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FL traffic problems not exclusive to Broadway |
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Wednesday, 09 April 2008 |
Jennifer Larson
Staff Writer
Additional funding to address traffic problems on Broadway Avenue could be found in Washington D.C.
During a special workshop in March, the Forest Lake City Council discussed a lobbying effort for federal funds to improve the I-35 and US-8 interchange. Washington County Deputy Director of Public Works Wayne Sandberg said relieving traffic on overused W. Broadway Avenue (CR-2) is not an isolated issue.
He said that federal traffic officials, who consider the interchange outdated, underutilized and unsafe for current speeds, continue to press the county to address I-35 and Highway 8.
“The problem is bigger than Broadway,” Sandberg told the city council last month. “(Highway) 8 is one piece of that puzzle.”
However, he noted that every time they talk about a solution to Broadway Avenue, federal engineers question how that effects Highway 8.
And they have yet to take a tough look at that part, Sandberg said.
He referred to the Highway 8 interchange as incomplete. Currently, it offers no access to the west into Anoka County and southbound Highway 8 drivers cannot go northbound on I-35.
“It creates a hazard,” said Mayor Stev Stegner, who suggested something be done to improve interchange safety.
Sandberg said approximately $2 million is needed to hire a consultant to take an extensive look at the interchange and work with federal and state engineers.
He added that an area wide transportation study should be done in order to come up with scenarios to determine how the flow of traffic in Forest Lake would be affected.
“We need to come up with some alternatives, a vision for what that 8 interchange should be,” Sandberg said.
Lobby effort
He said a united group of city and county officials could be put together for the purpose of a Washington, D.C. lobby effort. There, lawmakers set aside a week each year to meet and discuss transportation issues with their constituents.
City Administrator Chip Robinson said city officials were able to secure $2.5 million in federal funds for Broadway improvements after traveling to Washington D.C. a few years ago. That money has been reserved for any future Broadway reconstruction project, he said.
Robinson believes the city got a huge band for their buck by meeting with local lawmakers.
Councilwoman Susan Young said the area’s U.S. representatives differ on the subject of addressing the issue.
Congressman James Oberstar supports US-8 improvements, Young said.
However, she said Sixth District Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, R-Stillwater, would require any federal money to be part of a transportation budget and not a special earmark.
“It’s important that you go through the budget process,” Young said.
County action
The Washington County Board of Commissioners last week approved a contract with SRF Consulting Group to prepare the preliminary design engineering plan for County State Aid Highway (CR-2-W. Broadway Avenue )in Forest Lake.
The county had been using the services of the TKDA engineering firm of St. Paul for the Broadway project.
Federal funding will be used for the preliminary design services to improve the safety, capacity, and operation of the county highway system through downtown Forest Lake and the I-35 interchange.
Washington County Board Chair Dennis Hegberg, Forest Lake, has made two trips this spring to Washington, D.C., where he and county officials began the process of lobbying for additional state funds to plan and design roadway improvements in the Forest Lake area.
Hegberg was the chief architect of a county bonding proposal two years ago that secured some $12 million in county funding for Broadway and the I-35 interchange in Forest Lake. Those dollars evaporated when the Broadway Corridor Project broke down a year ago.
The funding originally planend for use in Forest Lake went to road nees in the Hugo and Woodbury areas.
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