Commuters in northeast Minneapolis should be able to return to their old commute patterns starting as early as Monday night. Central Avenue/Hwy. 65 between 14th and 18th avenues is set to open sometime after the evening rush hour, the Minnesota Department of Transportation says.
Two lanes in each direction will be available for motor vehicle traffic.
That has been a long time coming. The road has been shut down since last spring while a new BNSF railroad bridge was rebuilt.
In addition to replacing the original railroad bridge, which dated to 1924, the project included new sidewalks and retaining walls. MnDOT was unable to finish all the work due to delays in acquiring, delivering and installing rail materials, and a vehicle fire under the nearly completed bridge delayed reopening the road in the fall.
In the spring of 2015, crews will reduce the road to one lane in each direction to finish the work they were unable to complete this year, MnDOT said.
