For those who drive between Pequot Lakes and Breezy Point,
we all know and appreciate the improvements that were made by Crow Wing County
Highway Department to Co. Rd. 11 this past summer. Several areas were improved to provide better
traffic flow and safety in use of this roadway.
One area that saw particular changes and improvements was the area near
Eagleview Elementary School. They
created left turn lanes to access the school from the east. Right turn lanes were installed for most
turns and the right turn lane entering the school property from the west was
lengthened and somewhat detached from the driving lanes for better visibility and
additional stacking of vehicles making this turn.
Finding room for all of this was accomplished within the right-of-way
of the highway and the design reflected community concerns with safety for
school traffic. With the expansion of
turn lanes and the widening of the roadway also comes the down side of not
enough right-of-way to handle all concerns.
Working with what was available and making the best of it became the
goal however not all wants were met.
Recently, with increased summer traffic it became more
apparent that the lack of a left turn lane for east bound traffic was
problematic. Those going eastbound wanting
to turn left to access the Pine River State Bank, Breezy Point Storage Park and
Narveson Management Incorporated were feeling like the change created problems
for them. The issue is, if a left turn
is needed to be made to access these properties, traffic in the eastbound
driving lane comes to a halt, if waiting for westbound traffic to clear. This is the same situation that existed prior
to the improvements. The perception
however was all needs were met and some drivers don’t understand or anticipate
there is still a bottleneck in the design.
What happens then with some drivers is an illegal pass on the right
around this stopped vehicle. The other
thing that happens is some left turning drivers compound the situation by
moving into the taper or turning lane for the other direction to get out of the
way. This really encourages the passing
on the right as eastbound drivers see a half lane or more to do it. Passing on the right is not only illegal it
can be very dangerous.
With these concerns the council was approached about the
situation asking if something could be done.
A meeting was held with a county highway department representative to
discuss possibilities. Building a bypass
lane seems to be about the best option however other options may be
available. A bypass lane in this area
will cost about $16,000 and will only address the area for access to the bank
and storage park. It doesn’t address the
private access for Narveson Management as there are concerns with a day care
facility and the next bypass lane at Wildwood Lane.
This is a safety concern but it is a management issue when
it comes to priorities. The expense needs
to be dealt with if it is to occur.
Neither the county nor the city has budgeted for this expense and the
best solution may not have been found yet to solve the problem. The discussion will continue at the July
Council meeting.
