When will the Highway 52 madness ever end?
Aug. 18—Oh, Wise Answer Man: What is MnDOT doing? Traveling U.S. Highway 52 is a nightmare. In three different segments, they have created two-lane traffic (one lane in each direction) for miles and miles. With better planning and consideration this disruption did not have to affect so much of this heavily-traveled corridor. And frankly, I question the need for so much of the road even needing replacement at this time.
And, MnDOT's decision making is not limited to Highway 52. As you drive west of Interstate 35 on U.S. Highway 14, there are miles of orange cones blocking one lane on the way to the Waseca exit, yet there is no construction occurring and the second lane is simply being blocked for no reason. What is MnDOT doing? — Judy the Frustrated Driver.
Ah, Judy,
Like you, I've both driven west on Highway 14 and north on Highway 52 this summer. Answer Man must also suffer the indignity of getting stuck behind someone driving 4 mph under the speed limit (Is there anything more infuriating?) with no way to pass.
Alas, each year we must deal with that one season of the year that impedes our travel more than any other. No, not winter. I speak, of course, of "construction season." It generally runs from around early May until the snow sends earth movers and steamrollers into hibernation for the winter. You know, sometime around early November.
This year is no different.
I'll admit, one day I did see some crews out along Highway 14 in Steele County on my way to Waseca. But there were other days when my trip westward saw nary a sign of construction activity beyond the orange cones and the guy in the old pickup truck doing 51 mph in a 55 work zone.
Cindy Morgan, public engagement coordinator with MnDOT District 6 said that Highway 14 project was part of a wide-ranging concrete repair project. As for why those cones or barrels were set out during times when no one was working, she added that getting the lane barriers in place takes a lot of time and effort, and the contractor has to get them out there when they can, minimizing disruption as best they can.
Now, on to Highway 52.
Yes, this year has seen
quite a few lane reductions
for anyone traveling from Rochester to the Twin Cities. From just north of Cannon Falls through Hampton to Coates is an 18-mile stretch of resurfacing that began this year and will be completed in 2024.
Meanwhile, there are two sections from Zumbrota to Cannon Falls that are being worked on this summer. Heading north, section one goes from Goodhue County Road 68 near Zumbrota to just north of Goodhue County Road 50, and section two from around Goodhue County Road 9 to Goodhue County Road 24 at the south end of Cannon Falls.
Lane reduction on this section began in mid-April, and MnDOT does not expect that to end until mid-November.
Here's the good news, while the Cannon Falls to Coates project continues in 2024, the three-year Zumbrota to Cannon Falls section will be done this year.
Even better news, once that 2024 construction up in Dakota County is done, the major stretch of Highway 52 from Rochester to the Twin Cities will be construction-free for a few years. That is until 2027.
In 2027, MnDOT is planning to resurface Highway 52, mostly from north of Rochester — skipping a small section on the north end of Oronoco — through Pine Island and up to the Minnesota Highway 60 interchange south of Zumbrota. Right now, MnDOT is only looking to repave the road, but it's hoping to get funding to do other projects while the road is closed such as a southbound frontage road from Goodhue County Road 11 in Pine Island and some flood mitigation along the Middle Fork of the Zumbro River.
But wait, there's more. MnDOT has a couple of studies for future Highway 52 projects. One is located in St. Paul where we all have to do that weird turn to get on Interstate 94 or connect with Interstate 35E just across the Mississippi River. Another, closer to home, is a study that just started about
potential changes between Zumbrota and Hader.
Morgan said the project — which has no funding attached, no time table and no defined scope as of yet — would take care of some issues that were sort of left over from the 2021-2023 Zumbrota to Cannon Falls project. If you'd like to comment on that study, you can go to the MnDOT District 6 projects website and scroll down to "
Hwy 52 — Hader to Zumbrota Study.
"
So, yes, there will soon be a break of construction on Highway 52. Well, that's if you consider 2025 to be "soon."
In the meantime, leave a little early, make friends with your brake pedal, and when you're stuck behind that guy in pickup doing 51 mph in a 55 zone, take a deep breath and embrace your Zen. We'll all get where we're going eventually.
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