Zachary Lane in Maple Grove Reopens to Traffic June 30

Maple Grove motorists received a bit of good news today when it was announced by MnDOT Zachary Lane would reopen to traffic by midnight tonight, June 30.

A portion of the Zachary Lane roadway, which had been closed since early May as part of the Highway 610 project, was expected remain closed indefinitely if a state shutdown occurred.

The reopening of Zachary Lane is one of the signs the Highway 610 project is nearing completion. The roadway was closed for crews to build two double-lane roundabouts that will eventually provide access to the nearly finished Highway 610 alignment.

Once the area is reopened, the new roundabouts will open to a single lane of traffic for northbound and southbound Zachary Lane and access at 96th Avenue, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). The double-lane roundabouts will open fully for motorists once the Highway 610 project is finished and the access ramps to the highway are opened to traffic.

What is a double-lane roundabout?

A double-lane roundabout is similar to a one lane roundabout but with a few differences.

MnDOT provides some tips on how to drive a double-lane roundabout:

• Choose your lane before entering the roundabout the same way you would in a “traditional two-lane intersection.” Traffic signs will be posted to help. However, lane changing is not allowed in a double roundabout.

• Yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk as your approach the roundabout.

• Yield to traffic at the dashed yield line. In a double-lane roundabout, you must yield to both lanes of traffic.

• Merge into the roundabout once a gap in traffic appears and drive to your exit, looking for pedestrians and using your turn signal before exiting.

Highway 610 Completion

“Highway 610 is currently on schedule for a mid-July completion,” MnDOT Public Affairs Coordinator Bre Magee said. The scheduled completion date could change if a state shutdown occurred and construction was temporarily halted.

“We are still finishing work at places such as the Zachary Lane interchange and the Highway 169 interchange, as well as the new freeway - items such as paving, ponds, lighting and striping,” she said of the Highway 610 project.

When completed, the new Highway 610 alignment will include about three miles of four-lane highway between Highway 169 in Brooklyn Park and County Road 81 in Maple Grove. The project includes two interchanges, three overpasses, a pedestrian bridge and noisewalls.

Funding for the current Highway 610 alignment project was obtained in 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to construct the project from Highway 169 to County Road 81. The project started in October 2009.