3rd Avenue redo in downtown Minneapolis gets underway

Minneapolis city crews on Friday will begin removing the center median on 3rd Avenue S. in downtown Minneapolis, marking the beginning of a redo that will last for the remainder of the 2016 construction season.

The project includes adding protected bike lanes, modify vehicle traffic lanes and provide an improved streetscape between 16th Street and S. 1st Street.

The work will begin on the segment between 16th Street and 12th Street and will bring detours for northbound motorists. One southbound lane will remain open, Minneapolis Public Works department officials said.

Crews will repave the four-block segment, and then move along 3rd Avenue throughout the summer. Motorists should prepare for changing detours as the project moves north, city officials said.

All lanes will reopen to traffic by the end of the construction season, with some final work taking place in 2017.

Here are a few highlights of the redesign:
• Install a protected bicycle lane, creating a north-south bicycle connection through downtown.
• Modify the existing vehicle traffic lanes and turn lanes.
• Provide new greenery and an improved streetscape.