Traveling In The Twin Cities This Weekend? Be Prepared For The Start Of Road Construction Season

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Several main travel corridors will close this weekend as the Twin Cities construction season enters full swing.

Starting Friday night and lasting throughout the weekend, seven major highways will see closures and delays.

-- In the South Metro, westbound I-494 is closed in both directions between Interstate-35E and Pilot Knob Road, using Interstate-35E to Highway 77 to access westbound I-494.

-- In Minneapolis, I-35W South is closed between I-94 and Highway 62, with I-94W to I-394W and Highway 100 South as a detour.

-- Westbound I-94 is closed between the east junction of I-35E/I-94 and Marion St in St. Paul, with I-35 E, Highway 36 and Highway 280 as a detour.

-- In Anoka, Highway 10 is closed in both directions between Highway 47/Ferry St. and 7th Ave. Westbound and eastbound detours can be found here.

-- In Elk River, Highway 10 is closed in both directions at Highway 10/101/169 interchange in Elk River to remove the northbound Highway 101/169 bridge.

-- In Little Canada, eastbound Highway 36 is closed between Edgerton Street and Highway 61, with I-35E North and I-694 E as a detour.

-- Eastbound I-494 is closed between Highway 5 and I-35E, using Highway 77 to I-35E to access I-494 as a detour.

A cold and rainy April led to the projects all landing on the same weekend, said MnDOT spokesperson Kirsten Klein.

"It was such a long stretch this year," she said. "April seemed cold or rainy, so it didn't seem like a lot of construction was happening in April. Now it's all hitting us like a big whammy."

The work will center on removing bridge decks, repairing concrete, and repairing storm drains. Most weekend closures will be open by 5 a.m. Monday.

"You know, it is kind of a pain when you're driving through road construction," Klein said. "When it's all done, a lot of these projects are going to give us a smoother road or a safer road to drive on, so be patient with us."