Highway 75 now on state improvement plan ... but not until 2025

A different approach and a more focused roadway condition study by Minnesota Department of Transportation officials has propelled U.S. Highway 75 to be included in MnDOT’s 10-year roadway improvement plan.
Greg Ous, transportation engineer with District 7 that includes Rock County, presented MnDOT’s newest roadway improvement plan to commissioners at their Aug. 8 meeting.
Ous said since the collapse of the I-35 bridge in 2007, state officials have focused on inspecting each of the state’s bridges for structural deficiencies and scheduled the necessary repairs. That work is finally coming to a close after a decade.
“The emphasis now is on pavements,” he said.
A year ago Hwy 75, a 25-mile north-south highway through Rock County, wasn’t included on the state’s 10-year improvement list despite its deteriorating condition.
Under MnDOT’s new plan, the roadway north of Luverne is scheduled for improvements in 2025 and 2027 for the section south of Luverne.
Ous said each of its state and federal highways received a “1” to “5” quality rating, with “5” being the best quality.
“If it’s below a 2 it’s a rough road,” he said.
Hwy 75’s roadway is rated at 2.3.
“This indicates it is currently in the lower portion of the fair range, and will likely fall into the poor range by the anticipated project date,” said Gordon Regenscheid, District 7 assistant director.
Regenscheid accompanied Ous to the commissioners meeting.
Ous emphasized that roadways will be rated each year with those rated as poor moving up in the improvement schedule.
The state has set a goal of fewer than 10 percent of its state and federal roadways ranked as poor (a rating of 2 or less), Ous said.
Currently about 5 percent of the state roadways are rated as poor. The percentage is expected to grow to 9.1 percent by 2027.
In District 7, however, 10 percent of its roadways are already rated as poor. That number grows to more than 26 percent in two years, according to MnDOT estimates.
Ous said roadway repair in District 7 be approached differently based on the index, with a funding emphasis on fixing the poorest of roadways no matter their location in the state. The emphasis may mean more funds allocated to District 7.
“We all wish we could get to your projects sooner, but it is on the map,” he added.
District 7 encompasses 13 counties in south central Minnesota and includes 1,326 miles of state and federal highways and 476 bridges.
Also in the draft 2017-2027 road improvement plan for Rock County are two road improvements and three bridge replacement projects on Interstate 90.
For information can be found at www.dot.state.mn.us/d7 website.