BLAINE, Minn. — The Highway 65 corridor that runs through Blaine is often considered one of the worst areas in the state when it comes to accidents.
On Tuesday afternoon, city leaders in Blaine invited several county, state and federal lawmakers to see the problem for themselves.
"It's embarrassing the shape that trunk [of] Highway 65 is in,” Blaine Mayor Tim Sanders said.
According to state officials, ten of the state's 31 worst intersections are on Highway 65 near Blaine.
"This corridor has crash problems. Sometimes eight times higher than the average that it should,” MnDOT area manager Melissa Barnes explained.
Looking into KARE 11's archives, several serious crashes were reported on Highway 65 over the years.
Those crashes include a deadly crash near Fridley where the driver crossed into oncoming traffic, a crash in 2019 in Blaine where a jeep slammed into a Metro Mobility bus and tipped it over, and another crash that same year in Blaine where an ambulance was hit while turning onto the highway.
"We average ten calls a day in Blaine alone, on Highway 65. Ten calls a day, that we are tying up resources, that we are going to help people who have been in a crash, who may be hurt, who may be killed,” Blaine Police Chief Brian Podany told KARE 11.
City and county leaders are worried about even more crashes in the coming years.
According to city officials, the population in Blaine is now over 72,000.
It’s an increase of about 15,000 people compared to ten years ago.
The area also sees around seven million visitors a year, many of them driving in on Highway 65.
"Some of these communities have doubled in size in the past 20 years. Doubled in size, can you imagine that? But our infrastructure hasn't changed,” Blaine City Council member Jess Robertson said.
City leaders say reconstructing Highway 65 will cost around $163 million. Right now, they only have about $23 million locked in, which is why local officials are pleading their case to local lawmakers so they can hopefully secure more funding in the coming years.
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