Two-year freeway project will disrupt St. Paul traffic

Drivers traveling through downtown St. Paul will get their first taste of two years of challenging commutes Sunday night as the Minnesota Department of Transportation begins a major freeway repair and resurfacing project.

Crews will close the two left lanes in both directions of Interstate 94 between Western Avenue and St. Peter Street at 10 p.m. and won't reopen them until Aug. 21. Lanes on Interstate 35E and Interstate 94 also will close Sunday.

And that's just the start of the $27 million project that will bring lane and ramp closures on I-94, I-35E and local roads for the rest of the summer and all of next year.

"We are going to have pretty substantial lane restrictions out there," said MnDOT spokesman Kent Barnard. "We will do our best to keep two lanes open."

But Barnard also warned that motorists can expect traffic delays and multiple weekends with full freeway closures. Those dates have not been set.

The project will be carried out in three stages. First up is the stretch of I-94 from Western to St. Peter. Next year, MnDOT will tackle the segment on I-94 between Marion Street and I-35E, followed by the final stage on I-94 from I-35E to Mounds Boulevard. Both stages next year will include work on I-35E between I-94 and University Avenue.

With lane layouts to change frequently, Barnard said drivers should check MnDOT's traveler website, 511mn.org, for updates.

"We will get information out there in a timely manner," he said. "It's going to be very busy with a lot of activity."

MnDOT also will resurface the Robert Street bridge over I-35E and ramps and frontage roads along I-94, build new stormwater drainage ponds, upgrade storm sewers, fix sidewalks and upgrade sidewalks and approaches to Americans with Disability Act (ADA) standards. Freeway lighting and signs may be replaced if needed, the agency said.

The plan is to have this season's work completed by the time the State Fair opens Aug. 26, Barnard said. Cones and lane closures will return next spring.

In another east metro closure planned for this weekend only, eastbound I-694 will be closed from Friday night to Monday morning between Hwy. 61 in Maplewood and 10th Street in Oakdale.

Also this weekend, drivers in Bloomington will find both directions of Hwy. 100/Normandale Boulevard closed from 84th Street to the I-494 interchange for bridge painting from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday.

Tim Harlow • 612-673-7768