Four Lane Highway Comes to Area
Minnesota Highway 23 -- which runs from St. Cloud to Willmar directly through the Chain of Lakes area -- has been called the busiest, most out-of-date two-lane highway in the state of Minnesota.
That is quickly changing. An expansion of the road to a four-lane thoroughfare began in 2001 and is currently underway near Richmond. The highway will eventually be expanded to a four-lane surface from Interstate 94 past Richmond. Construction should last until at least 2004.
The project includes widening the road over 13 miles, constructing a by-pass around Rockville, and replacing two bridges, one in Cold Spring and another in Richmond. Construction costs are estimated at $32.6 million, with another $20 million needed for right-of-way purchases, according to Mike Tavis, an information officer with the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
The first stage of the project, the extension of the four-lane from
I-94 to County Road 140 by Cold Spring, including a by-pass around
Rockville, began in the summer of 2002 and will be completed by the fall
of 2003.
This summer (2003), the second state -- a frontage road on the east side of Cold Spring -- has begun. This frontage road should be completed by fall.
Travis said traffic disruptions and delays should be minimal. Two additional lanes will be built, meaning that traffic can use the existing road until the new lanes are done. Then renovations on the existing lanes can be made.
Extra traffic, especially heavy truck traffic, might be the only noticeable effect on traffic, Travis said. "There shouldn't be a lot of interference," he explained, "because it parallels the extra roadway."
The third and fourth stages also began in 2003 and will be completed in 2004. These stages put four lanes through Cold Spring and Richmond and replace bridges. These bridge replacements will cause the only detours.
"This whole job should be fairly painless, expect through Cold Spring," said Travis.
The four-lane roadway will end just past where Highway 22 veers south through he Chain of Lakes in Richmond.
A separate expansion project will widen Highway 23 from New London to Willmar, but this is not scheduled to begin until 2003.
Stage One
(2001-2002)
7.65-mile segment from I-94 to the
west Junction
of Stearns County Road 140 Near Cold Spring
$13.8
million for construction
$4.4 million for right-of-way acquisiton
$2.1 million for engineering
$20.3 million total
Stage
Two
(2002)
A one-mile section of frontage road
near Cold Spring from
the west junction of Country Road 140 to Chapel Street
$1.4 million for construction
$2.6 million for right-of-way acquisition
$0.2 million for engineering
$4.2 million total
Stage Three
(2003-2004)
A 3.35-mile segment from the west junction of County
Road 140 to
Stearns County Road 158, going through Cold Spring
$9.6 million for construction
$6.3 million for right-of-way acquisition
$1.5 million for engineering
$17.4 million total
Stage Four
(2003-2004)
A 3.1-mile segment from Stearns County Road 158 to
the western city limits in Richmond
$7.7 million for construction
$9.2 million for right-of-way acquistions
$1.2 million for engineering
$18.1 million total
More information about the Highway 23 project is available from the website of the Minnesota Department of Transportation
http://www.dot.state.mn.us/d8/projects/23/
or
call the public affairs officer Cathy Clark at 1-800-657-3971 or the
public affairs officer Mike Travis at 1-800-657-3961.