Expect Headaches With 35W Closure This Weekend
MINNEAPOLIS (AP/WCCO) -- Getting around the Twin Cities will be a headache this weekend.
Interstate 35W between downtown Minneapolis and Crosstown Highway 62 will be shut down Friday night through Monday morning -- even though the Minnesota Twins, the Gophers football team and the Minnesota Vikings all have games, and the Twin Cities Marathon is happening.
Gov. Mark Dayton has raised "serious concerns" about potential disruptions. But the Minnesota Department of Transportation is defending its decision.
Related: MnDOT Announces 4-Year Construction Project For Interstate 35W
MnDOT Commissioner Charlie Zelle says his agency regrets any "significant inconveniences" the closing will cause.
But Zelle says the I-35W redesign is complex, and any delay would add costs.
The Star Tribune reports more than 100,000 people are expected to take in a Vikings game, a Twins game and the Twin Cities Marathon -- all on Sunday.
MnDOT has begun a four-and-a-half year project that will overhaul I-35W from just south of Minneapolis to the crosstown. The project will involve major closures in an area that is one of the busiest in the entire Twin Cities metro.
MnDOT says the detour for the next two weekends is Highway 100, which it says should be less congested because the stretch of Highway 169, which has been closed for eight months, is scheduled to reopen this Wednesday.
The $240 million project also includes more reconstruction and improvements on bridges over the freeway, new exit ramps to the Lake Street business district and a new transit hub at Lake Street.
To keep up with the closures over the next four years, here is a link on MnDOT's page for the construction project. That's where you can sign up for those email alerts.
(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)