TH 60 through the City of Madison Lake carries more than 7,000 vehicles and nearly 700 trucks per day, causing frequent platoons of vehicles stuck behind slower moving drivers. MnDOT wanted to reduce delays and improve safety on the highway while minimizing impacts to the surrounding environment.

Bolton & Menk worked with MnDOT to take this $20.1 million federally funded project from concept to bid documents. To identify the right solution and minimize project impacts, we collaborated with three counties, three different communities, Minnesota DNR, FHWA, and the National Park Service (NPS). The project included modifications or widening of 38 turn lane locations, a full reconstruction with storm sewer improvements, 60 centerline culvert replacements, more than 150 entrance culvert replacements, 6(f) land conversions, and a full-depth reclamation of the in-place pavement. We identified passing lane locations that would limit environmental impacts, minimize delays, and improve roadway safety. We also created a fly-through animation to highlight the changes that would occur along the corridor and produced a project overview and staging video to inform the public of detour routes during the various project stages. The complete prioritized corridor provides a 24 percent reduction in total following delay and a 31 percent decrease in projected crashes along Highway 60 from US 14 to Highway 13.