The Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) was scheduled to host a public forum today to decide on a plan for easing congestion and improving safety on a narrow stretch of I-694 near Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Mn/DOT’s tentative plans call for revamping entrance and exit ramps to I-694 and adding a second lane in each direction between Lexington Avenue and Old Highway 10. Rush-hour traffic backs up onto that 1.5-mile stretch of I-694 from I-35E and I-35W 5 miles to the west, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, resulting in one accident every day on average.

Mn/DOT engineers have developed a half-dozen ideas for what they call the E-W Project to improve I-694. All of them stay within the current right-of-way, and all include rebuilding bridges, adding a second lane for through traffic and changing entrances and exits for a total cost of $40 million to $50 million.

The public forum is to gain feedback from the community on which variation of the plan to choose.

Mn/DOT has been making plans to fix I-694 for nearly 20 years and has never had the money to proceed. Now the agency has put the E-W Project on the fast track. They want the project to be ready to start construction, or “shovel-ready,” if Congress approves a second economic stimulus package.