Frequently Asked Questions
Question: Why is the construction of a new interchange at Highway 52/65th Street
being proposed?
Answer: Without an interchange at Highway 52/65th Street, adjacent
interchanges will not have enough capacity to accommodate future year 2035 traffic
volumes. An interchange at this location, along with other local road improvements
and auxiliary lanes, will help to balance the future traffic volumes between interchanges
and avoid overloads at the Highway 52/55th Street interchange.
Engineering design and environmental documentation for the Highway 52/65th Street
Interchange project are currently underway and the project is proposed for construction
in 2012.
Question: Are there access spacing issues along Highway 52 if a new interchange
is constructed at 65th Street?
Answer: The approximate distance between 55th Street and 65th Street
is one mile and the approximate distance between 65th Street and 75th Street is
one mile. Since this area of Rochester is considered a developing area in an urban
setting, the proposed 65th Street interchange would meet Mn/DOT’s access spacing
guidelines. However, a complete system of frontage roads and/or auxiliary lanes
along Highway 52 becomes more important when interchanges are closely spaced, to
minimize weaving and congestion on the mainline of the freeway.
Question: Why is the reconstruction of the Highway 52/55th Street interchange
being proposed?
Answer: The current interchange configuration will not be able
to accommodate the projected year 2035 traffic volumes on 55th Street. A new single-point
interchange configuration, coupled with additional through-lanes and turn lanes
in each direction on 55th Street will provide the needed capacity for the future
traffic volumes.
Question: Why is the realignment of the East Frontage Road (Bandel Road) being
proposed?
Answer: Realignment of the East Frontage Road (Bandel Road) is
needed to provide more distance between the Highway 52/55th Street interchange and
the intersection of 55th Street/East Frontage Road (Bandel Road). The increase in
distance will allow additional turn lane storage and more efficient traffic flow
on 55th Street.
Question: What is the status of the proposed West Frontage Road?
Answer: Currently, there are no plans for construction of a west
frontage road along either the Clearwater Road or Chateau Road alignment within
the NRTS 2035 timeframe. This decision was made based on public input, examination
of social impacts of the west frontage road, and further evaluation of auxiliary
lanes on Highway 52 between 55th and 65th Streets as a project alternative that
provides acceptable traffic operations without construction of a west frontage road.
Question: Will there be auxiliary lanes constructed along Highway 52?
Answer: Auxiliary lanes along Highway 52 between 55th and 65th
Street will be constructed as part of the Highway 52/65th Street Interchange project.
Question: Why is it important to keep local traffic off of Highway 52?
Answer: Highway 52 is considered a high priority regional corridor,
with the main purpose of providing efficient connections between regional trade
centers (i.e. Rochester to the Twin Cities). The safety, efficiency and capacity
of this corridor are considered vital to the economic health of Minnesota. As this
corridor becomes congested and less safe for travel, the cost of transporting goods
and services between the trade centers increases. By introducing local trips, additional
weaving on the freeway is created which decreases speed and safety along Highway
52.
Question: How many homes are proposed for acquisition and when will these homes
be acquired?
Answer: A total of 9 properties will be affected by realignment
of the East Frontage Road (3 of the 9 are residential properties that may need to
be acquired). A total of 4 properties are affected by the 65th Street interchange
(none of which are residential properties).
Property acquisitions can begin once the State of Minnesota and/or Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA) approves the environmental documentation for individual projects
and funding becomes available.
Question: What considerations are being made for bicyclists and pedestrians
as part of the NRTS?
Answer: Trails are currently proposed along both sides of 55th
Street and one side of 65th Street west of the proposed interchange.
Question: How will the proposed improvements affect air quality?
Answer: The construction of the recommended improvements is not
anticipated to adversely affect air pollution in the area. Air pollution is typically
at its worst when vehicles experience delays and are forced to idle. They NRTS shows
that recommended improvements will actually reduce vehicle hours and vehicle miles
traveled, thereby reducing delays and minimizing air pollution within the study
area.
Question: How much will noise levels increase with the construction of the recommended
improvements?
Answer: As part of the environmental documentation for each future
project, a noise analysis will be conducted to determine noise levels and if there
is a need for noise mitigation.
Question: What is the schedule for the NRTS project?
Answer: The NRTS has been completed and project phasing/staging
was developed as part of the NRTS and will be documented in Technical Memorandum
6. Environmental document(s) will be prepared on a project by project basis.
Question: How will project staging/phasing be determined?
Answer: The project phasing/staging plan has been developed by
the Project Management Team. Staging/phasing of the project was determined by analyzing
which features of the project provide the most operational benefit, determining
which features of the project are funded, and ensuring that the improvements fit
into the long range plan for the area.
Question: How will these improvements be funded?
Answer: There is funding currently available for portions of the
project. The City of Rochester has set aside funds for the construction of the ramps
at the 65th Street interchange, for portions of 65th Street west of the proposed
interchange and for 55th Street improvements in the proximity of Highway 52. However,
funding for remaining improvements needs to be identified and secured.
Question: Who should I contact if I have further questions about the project?