It's going to be a blue ribbon day in the weather department according to meteorologist Paul Douglas and it was that kind of day on the roads this morning. Dry pavement and a smooth flow made the commute an easy go in most places.
One exception was in the northwest metro. A crash that blocked two lanes of eastbound 94 at Brockton Lane in Maple Grove around 8;10 a.m. led to a big backup that stretched back to Hwy. 101. That had the drive at 23 minutes from the Crow River to the Fish Lake Interchange.
At current, that area is flowing freely.
Minor congestion greeted drivers on northbound Hwy. 169 across the Bloomington Ferry Bridge between 7:30 and 8 a.m., but that has cleared out.
At present, the one snag is on westbound Crosstown at Gleason Road. A crash just cleared but traffic slows from Hwy. 100 past the scene.
Road work on the Lafayette Bridge led to a jam on the southbound side and ramp jams from southbound 35E and eastbound 94. Expect that to be a daily occurance through April 20.
A reminder that ramps to and from the Crosstown to Xerxes Avenue close today. MnDOT will redeck the Xerxes Avenue bridge. The closure will be in place until July.
That's it for today. Feel free to send your traffic questions to drive@startribune. ANd as always, check here for information about your morning drive to the office.
