IMAGE: MNDOT
Impatient drivers appear to be causing problems where a new four-lane bridge is being built over the Saint Croix River between Wisconsin and Minnesota. According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, warning signs and barricades have been moved, where workers are preparing for two roads that align to the bridge crossing.
DOT spokeswoman Chris Ouellette said moving and driving around barricades not only creates danger for motorists and workers – it’s also delaying next year’s completion of the project. “The sooner we can complete this work the better, but if we have to stop to talk to motorists to get them out of our project site, or if we have to get law enforement involved, it just delays the work that much more,” Ouellette said.
Last month, a Minnesota man died when he drove a motorcycle through barricades at the bridge site, and slammed into a piece of equipment. The website for the Saint Croix project warns sight-seers to stay away from construction zones – especially this fall, when hundreds of crew members and vehicles navigate smaller building sites.
KLBB