Construction Season In Full Swing In The Twin Cities

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The morning commute may be a bit longer Monday as a number of road construction projects get underway across the metro.

Drivers who use Interstate 694 in the north metro should expect delays starting Monday morning.

Crews will start work to add a third general purpose lane to each direction of I-694 between Rice Street in Little Canada and Lexington Avenue in Arden Hills. MnDOT said the project will last two years and be broken up into two phases in order to keep I-694 open during construction.

Crews will start on the westbound side first.

Two lanes of traffic will be open in each direction. However, the westbound lanes will be separated by a concrete median barrier which means drivers will have to choose a lane at the beginning of the work zone.

Drivers in the left lane will not be able to exit between Rice Street and Westbound Highway 10.

If you drive that stretch at night lane restrictions will be in place from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. during the week.

The same restrictions will take place next year in the eastbound lanes.

Work will also be done on ramps at Lexington Avenue, Victoria Street and Rice Street, so keep an eye out for that.

MnDOT said the I-694 improvements have a $35 million price tag. The project is funded through the Corridor of Commerce program.

A number of other projects are taking place across the metro.

In Rogers, one lane of Interstate 94 will be intermittently closed in both directions except during rush hour.

In Maple Grove, traffic will slow down for a new 610 interchange right outside a shopping center.

And some patience will also be required on I-94 from St. Paul to Woodbury. There will be some holdups near east 7th Street and Mounds Boulevard where crews are making new emergency pull-off areas and doing some repaving.

The list of projects is long, so to see more visit MnDOT online.