Frigid weather played a role in Monday's commute as vehicle stalled out and black ice formed on some roadways, leading to several crashes that plugged the freeways.
The big trouble spot was on southbound I-35W between Roseville and downtown Minneapolis. Two wrecks at 4th Street and Johnson Street tangled traffic for most of the morning and that spelled big delays for commuters.
Westbound Hwy. 36 didn't move well either as a three car crash at Snelling crammed traffic as far to the east as Hwy. 61.
Northbound 35W also has its issues with crashes and stalls at 26th Street just after 7 a.m. A new wreck at Franklin Avenue in the past few minutes kept things slow. Those incidents made for more than a 30-minute trek from Burnsville to downtown Minneapolis.
Westbound 94 suffered with a crash a Prior Avenue. The four-car misahp led to a traffic jam back to 35E and had the trip to downtown Minneapolis 20 minutes during the middle portion of the rush.
Transit didn't report any issues, but riders were advised to bundle up as windchills sank to minus 20 to minus 25 degrees.
The weather service says the cold snap will continue for the next several days, so dress warm and be sure to keep your car in working order.
That's it for today. I'll be back with more live traffic reports Tuesday morning. And as always, comments and questions about Twin Cities commuting are welcome at drive@startribune.com.
