Request can be reviewed, but bids go out next month 

The state mill and overlay project of South Broadway from Main Street to Interstate 35 will be sent out for bids at the end of February with plans for a four-lane roadway, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Mike Dougherty, MnDOT spokesman, said the state plans have already been turned in and are being processed to be let for bids on Feb. 27. If Albert Lea city officials, however, want to submit a proposal for a two-lane roadway with a center turning lane — or any other modification — they must request a change order.

The request will be reviewed by a MnDOT team to see if it fits in with the state’s overall plans and whether it will be financially and operationally functional.

“There’s still a lot of uncertainty,” Dougherty said.

South Broadway south of Main Street is also U.S. Highway 65, which is maintained by the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

The comments on Wednesday came after renowned transportation expert Dan Burden’s visit to Albert Lea over the weekend.

Burden, who was in town as part of the Blue Zones Project, gave a series of suggestions about making the roadway safer for motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists. Done in other communities, he said the changes spurred economic development.

In addition to reducing the road from four lanes to two with a turning lane, he suggested roundabouts on Broadway at the intersections with Front Street and Main Street and at the intersection of Newton Avenue and Main Street.

He said Albert Lea’s traffic counts do not warrant having four lanes of traffic and by taking the two lanes of roadway out, there could be bike lanes on both sides and angled parking on one or both sides.

Some of the other suggestions brought up included a raised intersection in front of the Freeborn County courthouse to help with speed and traffic, tree wells, rain gardens and curb extensions.

He proposed turning Pearl Street into a one-way street and implementing angled parking on it.

Burden recognized that some of the suggestions, such as the roundabouts, would not be able to be implemented for several years but noted some of the other changes, that would only require differences in paint striping, could be implemented sooner.

Dougherty said there were many good ideas that came out of Burden’s research. He just wishes they had come sooner.

“As these projects were planned it would have been better to have those weaved into the discussion and in the planning,” he said.

Without any changes, the project is estimated at $4.7 million.

 

MnDOT likes roundabouts

Doughtery noted generally MnDOT is supportive of roundabouts for two major reasons: safety and traffic efficiency.

He said roundabouts reduce right-angle collisions and noted the collisions that do occur at roundabouts are often at lower speeds than if they were at a standard intersection.

Though some people may think they do not work for semis, he said roundabouts have a specific features to make them possible for semis to drive through. An area in the middle of the roundabout that looks like a shoulder or a sloped curb — called a truck apron — actually allows the truck’s trailer tires to roll up on the area and make it easier for them to get through.

He said the MnDOT district that Albert Lea is a part of has MnDOT’s first roundabout. It was constructed more than 10 years ago in Medford and was updated in 2014.

There are also roundabouts north of Rochester on Highway 63 and at an interchange in Cannon Falls on Highway 52. The state will be constructing a new one near Eyota this summer.

The MnDOT website gives information about roundabouts.

“In short, roundabouts are being used because they work well,” it states. “A roundabout used at the right location will get you through the intersection more safely and in less time.”

The website states roundabouts show an 89 percent decrease in fatal crashes, a 74 percent decrease in life-altering crashes and a 39 percent decrease in all crashes.

They handle high levels of traffic with less delay than most stop signs or signals.