Motorists can once again use the EZ Pass lanes on Interstate 394 between downtown Minneapolis and Golden Valley.
The reversible lanes reserved for buses, motorcycles, carpools of two people or more and solo drivers who pay to use them reopened Sunday.
But drivers should not get used to a congestion-free ride for long. Come spring, the lanes will be used to handle general traffic as the major construction project that forced their closure resumes.
And motorists will continue to see some overnight closures through December, the Minnesota Department of Transportation said.
MnDOT closed the EZ Pass lanes in July as part of a major bridge and pavement repair project, forcing all traffic into the eastbound and westbound lanes.
About 5,000 vehicles a day use the eastbound EZ Pass lanes near Penn Avenue between 6 and 10 a.m. while more than 14,860 vehicles a day use the general traffic lanes, according to a recent MnDOT report.
The counts showed about 4,450 westbound motorists used the special lanes at Penn Avenue between 3 and 7 p.m. daily while the general traffic lanes handled 20,600 vehicles, the report said.
In February, or as soon as weather allows, all westbound traffic will be shifted into the EZ Pass lanes. Once work on that side of the freeway is completed, eastbound lanes will close, with motorists headed into downtown sharing the EZ Pass lanes.
