metro/projects/hwy10-anoka
Telephone the project team: 763-400-3877
Sign up for e-mail updates: info@hwy10anoka.com
