ROSEVILLE, Minn. - As many as 127,000 vehicles use Interstate 35W north of Highway 36 every day.
Yet those who drive I-35W between Roseville and Blaine know it's not always the most free-flowing option.
"It sucks," complained Joe Arrowsmith, who frequents the stretch often. "Feels like you're never moving."
But help may finally be on the way. The Minnesota Department of Transportation wants to add a MnPASS lane in both directions.
"People are saying things like, 'it's about
MnPASS allows buses and carpoolers to use it for free, but people driving alone could pay a fee to use it too, just like they do in the west and south metros.
Here's the catch, it's estimated to cost $120 to $180 million, in part because it's a 10-mile stretch. Other options would cost even more, says Dahlke.
"Anything beyond those one lanes we would have to go outside of that right of way and we would have to purchase homes and property, and it would be a lot more expansive and less effective that what we're doing right now," she said.
The cost doesn't seem to frighten a few of I-35W's daily travelers who, at the end of the day, wouldn't mind spending money to save some time.
"I know they use it south of the cities. If I lived down there, I'd be on it all the time," said Arrowsmith.
"35W is congested all the time, and a MnPASS four lanes there would be so nice," added driver Luke Nelson.
That said, it may be a few years before it happens. The money still has to be approved by the Legislature. And then MnDOT will hold informational meetings, along with doing environmental studies.
If all goes to plan, construction could start in 2019 and it would last about three years, said Dahlke.
Click here for more information about MnPASS.
