A portion of Hwy. 7 in the west Twin Cities metro area shut down Wednesday night, and it won’t reopen until Monday.
The closure between Vine Hill Road and County Road 101 and passing in front of Minnetonka High School will put about 40,000 drivers a day on detour, according to Minnesota Department of Transportation traffic counts.
Crews are replacing a failing culvert under the highway that is creating a sinkhole, MnDOT said.
Motorists are being directed to use Interstate 494, Hwy. 5 and Hwy. 41 to get around the closure.
Weather permitting, the highway will reopen at 5 a.m. Monday.
Next week, MnDOT will close a section of Hwy. 13 in Mendota Heights for a week.
Traffic won’t be able to use the highway between Wachtler Avenue and Sylvandale Road from 9:30 a.m. Monday until 9:30 p.m. Oct. 24.
The closure is necessary for planting and erosion control work, MnDOT said.
