The drama was confined to the latter stages of the rush hour with an impressive truck fire on northbound 35E at 80 Street just after 8:30 a.m. The State Patrol briefly shut down both northbound lanes, but opened one of them about 15 minutes later. Crews are still on the scene, so expect minor delays as you pass by.
In Arden Hills, the ramp from eastbound 694 to southbound 35W remains closed. A driver went off the ramp and landed in the ditch. MnDOT says there is no word about injuries as rescue workers try to extricate the wayward motorist.
The usual congestion formed on northbound 35W around 8 a.m. between County Road 42 and the 494 interchange, but nothing out of the ordinary. Across the metro traffic moved well and the system saw few accidents to tangle traffic.
Metro Transit experienced delays on the Northstar Commuter train. A stalled freight train blocked one of the tracks between Anoka and Coon Rapids. That meant freight trains and the passenger rail were sharing a track, which ultimately led to a 20-minute delay for the third inbound run.
The reverse commute to Big Lake was also behind schedule, Metro Transit said.
