Sometimes it's worth attending the public meetings that state transportation officials offer.

At the virtual public meeting for updates on the Twin Ports Interchange (Can of Worms) that was held on Monday, June 27, attendees learned about the new, revised completion date for the multi-year project.  While the majority of the timeline for the work hasn't changed, it now looks like Northland drivers will need to wait until the summer of 2024 for the entire project to be completed.

While 2024 was always the target date for the final finishing touches to be completed on the Twin Ports Interchange, earlier timelines showed most other elements of the massive replacement project to be wrapped up at the end of the road construction season in 2023 - in October.  Now it appears that all of those elements will need to wait until the summer of 2024.

While work has been progressing generally on time and MNDOT is making anticipated progress, a variety of factors out of their control have led to the slight shift in timing.  Employee shortages and supply chain issues from vendors hasn't helped.

So what can local, Twin Ports drivers expect as far as traffic impacts go the rest of the summer?  Not much change. The current traffic alignment that has northbound I-35 on the newly-constructed (and eventual) southbound lanes and southbound I-35 diverted to Lower Michigan Street.  That configuration is expected to last at least through the remainder of this summer and into fall.

While a final price tag for the work is still a "rolling estimate", the current estimate cost is expected to be north of $343 million when everything is completed.

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