Off The Editor’s Desk – 5-15-2019
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Road Construction Season!
It has been told many times that in Wisconsin there are two seasons, Winter and Road Construction. But, we really need some road improvements in our area especially State Highway 170 that connects downtown Glenwood City and downtown Colfax, some twenty miles.
I attended the state information program about planned improvements to Hwy 170 that was held recently at the school in Glenwood City. The plan is to redo the highway from its start in Glenwood City to just east of highway 79 in Boyceville. Included are the installation of stop and go lights at 170 and 79 north in Boyceville. The work is planned next year or the year after, depending on availability of monies.
But if you drove that stretch of road recently, it has been patched with patches on top of patches and I don’t know if my car will be able to take the beating from that highway for the next year let alone a couple of years. Driving from Glenwood City to Downing and beyond the patches are higher than the road surface and if you strike one, you better be holding onto the steering wheel, because your car is going to dive one way or the other. It is a serious condition and may cause an accident and needs to be corrected right now.
The road is not much better to the east of Wheeler. A couple of years back highway 170 was resurfaced from Norton to Colfax so that part is very drivable.
I pray that the state will come up with the money to get it fixed this year. I am willing to pay a few more cents on my gas tax to get this done. Lets make a move, Wisconsin DOT.
I have been asked about the work that is being done on I-94 at the Knapp Hill. From information from the DOT web site it indicates that improvements in both St. Croix and Dunn Counties is at almost 90 million dollars, including the construction of four new bridges and involving the bridges at 390th Street, 650h Street, County Highway K and 250th Street. This improvement project is underway at present, and is scheduled to be completed by November 14, 2019. All four lanes of traffic on I-94 will be open during construction with two lanes of westbound I-94 and two lanes on the temporary roadway. The total project from highway 128 east will not be completed until November 12, 2020.
Also construction is underway on I-94 in St. Croix County that entails the removal of four existing bridges on westbound and eastbound I-94 over 130th Street and the Kinnickinnic River and replacing them with new bridges. The four new bridges will be built wider to accommodate a future six-lane interstate.
Here single lane closures will be used to construct temporary median crossovers and temporary shoulder widening along I-94. But, all four lanes of the highway will be open to traffic for most of the project duration. This project completion date is July of 2020, and has a $17 million dollar price tag.
Thanks for reading! ~Carlton