One of the 95 trainees who took part in last week's snowplow training camp at Camp Ripley practices maneuvers. Photo by David Gonzalez

To get ready for the upcoming snow and ice season, Mn/DOT recently held a two-week training camp for snowplow drivers.

The training took place at Camp Ripley, a Minnesota National Guard facility near Little Falls. Mn/DOT brought 95 trainees and 35 trainers from across the state together to get the basics on snowplow operation.

Larry Nelson, Maintenance, was one of the training leaders for the event, which he described as very thorough.    

“This gives everyone here the chance to get the same training, making it consistent across the state,” he said. “And, it saves money because we (Mn/DOT) provide the trainers.”

The standardized training reduces the chance that someone will damage equipment because they were not properly trained, he said. It also allows trainers to reinforce safe driving with the new drivers.

Nelson, along with Brian Barrett, Metro District, developed the instructional program. The new drivers have to pass three tests to graduate, including a road test in the vehicle, a hands-on vehicle inspection test and a written federal motor carrier safety regulation exam.

The trainers developed a team concept for the training class. The new drivers are grouped into teams of approximately 15 members.

“It is about the same size as a truck station,” Nelson said. “It gets the trainees used to working in that size of a group.”

Cordell Bryan (left) and Patrick Nagel, both from the Golden Valley truck station in Metro District, inspect a truck. Photo by Kevin Gutknecht

He added that Camp Ripley is an ideal environment for the training. Mn/DOT built a large training area for the trucks to travel on. There also are several areas that allow the trainees to work on the trucks under some overhead shelter.

The classroom facilities, the barracks and the dining hall are all within walking distance of the training pad.  

The new drivers also take the vehicles out into adjacent communities.  

“We have a great mix of roads here,” Nelson said. “Highways 10 and 371 offer high speed four-lane traffic. And we have lower volume two-lane roads, as well. When we send them into Little Falls, they get to experience traffic very similar to city street traffic.”

“The training is really good at teaching you what to look for to keep safe,” said Cordell Bryan, Metro District. He said he has some experience with a plow. The drivers’ training portion of the camp is very beneficial to those who haven’t driven a big truck before.  

“It lets them drive it before they have to take it out on the road,” he said. “That makes learning much easier.”

This is the second time this year that Mn/DOT has offered this training. In the spring, a smaller group ran through it. This larger group is from Districts 1, 6, 7 and Metro. Some are recent hires and some are Mn/DOT employees identified as optional snowplow drivers. The districts also provided 84 trucks for the training.

Nelson added that Rick Shomion, Maintenance, and Cathy Ashfeld, Metro District, assisted in establishing and running the training.  

By Kevin Gutknecht

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Mn/DOT will pursue options under state law to keep the proposed I-35W/Crosstown highway improvement project on schedule despite recent objections raised by the Minneapolis City Council, Lt. Gov./Commissioner Carol Molnau announced Sept. 30.

"The proposed I-35W/Crosstown project is critical to future commuter and transit mobility in the state's most heavily traveled interstate corridor,” Molnau said in a letter to Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and city council members. “Given its importance to the region and the state, Mn/DOT will pursue actions necessary to keep the project on schedule for beginning construction in 2006."

On Sept. 3, the Minneapolis City Council voted to deny municipal consent to the project, temporarily delaying further project development. The city cited approximately 40 issues of concern, ranging from specific design elements of the project to state and regional transit policy.

Mn/DOT will initiate the municipal consent appeal process as allowed under state law. The law provides for appointment of a three-person appeal board. Mn/DOT will submit the name of its appointee to the city on Oct. 8. Molnau urged the city to follow the same schedule in identifying the city's appointee, so the process can move forward as quickly as possible. The appeal board's third member will be agreed to by Mn/DOT and the city, or appointed by the chief justice of the state Supreme Court. The appeal board will review those concerns raised by the city that are specific to the project and provide a report and recommendations to Molnau.

"In initiating the appeal process," Molnau said, "I want to stress to the city and the region that I believe our common interests and goals for the I-35W corridor are greater than our differences. I am hopeful that, with mutual cooperation, resolution of all issues will be achieved quickly."

The proposed project, stretching from 66th Street in Richfield to 42nd Street in Minneapolis, would eliminate one of the region's most notorious traffic bottlenecks and improve safety, mobility and capacity for commuters and current and future transit service in the corridor. The I-35W/Crosstown commons corridor serves 240,000 vehicle trips daily and has a crash rate double that experienced on similar urban freeway sections.

Gov. Pawlenty, Mn/DOT, the Metropolitan Council, the city of Richfield and other cities and counties in the region support the project.

Molnau also pointed to many areas of agreement with the City of Minneapolis regarding the future of the I-35W corridor, including support for future additional HOV/priority transit lane capacity from 46th Street to downtown, support for access improvements in the Lake Street area, and shared optimism for the potential of Bus Rapid Transit service in the corridor. Molnau said these important issues will not be on the appeal board's agenda, but will continue to be reviewed under appropriate regional, state and legislative policy and funding processes.

For more information see:

• Mn/DOT’s Hot Topics page, http://www.dot.state.mn.us/hot.html.
• Star Tribune article (Oct. 1), http://ihub.clips/archive/04/oct/01/clip01.html
• St. Paul Pioneer Press article (Oct. 1), http://ihub.clips/archive/04/oct/01/clip03.html

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Later this year, watchful pairs of eyes from Mn/DOT will scan the state’s roadways for signs of unusual activity as part of Highway Watch, a new homeland security initiative in Minnesota.

Highway Watch seeks to use the knowledge and experience of professional drivers such as truckers, bus operators and Mn/DOT maintenance and construction employees to spot potential security or safety threats while they’re performing their regular duties.  

Officials from Mn/DOT, the Department of Public Safety and the Minnesota Trucking Association announced the initiative on Sept. 30.

Managers and supervisors received training during the inaugural session to instruct their employees to observe, assess and report unusual or suspicious activities as well as safety hazards.

Employee training will be included with Mn/DOT's ongoing homeland security training or provided by special request.

When trained employees observe something unusual or suspicious, they can call 9-1-1 or a national call center where operators will relay the information to security organizations.

“While truck driving can be full of surprises and challenges, it’s also a job filled with routines—routine routes, routine equipment, even routine faces,” said Joe Belland, a veteran driver with Roadway Express based in Eagan.

”We know what is usual and, more importantly, what is out of place,” he said. “We are in a perfect position to monitor what is going on with our roads, bridges and tunnels.”

The U. S. Department of Homeland Security provides funding for the program that is administered by the American Trucking Association and its Minnesota affiliate.

“Highway Watch builds on the belief that a trained and prepared citizenry is our best defense against terrorism,” said Lt. Gov./Commissioner Carol Molnau. “The program complements the security awareness training already given to more than 3,800 Mn/DOT field employees and adds a vital link to the national reporting.”

By Craig Wilkins

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In news conferences held across the state on Sept. 27, Gov. Tim Pawlenty declared Minnesota as the "renewable fuel capital of America" and announced plans that include requiring gasoline sold in the state to contain 20 percent ethanol—double the current amount—by 2010.

In addition, Pawlenty signed an executive order to have state government reduce its use of gasoline 25 percent by 2010, and 50 percent by 2015.

The governor visited Moorhead, St. Paul, Rochester, Mankato and Pipestone to discuss these initiatives.  

The governor’s proposals would:

• Double the level of ethanol in gas—Currently, Minnesota requires all gasoline sold in the state to include 10 percent ethanol, a fuel produced from crops such as corn, wheat or sugar. The governor will propose legislation in 2005 requiring gasoline sold in Minnesota to contain 20 percent ethanol by 2010.
• Allow hybrid vehicles in high occupancy vehicle lanes—The governor will propose legislation in the 2005 session that will immediately allow single-occupant hybrid cars to use HOV lanes in Minnesota, once the federal government has given permission to states.  
• Purchase hybrid buses and use low sulfur fuel in other buses—The governor is directing the Met Council to add at least 20 hybrid buses to its fleet by 2008. The Met Council currently has three hybrid buses. Hybrid buses get better gas mileage than standard buses and produce significantly fewer emissions.
• Support the University of Minnesota as National Center of Excellence for Biofuels Research—The governor also stated his support to establish the U of M as a National Center of Excellence for Biofuels Research, giving the university an opportunity to seek state and federal aid to come up with additional ways to produce and use renewable fuels.

Read the Governor’s news release for more information.

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Holiday shoppers and travelers will be able to take the Hiawatha light rail transit line to shop in downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America or catch a flight at the airport with completion of the light rail line’s second phase.

The line’s second section will open Dec. 4, a month ahead of schedule. The new section will extend service from Fort Snelling south to the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and the Mall of America.

Extension of the rail line will provide service to the airport’s Lindbergh Terminal and Humphrey Charter Terminal as well the stations for the park-and-ride lot at 28th Avenue at the HealthPartners headquarters building near 34th Avenue, both in Bloomington.

The opening of a 600-space park-and-ride lot at the 28th Avenue station will also serve commuters who work downtown or near other stations along the route.

Since its opening in June, ridership has exceeded projections as the line continues to attract commuters, downtown shoppers and people going to the Metrodome for baseball games, football games and other events in the Minneapolis downtown area.

With the addition of four more miles of rail, the line will reach 12 miles in length. The number of stations along the route will increase to 17.

In August, the line attracted an estimated 476,800 passengers, more than twice the number Metro Transit estimated would use the trains during its first phase when construction was first planned.

Vicki Barron, Mn/DOT’s Hiawatha LRT project manager, said the high ridership levels can be attributed to good planning and a growing demand for quiet, comfortable transit services.

By Craig Wilkins

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Lt. Gov./Commissioner Carol Molnau joined officials from the Bois Forte Indian Reservation, leaders from Duluth/District 1 and others to celebrate completion of the Little Fork River Bridge on Sept. 29. The bridge carries Hwy 65 over the river near the reservation located in Koochiching County.

While the bridge is a Mn/DOT project, the Bois Forte tribe provided three-fourths of its $2 million cost in order to get the project completed sooner. The tribe used $1.5 million in federal Indian Reservation Road funds to replace the old, deficient bridge built in 1924.

Molnau joined Kevin Leecy, tribal chairman, to lead the dedication ceremonies.

John Bray, special assistant to the district engineer at Duluth, said tribal officials and the district partnered on the project because although the bridge is not on tribal land, it does serve as the gateway to the Nett Lake reservation community and as a part of the tribe’s business development strategy.

In 2000, a joint effort by the tribe and the district paved 14 miles of Hwy 65 through the reservation and helped lay groundwork for the bridge project.

Following the bridge dedication, Molnau visited tribal facilities at Nett Lake including a childcare center, a clinic and an assisted-living housing unit for elders.

By Craig Wilkins

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Innovative designs such as the twin roundabouts that connect a county highway with Interstate 35 near Medford earned eight awards for Mn/DOT and Mn/DOT-supported projects in the Federal Highway Administration’s biennial Excellence in Highway Design Awards Program.

The program recognizes excellence in projects such as highways, pedestrian facilities and historic renovations that contribute to safety, mobility and the environment and aesthetics of the world around them.

Since implementation of the National Environmental Protection Act in 1969, Minnesota has received more FHWA awards for design and environmental excellence than any other state.

Mn/DOT earned two excellence awards for the I-35 roundabouts and 15 intermodal transit stations that are part of the new Hiawatha light rail transit line in Minneapolis.  

The roundabouts, the first built on a major highway in Minnesota, were built in conjunction with construction of a new bridge on Steele County Road 12 over I-35 near Medford. The roundabout design reduced costs and provides better safety than the 1958 vintage diamond interchange it replaces.

Staff from Rochester/District 6 and Technical Support worked with the community on the design which effectively handles heavy traffic from a nearby retail outlet mall as well as from growing residential development.

The design also includes details such as a red brick patterned concrete surface that enhances the roundabouts’ visual appeal.

The FHWA cited the Hiawatha LRT stations for their uniqueness and how each design reflects its neighborhood’s history and dominant architectural characteristics.

The station at 38th Street, for example, carries the design theme of the huge grain elevators that dominate the skyline along Hiawatha Avenue. The station on the Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis employs a swooping, playful roofline and other design features that indicate the mall’s role as a shopping and entertainment center.

Rebuilding 23 miles of CSAH 15 in Lake County earned recognition for environmental sensibility. Its design helped minimize ground disturbance. In one section where earthmoving was required, a pond was created that now provides nesting for the area’s wood turtle population.

Mn/DOT earned three merit awards from the FHWA:

• Rebuilding a section of Hwy 22 in St. Peter—Its design balances safety and mobility needs with community and environmental values. The Minnesota River bridge was widened to meet current standards and to create a bicycle and pedestrian trail.
• Rehabilitation of 1930s era “Rustic Style” roadside parking area near Orr in Koochiching County—The parking area on Hwy 53, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, retains its distinctive wood-and-stone construction while improving access and safety for travelers.
• Mill Ruins Park in Minneapolis—The park commemorates the history of the city’s milling district, including the Canal Plank Road whose durable, white oak surfacing follows the alignment of the wooden decking that covered the main inflow canal that powered the mills. It’s a key element in the Great River Road and the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway.

Two projects received honorable mention awards:

• Hwy 169 (Ferry Street) in Anoka—Designers used patterned and colored concrete walls and walkways as a visual cue to reduce traffic speeds and to separate pedestrians and bicyclists from the vehicle lanes. The same pattern was used in raised medians for visual continuity and traffic calming.
• The Southwest Transit Station in Eden Prairie—The station features multi-modal access for riders, an exclusive bus connection with Hwy5/Hwy 212, links to a bike and pedestrian path and shared parking with adjacent shops and restaurants.

By Craig Wilkins

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Lt. Gov./Commissioner Carol Molnau presents a certificate to Alan Klapmeier, Cirrus Design Corporation CEO and co-founder, at the NASAO Conference Sept. 21. Photo by Dan McDowell

A Duluth-based aircraft manufacturer earned special recognition during the annual meeting of the National Association of State Aeronautics Officials held Sept. 18-22 in St. Paul.

Lt. Gov./Commissioner Carol Molnau presented an award to the Cirrus Corporation for its use of such innovations as a parachute that automatically deploys in an emergency and gently lowers the aircraft and its passengers to the ground.

The company started building its line of single-engine aircraft for general aviation use in 1999. Cirrus has become an industry leader because of its aircraft’s performance and other innovative construction. The aircraft features a “glass cockpit” that combines data from several instruments into one easy-to-read screen and wings and fuselages made from composite materials such as fiberglass to increase strength and flexibility.

Ray Rought, director of Aeronautics, served on the host committee. Rought is a past president of the NASAO and currently serves on the board of the association’s Center for Research and Aviation Education.

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