Expect Delays on Highway 610 near Elm Creek Boulevard
Commuters can expect construction to extend into the fall with a slower commute on Highway 610.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MNDOT) will narrow traffic down to one lane in the eastbound direction from Interstate 94 to Elm Creek Boulevard while they install a concrete barrier. The concrete barrier was supposed to be a part of the 610 freeway when it opened.
“Part of the reason for [the closure] is safety,” said Kent Barnard of MNDOT. “We don’t want to come off of the interstate to a single lane, go to two lanes and then pinch everybody down to a single lane before we get to the tunnel.”
The location of the work zone is the segment of 610 over County Road 81 and the railroad tracks.
MNDOT calls this a “semi-major” project and wants commuters to brace for some traffic jams in the coming weeks.
“I think the first few days we’re going to see quite a bit of delay out here until people get adjusted and use alternate routes,” Barnard said. “We look at a third rule. About a third of the traffic disappears. They decide not to travel during that time frame. A third of the traffic uses a different route and a third of the traffic continues on that route.”
Possible detours for drivers are I-94 east or US 10 east.
The construction should last through late October.
According to MNDOT there are no more future projects planned for state highway 610.
