Travel Midwest News Items

The long-awaited new interchange at US-169 and 101st Avenue in northwest Brooklyn Park opened to traffic around 10 a.m. this morning. The new interchange features a new bridge to carry 101st Avenue traffic over US-169 along with new ramps and loops between US-169 and 101st Avenue. Work also included resurfacing of 101st Avenue between Jefferson Highway and Xylon Avenue and construction of multi-use trails, sidewalks and storm water drainage.

Construction of the new interchange began this spring in March. The new interchange will improve transportation and safety for local and regional traffic in the northwest metro region of the Twin Cities. It will also improve access to US-169 in Brooklyn Park, southern Champlin, eastern Maple Grove and Osseo as well as foster economic development along US-169 and MN-610.

Some additional landscaping and cleanup work will be completed in the spring of 2021.

Road work continues to be a critical service. MnDOT is committed to protecting the health, safety and well-being of its employees, contractors and all Minnesotans. Crews continue to follow the guidance of state and federal health officials to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

For traffic and travel information in Minnesota, visit 511mn.org 

The Illinois Department of Transportation, under the leadership of Gov. JB Pritzker and Acting Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman, met the challenges of COVID-19 in 2020, ensuring the state’s supply chain stayed functioning, keeping projects on schedule and delivering the first full year of the historic Rebuild Illinois capital program.

“This year tested our agency like no other in our history,” Osman said. “I’m extremely proud of the role IDOT played during this pandemic to keep Illinois safe in 2020. Despite the challenges, the work we accomplished this past year will have a positive impact for generations to come.”

Over the next six years, IDOT is planning to improve more than 3,300 miles of highway and 8.4 million square feet of bridge deck as part of Rebuild Illinois, which is investing $33.2 billion into all modes of transportation. Year One included approximately $2.7 billion of improvements statewide on 1,706 miles of highway, 128 bridges and 228 additional safety improvements

Click here for more details. 

Major Projects
Jane Byrne Interchange

Interstate 255

IDOT 101: Get it together during winter weather

With the snow and ice season in full swing, it is important for motorists to be mindful of winter driving skills and build extra time into their schedules in the months ahead. As part of the “Winter Weather – Get it Together” campaign, travelers are encouraged to follow the tips in this short video.

Click here for more winter weather tips

Heavy haul in the Metro East

District 8 helped Phillips 66 move three reactor vessels to its Wood River refinery on Dec. 15 and 21. One was 52 feet long and 500,000 pounds. The other two were more than 200 feet long and more than 3 million pounds.

Fabricated in Italy, the shipment came across the Atlantic Ocean and up the Mississippi River from the Port of New Orleans before being moved through the Metro East. The reactors will upgrade an existing process unit to enable better gasoline and diesel yields.

District Updates

Work in District 1 to reconstruct Weber Road in the Will County villages of Romeoville and Bolingbrook, including its interchange with Interstate 55, has entered the project’s next stage. All traffic has been shifted to the newly widened lanes of southbound Weber Road and the new bridge over I-55.
 
Work will now focus on reconstruction of Weber’s northbound lanes and rehabilitating the existing bridge over I-55 in preparation to convert the existing diamond interchange into a diverging diamond interchange. The project will result in improved safety, increased capacity along with reduced traffic delays and decreased maintenance needs.
 
The $48 million project is estimated to be completed in mid-2022.

Click here to learn more about the project.

In District 6, a new overpass opened in December that will improve safety and keep commerce flowing in Williamsville. It carries Valor Parkway over the Union Pacific Railroad and provides direct access to Old Route 66. The project is made possible by efforts to enhance passenger rail service on the Chicago-St. Louis corridor.

 
The $9.1 million project, which IDOT invested $2.2 million and the Illinois Commerce Commission provided $5.1 million, assures access through Williamsville without delays from passing trains.

Effective January 9, 2021, at 12:01 a.m., Wisconsin's frozen road declaration will expand to include regions designated by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) as Zone 2 (View map: https://wisdot.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=2e56b5b256124198b0be2c4815c42a18.) It means that effective Saturday, the frozen road law will apply to roughly the northern half of Wisconsin. The frozen road determination for the southern portion of the state will be made once conditions warrant.

The frozen road law allows heavier loads for trucks carrying logs cut crosswise (not including woodchips), and salt and sand for winter maintenance while cold weather allows.

WisDOT and county highway personnel monitor temperature forecasts, along with frost tubes -- liquid-filled devices under pavement -- to help determine when roads are adequately frozen to accommodate heavier loads. This video shows how WisDOT monitors field conditions to verify frost depths: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGvOoYYKAS0

The declaration is issued once the ground under highway pavement is frozen to a depth of at least 18 inches, allowing the maximum gross weight for trucks hauling logs or salt and sand for maintaining roads in winter to go up to 98,000 pounds on vehicles with a minimum of five axles (from the normal 80,000 pounds). Special permits for hauling the increased weights are not required in the declared zones, but vehicles must be legally licensed at 80,000 pounds to handle the increased weights. The higher weight limits do not apply to county or local roads unless authorized by the local agency having maintenance authority. Also, higher weights may not be transported on any highways or bridges specifically posted for lower weight limits.

The “Motor carrier/trucker” section of the WisDOT website contains comprehensive information impacting commercial motor vehicle operators including weight restriction programs and frozen road declaration. Customers can also check a recorded message on the Frozen Road Hotline at (608) 266-8417. Haulers with specific questions can contact WisDOT’s Oversize/Overweight Permits Unit at (608) 266-7320.

As another winter travel season approaches, the Wisconsin State Patrol’s December Law of the Month reminds motorists to be extra cautious when driving near snowplows. Over the last decade in Wisconsin (2010 – 2019), there have been 3,152 snowplow-related crashes resulting in 388 people injured and three fatalities.

 “Many crashes between snowplows and other vehicles occur when the snowplow is rear-ended, usually by a driver travelling too fast for conditions,” Wisconsin State Patrol Captain Anne Maxson, with the Southeast Region Post in Waukesha, said. “For everyone’s safety, drivers should avoid travel during severe winter storms to allow snowplow operators to make their rounds. When driving in the vicinity of a working snowplow, give it plenty of room.”

 State law (346.915) requires drivers to stay at least 200 feet behind a snowplow engaged in snow/ice removal upon any highway with a posted speed limit of more than 35 mph. Violations can result in a $175 fine and assessment of three demerit points.

 The State Patrol offers these additional safety tips:

• Snow means slow. Allow extra travel time, following distance and reduce your speed during wintry travel conditions.
  

• If you must pass, be careful. Snowplows often create a cloud of snow that can obscure vision. Also, road conditions in front of the plow will likely be worse.
  

• Motorists and vehicles that become stranded during winter storm events become major hazards that interfere with snow removal efforts. Again, if possible, stay off roads during severe winter weather and wait until conditions improve. 

Under a century-old partnership, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation contracts with all 72 county highway departments to handle winter maintenance duties on the state highway system (all numbered highways). 

“Snowplow operators work during challenging weather conditions to help keep roadways as safe as possible for all of us,” Captain Maxson said. “Motorists can help by giving snowplows plenty of room to operate and by staying off the roads during severe winter storms.”

This document can be found on the WisDOT website.

Keep Us Alive Drive 45 is our commitment to keep workers and motorists safe in work zones. Each year, many people are killed in construction zone accidents, both commuters and workers. Please abide the posted speed limit in work zones. When workers are present, it's 45 M.P.H. - It's The Law.

Join us in our pledge to increase awareness and promote safe driving in our work zones by displaying an orange ribbon. Together we can make our roadways a safer place to commute and work. With your help, we can see to it that a construction zone is not an end zone.