The annual meeting between the City of Crookston and MnDOT was held Wednesday at City Hall. Topics on the agenda include U.S. Highway 2 through downtown, U.S. Highway 2 parklet limited use permit, local partnership program and upcoming projects in the region. 
The discussion on U.S. Highway 2 downtown built on the idea session from Monday night. Traffic volumes through downtown consist of 10,000-15,000 vehicles per day. The concerns include three lanes of traffic encourages higher speeds and lane weaving, the two recent crashes that involved pedestrian injuries, and the lack of a dedicated space for bicyclists to safely access the downtown. There is no current major plan to change Highway 2 downtown, according to MnDOT’s updated 10-year Capital Highway Investment Plan released Wednesday. Here is a link to a map of all projects, including 18 scheduled for Polk County: https://www.dot.state.mn.us/planning/10yearplan/.
Darren Laesch, District 2 Planning Director for MnDOT, said that although there are no current plans, downtown Crookston is an area MnDOT would like to consider more in-depth. To consider a plan, MnDOT would like to see a resolution from Crookston City Council to partake in a joint steering committee along with various representative groups attached to the downtown. “We had a good discussion on Monday, and it’s important to build on that momentum by furthering the discussion to create a vision for what Hwy 2 through Crookston could look like.”
One addition that is being considered in downtown Crookston is a change to the light at the corner of Robert and Broadway explains district traffic engineer Michelle Rogerud, “the idea would be that when the pedestrian pushes the button they would get a leading interval meaning the pedestrian would get a head start to cross the street before the light changed to make them more visible to traffic.” An added function of that light might be to have a flashing no turn on the red light once the pedestrian crossing button has been pushed.
Laesch also updated Crookston officials on their application for a limited use permit to use the parklets along Highway 2 in downtown. According to Laesch, Crookston is the first city in Minnesota to make this request which is why it has taken MnDOT a little longer to respond than normal as they finalize the policy and develop the appropriate language for the permit, but all indications are that parklets will be allowed along Highway 2 in 2019.
MnDOT has also created a new local partnership program. This will be an annual fund that local government can apply to solicit funds from for work that makes improvements to the State Highway system. These funds are anticipated to be used for local government-led projects that require attention but would likely take MnDOT several years to address such as sanitary sewer project, extending a sidewalk or trail and improving an unsafe intersection.
MnDot also released their statewide 10-year plan this week. The release is below –
The Minnesota Department of Transportation today released its 2019-2028 Capital Highway Investment Plan detailing the agency’s planned investments on the state highway network during the next decade.
For 2019-2028, the plan identifies more than 760 pavement projects and nearly 380 bridge projects, as well as other investments that would improve traveler safety and mobility, rest stop and weigh station maintenance, and freight movement “Minnesota has the fifth largest road network in the country with more than 12,000 miles of state highways,” said Commissioner Charlie Zelle. “The Capital Highway Investment Plan helps MnDOT detail investments on the state highway network and improve the transparency of our decision-making processes.” Selecting projects on the state highway system is an annual process, but begins 10 years in advance with the CHIP. The first four years of the plan represent state highway projects in the State Transportation Improvement Program, MnDOT’s construction program that has funding committed to it. In addition, the CHIP identifies projects in the six years after the current STIP, which are the agency’s planned investments. However, the CHIP does not include projects currently under construction. “While projects are not commitments until they reach the STIP, listing potential projects five to 10 years out allows for advanced coordination and input, and, ultimately, better projects for all those served,” Zelle said.
The CHIP also explains any change in priorities or outcomes from the investment direction that have occurred during the previous year.
To learn more about the 10-year CHIP, see www.mndot.gov/planning/10yearplan/.
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