By Forrest Adams

Known to some as a death trap, the intersection of Highway 5 and Minnewashta Parkway in western Chanhassen is slated to receive $1.9 million of safety upgrades in 2012.

On Feb. 17, the Metropolitan Council Transportation Advisory Board awarded two federal transportation grants to the city of Chanhassen. The first is worth $1 million, the second $900,000. Both are in the area where Minnewashta Parkway intersects with Highway 5 on the border between Victoria and Chanhassen.

By Shannon Fiecke, Correspondent
Having lost out on the last batch of federal stimulus dollars, the next best shot for the Interstate Highway 494 and Highway 169 interchange will come next Wednesday, March 17 at a meeting of an important, but little-publicized advisory board.

The SouthWest Transit Commission, the governing body of the transit system that serves Eden Prairie, Chanhassen and Chaska, has named new officers and also has a new representative. The commission is composed of seven members, an elected official from each of the three cities, an appointed member from each of the cities and a rider representative.

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Transportation:

Motorists may experience delays in both directions of Interstate 494 near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, as well as on westbound Highway 5, due to shoulder closures as crews install temporary signs along the roadways on March 2-3.

Twin Cities metropolitan-area freeway traffic congestion increased slightly between 2008 and 2009, from 17.3 percent to 18.2 percent overall, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation in a report released today.

Agency officials say that many factors affect congestion levels, such as the local economy, population growth, gas prices, transit ridership and vehicle miles traveled.

By Unsie Zuege

Although Minnesota Department of Transportation Commissioner Tom Sorel didn’t provide much new information or timetables for a Highway 212 extension or a major Highway 5 overhaul, he did communicate to the gathering of local officials and citizens that MnDOT is intent on becoming more responsive to the public, more transparent, and more visionary than it has been in the past.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has scheduled an informational open house on the proposed I-169/I-494 interchange reconstruction project from 4-7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, in the Braemar Room at Braemar Golf Course, 6364 John Harris Drive, Edina.

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Transportation:

Motorists may encounter short-term, temporary shoulder closures on various roadways, ramps and loops in the Metro area as crews begin work to replace bulbs in ramp/loop meters beginning Feb. 2.

Crews will replace the current ramp meter bulbs with energy saving LED bulbs. Crews will work between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. No lane or ramp closures will occur.

The project is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and is expected to be completed by late May 2010.

According to a news release from MnDOT, lane closures are underway this afternoon on eastbound 494 because of an emergency inspection of the Xerxes Avenue bridge.

By Forrest Adams

Shrinking revenues from the motor vehicle sales tax and perceived injustices against suburban transit providers have SouthWest Transit officials on edge.

At a transportation summit meeting Jan. 13 in Chaska, the bus transit provider’s CEO, Len Simich, laid out the issues and turned them over to three panels for discussion.

One panel, consisting mostly of local mayors, addressed community transportation needs.