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Weekend road closures include the Crosstown, 35W and 169

The Crosstown between Hwy. 100 and I-35W will shut down for the weekend, as will southbound 35W from Hwy. 280 to I-94. The weekend also will bring a closure on Hwy. 169 and Blue Line track work.

By Tim Harlow

July 29, 2013 at 10:13AM

(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The weather forecast is calling for coolish, but pleasant conditions, but even sunny conditions may not make it pleasant for motorists on the roads.

The Penn Avenue Bridge over the Crosstown will come tumbling down. A new bridge repair project gets underway on Hwy. 169 in Bloomington and Shakopee. And a segement of I-35W will shut down for maintenance work and paving continues on northbound Hwy. 169 in Brooklyn Park, Golden Valley and New Hope.

South of the metro, a new paving project on I-35 will begin near Owatonna, Minn. Meanwhile, work on I-35E continues in Eagan and I-694 in Brooklyn Center.

With the Twins out of town and the Lynx off, downtown Minneapolis traffic will be lighter than it was last weekend, although a few thousand fans will take in the inaugural Skyline Music Festival Friday night at Target Field. The headline act is Soul Asylum. The St. Paul Saints host the Gary SouthShore Railcats Friday through Sunday at Midway Stadium.

Metro Transit will resume Blue Line track work Friday through Sunday. See details below.

Here is a rundown of what to expect this weekend:

Crosstown closure

Both directions of the Crosstown Hwy. 62 between Hwy. 100 and I-35W will be shut down from 10 p.m. Friday until 5 a.m. Monday. MnDOT will be taking down the Penn Avenue bridge.

During the closure, eastbound traffic to France Avenue will remain open to allow for access to Fairview Southdale Hospital.

Detour: Westbound traffic will be sent south on 35W to I-494, west to Hwy. 100 and back north to the Crosstown. Eastbound traffic will be detoured south on Hwy. 100 then east on I-494 and north on I-35W to the Crosstown.

Bloomington Ferry Bridge

The crossover lanes have been built over the past couple of weeks and tonight they will be pressed into service. Both directions of Hwy. 169 between Old Shakopee Road and Hwy. 101 will be reduced to a single lane starting at 10 p.m. Friday.

All traffic will be shifted to the northbound lanes for the next two weeks as crews repair joints on the Bloomington Ferry Bridge.

With the closure, the following ramps to southbound Hwy. 169 will be closed:

Pioneer Trail
Old Shakopee Road
Hwy 101
County Road 21

Detour: Since big delays are expected, MnDOT is advising motorists to cross the Minnesota River by using I-35W, Hwy. 101 or Hwy. 41. Signed detours will be posted at ramps for drivers who need to access southbound Hwy. 169.

Also on Hwy. 169

This is another weekend in which the northbound lanes will be shut down from Hwy. 55 up to I-94. The highway through Golden Valley, New Hope and Brooklyn Park will close at 9 p.m. Friday and reopen at 5 a.m. Monday. All ramps along that stretch also will be closed.

Detour: Drivers are being encouraged to use alternate routes such as I-694, I-394, Hwy. 100 and I-494.

Southbound drivers will find Hwy. 169 closed between Hwy. 610 and County Road 81 in Brooklyn Park. The closure starts at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and will last until 5 a.m. Sunday. Crews will be installing beams for the new intersection under construction at Hwy. 169 and 93rd Avenue.

Detour: Motorists should use Hwy. 610 and Hwy. 252 to get around the closure.

I-35W in Roseville/Minneapolis

MnDOT will be doing maintenance on I-35W in Roseville. The southbound lanes will be closed between Hwy. 280 and I-94 in downtown Minneapolis from 5 a.m. Saturday until 5 a.m. Monday.

Crews will be fixing drains, signs, lights and removing trees and vegetation from the roadway.

Detour: Drivers should use southbound Hwy. 280 to westbound I-94.

I-35E in Eagan

It's single lane in both directions between County Road 42 and Cedar Avenue. The speed limit in this work zone is 55 miles per hour.

In addition to the lane restrictions, the following ramps are closed:

Northbound Cedar Avenue to northbound 35E
Northbound 35E to northbound Cedar Avenue
Southbound Cedar Avenue to northbound 35E

South of the metro area

Here is a heads up for drivers heading south for the weekend. A new work project started this week has I-35 down to a single lane in places between Faribault and Owatonna. That's from Steele County Road 4 and State Hwy. 60.

Hwy. 52 will have alternating lane closures from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday from Hwy. 19 in Cannon Falls and E. 145th Street in Rosemount.

I-494 near the MSP Airport

The ongoing reconstruction of the 494/34th Avenue has the ramp from 34th Avenue to eastbound 494 closed. Drivers are being detoured via Airport Lane to 24^th Ave. to the I-494 eastbound entrance.

Minneapolis Parkways

Carifest takes over West River Pkwy. between Plymouth Avenue and Broadway. The fun runs from 8 a.m. to midnight.

Lake Calhoun Pkwy. will be off limits to motorists from 6 a.m. to noon for the Red Cross Run for Blood.

Metro Transit Blue Line Track work
Light-rail trains will not operate between MSP Airport Terminal 2 and the Mall of America in Bloomington from 7 p.m. Friday until 3:30 a.m. Monday. Crews will be removing worn rail material from the tracks.

Route 55 buses will transport riders between the two stations during the shutdown. Trains will operate as scheduled on other portions of the line.

On Friday, Metro Transit will run a special Northstar Commuter train from Big Lake to downtown Minneapolis for the Skyline Music Festival featuring Soul Asylum. Trains will leave Big Lake at 3:06 p.m. and 5:06 p.m. One return trip departs the Target Field Station 30 minutes after the show ends. Here is a schedule.

about the writer

Tim Harlow

Reporter

Tim Harlow covers traffic and transportation issues in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, and likes to get out of the office, even during rush hour. He also covers the suburbs in northern Hennepin and all of Anoka counties, plus breaking news and weather.