Weekend traffic disruptions: Hwy. 100, I-35E and Minneapolis Marathon

Another weekend closure of Hwy. 100 in St. Louis Park and a partial closure of I-35E are the major road closings on tap, but several large events including the running of the Minneapolis Marathon will bring street closures and detours for motorists.

The Minnesota Twins sporting a five-game winning streak play the Toronto Blue Jays at 7 p.m. Friday and 1:10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Target Field in downtown Minneapolis.

Vee Corporation brings its new family show, "Hello Kitty's Supercute Friendship Festival" to the Target Center with performances at 7 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. The Crossfit Games at the Minneapolis Convention Center will also bring extra traffic into downtown over the weekend.

A number of bicyclists will converge on Minnehaha Park for the Twin Cities Tour de Cure presented by Real Appeal, a fundraiser of the American Diabetes Association. The event on Saturday begins at 6 a.m. with a post-ride party at 11 a.m.

With lots of construction going on, transit might not be a bad way to get around this weekend. All light-rail and Northstar Commuter trains will follow weekend schedules as normal. No bus service disruptions are scheduled, but check Metro Transit's Rider Alerts page for route-specific detours and changes in place due to construction and detours. Some routes will be affected Saturday morning and early afternoon by the Minneapolis Marathon. See details on road closures below.

For those traveling by car, here is what you'll need to know to get around and avoid any traffic hassles.

Hwy. 100 in St. Louis Park

During the closure, traffic will be detoured via I-394, Hwy. 169 and Crosstown. What's happening? Trucks will be delivering steel for the new bridge. It's all part of a remake of Hwy. 100 that includes adding an auxiliary lane, reconfiguring and reconstructing the Minnetonka Boulevard and Hwy. 7 bridges and ramps, and building noise walls along the 1.6 mile stretch of road.

I-35E in St. Paul

Motorists already experienced the first changes in the area of Maryland Avenue this week when the southbound lanes went from three down to two. That configuration will be in place until late summer or early fall, MnDOT says.

For this weekend, the two southbound lanes will remain open, but northbound will be closed from I-94 up to Cayuga Street. The section of freeway shuts down at 9 p.m. Friday and will reopen at 5 a.m. Monday. The ramps off of I-94 to northbound 35E will close at 8 p.m. Friday.

Detour: Eastbound 94 drivers will go over to northbound/westbound I-694 to northbound I-35E. Motorists on westbound I-94 will be detoured to northbound Hwy. 280, northbound I-35W then east on I-694 to access northbound I-35E. It's a long detour. Using Hwy. 61 is a possible alternate, but there are some stoplights along the way that could make that a slow trip.

A reminder that further north, a number of ramps are closed due to the rebuilding of I-35E and the addition of the new HOT lane. Here is what is closed until fall:

Snelling Avenue in St. Paul

This is not new, but a reminder for folks traveling in the Midway area of St. Paul. Snelling Avenue over I-94 is closed until late August. Traffic is being routed over to Lexington Avenue or along the official detour on Marshall and University Avenues, Vandalia Street and Cretin Avenue.

I-494 in Plymouth

The beat goes on for drivers on this west metro freeway as MnDOT rebuilds I-494 from the Fish Lake Interchange down to Hwy. 55 continues. Two northbound lanes will be open and one southbound lane open Friday afternoon until Sunday afternoon. That's when MnDOT will slide the moveable barrier over to create a second southbound lane to accommodate folks returning from out of town. From Sunday afternoon until Monday afternoon, northbound traffic will be restricted to one lane.

In the same area, Hennepin County Road 47 between Yucca Lane and Teakwood Lane will be closed to traffic until late May. The closure is needed while crews reconstruct the southbound side of I-494 over County Road 47.

Here is the detour:

Hwy. 5/West 7th Street near Ft. Snelling

This has been quite a nightmare for drivers trying to get to and from the MSP Airport as the road is down to a single lane in both directions between Ft. Snelling (Hwy. 55) to Shepard Road.

Additionally, eastbound Hwy. 5 ramps to Edgcumbe Road, Shepard Road and Mississippi River Boulevard are closed through late September.

Also look for single lane action in the area of Maynard Drive as crews fix a water main.

The best alternate might be to take I-35E to cross the Mississippi River, then scoot over on Hwy. 110 and skip W. 7th Street altogether.

Hwy. 10 in Ramsey

Hwy. 10 near Armstrong Boulevard may have congestion related delays through October while Armstrong Boulevard is closed north of Hwy 10. A link to detours for drivers needing alternate routes can be found here.

Kellogg Boulevard in downtown St. Paul

During the closure, motorists will be directed to use 7th Street and Robert Street.

Minnehaha Avenue in south Minneapolis

The intersection of Minnehaha Avenue and 45th Street closed earlier this week and won't reopen until mid-June. This closure is necessary to complete utility improvements and reconstruct the intersection.
The intersections at 46th Street and 44th Street will remain open to traffic. The existing detours for northbound and southbound traffic on Minnehaha south of 42nd Street will remain in place.

Minnehaha Parkway

Eastbound West Minnehaha Parkway from Bryant Ave. S. to Lyndale Ave. S. will be closed through Saturday for emergency sanitary sewer repairs. The parkway will reopen as soon as possible after repairs are complete. Traffic will be detoured onto Bryant Ave. S. to West 54th Street during the repairs with detour signage clearly posted. All trails and sidewalks will remain open.

The big races, a full marathon, half marathon and takes place primarily along the Mississippi River and on some streets on the city's north side. A number of neighborhood-specific detours also will be in place along with restrictions on reaching places such as North Memorial Medical, Theodore Wirth Golf Course and residences in the area of the Stone Arch Bridge. Closures will be in place from 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

I-94 in St. Michael

Motorists heading out of town for the weekend might encounter delays on I-94. The same is true on the return trip. MnDOT is repaving the freeway between Hwy. 241 in St. Michael and County Road 18 near Monticello. Nightly lane closures will be in place from 7 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. while crews resurface nine miles of the roadway. Also be aware of a lane shift near the Crow River Bridge.