1/ Please join me in another installment of America's favorite show: EVERYTHING IS A SAFETY PROJECT!
Today's "safety" project is the expansion of US-14, including the bypass of Courtland, MN.
Conversation
2/ If you're not familiar with Courtland, MN, that's ok because it has a population of 743 people. And now it's getting a highway expansion/bypass.
I mean "safety" project.
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3/ According to the EIS, the project involves expanding the existing 2-lane highway into a 4-lane divided expressway.
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4/ Excess speed is a major factor in roadway crashes leading to serious injury or death. Thus, you will be pleased to know that this "safety" project has a 70MPH design speed!
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5/ MnDOT uses the word "safety" 121 times in the EIS.
What else does MnDOT say about US-14? Well, it turns out US-14 has serious "highway design deficiencies."
The answer: Not enough speeeeeeed. For instance, the section through Courtland has a speed limit of just 35!
6/ Why is the speed limit 35 MPH through Courtland? Because this is where people live and work and might, on occasion, walk or take their kids to the playground.
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7/ MnDOT is going to spend $98.38 million to expand US-14 between New Ulm and Nicollet. The Courtland Bypass is just one segment.
If safety were the central concern, you could add traffic calming and complete streets features in Courtland for a *fraction* of this price.
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8/ But the US-14 expansion project is really about increasing capacity and speeeeeeeeed.
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9/ But whatever you do, just don't call it an expansion project. Or Bob will need to have a word with you. It's a SAFETY project.
You got that?
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