Enhanced safety efforts lead to a year without a fatal crash on Hwy. 7 in west metro

There is good news to report about a west metro highway that has seen far too many people killed in motor vehicle crashes in recent years.

Last year, not a single person died in a wreck on the stretch of the troubled highway running 18 miles from Hopkins to just west of St. Bonifacius. Traffic mishaps resulting in serious injuries fell to their lowest level in more than five years.

“We are very excited about that,” said Sgt. Adam Moore of the South Lake Minnetonka Police Department and director of the Highway 7 Safety Coalition. “We saved lives on Highway 7 last year.”

Fed up with the carnage, particularly after five fatal crashes in 2024, law enforcement, first responders and leaders in communities along the winding corridor knew something had to be done.

The Highway 7 Safety Coalition was born. Armed with state grant money, the coalition obtained an Acusensus Heads-Up Camera Enforcement System, which uses artificial-intelligence cameras to catch drivers holding their phones or not wearing seat belts.

The system that Moore describes as “high-power binoculars” snaps pictures of passing vehicles. If the system detects a violation, it sends a photo of the vehicle and plate to police within five seconds. Police then can initiate a stop and determine if a violation occurred.

Its presence led police to conduct more than 1,200 stops for suspected distracted driving and 300 stops for motorists not wearing seat belts, a four-fold increase over yearly averages. Officers from several agencies also were out in force to address other dangerous driving behaviors, Moore said.

The battle to keep Hwy. 7 safe is far from over, Moore said.

“What we are doing is working, but it’s only a temporary patch,” he said.

Last year the coalition also shared social media videos on traffic safety created by Minnetonka High School students.

In December, coalition members reviewed each fatal crash to see what fixes could be made. Ideas for short-term solutions included changing the timing of traffic signals and improving lighting at intersections. Long-term suggestions include a concrete center median to separate traffic and roundabouts at some intersections, Moore said.

A similar effort in the 2010s and early 2020s brought several safety improvements to Hwy. 12 through Wayzata, Orono, Maple Plain and Independence. The Highway 12 Safety Coalition pushed hard to get funding to address safety concerns on what it dubbed as the “Corridor of Death.” The efforts brought a concrete median, rumble strips and an overpass and roundabout at the crash-prone County Road 92 intersection.

Of course, that takes money. MnDOT does not have all the money for the recommended improvements.

A survey last summer found traffic crashes and delays were motorists’ top concerns, the agency said

Moore sent a letter to state legislators on Jan. 29 asking them to prioritize and invest in safety improvements for Hwy. 7 to bring changes that will prevent fatal and serious crashes for years to come.