‘169’ work hinges on federal funding

Barring an influx of federal funds, major safety improvements to Highway 169 between Ely and Soudan won’t take place anytime soon, if at all.That was the word Monday from state transportation officials, who outlined long-range plans for state highway repairs during a meeting at Virginia.A proposed $28 million reconstruction of 169 between Ely and Soudan - sought by a regional task force that convened four years ago - isn’t included in the list of projects advanced by the Minnesota Department of Transportation.The only major work scheduled for that section of the highway is the construction of several passing lanes, a $5.5 million project scheduled between 2015 and 2023.Task force members were openly disappointed with the plan.“It doesn’t look very encouraging,” said Bill Erzar, vice-chair of the task force. “In large part, it looks like most of what we talked about will not be addressed.”Between 2008 and 2030, the state will spend about $64 million per year - or $1.46 billion - to preserve and maintain highways in a district that includes the Iron Range, Duluth, the North Shore and extends south to Hinckley.That’s not nearly enough to meet the area’s highway needs, according to Denny Johnson, MnDOT’s northeast district planning director and the facilitator of Monday’s meeting.The state then sets priorities, and roadways with the highest traffic counts and most glaring safety needs are rated first, Johnson said.On 169, the road between Tower and the Highway 53 near Virginia has much higher use than the section between Ely and Soudan, and the state has set aside more than $20 million for reconstruction to take place between 2008 and 2023.A $16.5 million reconstruction is set between 53 and the cutoff to Highway 1, near the former “Y” Store outside of Tower, and another $3.9 million in improvements are scheduled between that intersection and Tower.That rankled Erzar, who said that the 169 task force identified other areas of the road, notably a series of curves near Eagles Nest and Clear lakes, posed more of a safety hazard.“Basically that’s a safety concern that is being thrown out the window,” said Erzar.“It doesn’t meet the traffic count and it doesn’t meet the crash rate (in the state formula),” said Johnson. “What we have to do is follow the same criteria statewide.”Johnson said that the only way improvements between Ely and Soudan could leapfrog past other projects on the priority list is if federal transportation legislation sets aside funding - and requires that the work be done in a specific location.“We won’t be totally reconstructing between Tower (Soudan) and Ely unless we get federal funding,” said Johnson.U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar is carrying legislation that could free up over $14 million in federal monies for 169, but to date, the bill does not contain language mandating where the money is used.Johnson told task force members after the meeting that federal legislation was their best hope.Citing safety concerns, the task force prioritized reconstruction of roadways in the Soudan and Eagles Nest areas and the group also pushed for improve signage, construction of turn lanes and lighting on parts of the highway between Ely and Soudan. A total reconstruction is also on their wish list.Johnson said that MnDOT will continue to do maintenance work on 169, with pavement care and bridge structural needs as top priorities.But funding for major repairs continues to fall short of district needs, he said.Even the long range plan is somewhat tentative, because MnDOT is assuming that funding for highway projects will increase .8 percent over the rate of inflation.“That has not been occurring in recent years,” said Johnson, noting a state gas tax that has not increased in 15 years. “We already know we’re overprogrammed in the first year of this plan unless funding is to increase. I’m being an optimist I guess, that there will be increased revenues.”MnDOT’s long-range plan includes more than $107 million in improvements on Duluth-area roadways, and more than $76 million for work on Highway 61, on the North Shore, between Two Harbors up to Cook County.