News Release

ST. PAUL, Minn.— The Minnesota Department of Transportation will close Culkin rest area facilities on northbound Interstate 35 between Barnum and Duluth on Oct. 18.

The decision to close the rest area was based on a determination that the facility does not serve a significant safety purpose and public partners have not come forward to share costs or maintenance of the recreational uses at the site, said Mn/DOT officials.

Mn/DOT recently reevaluated its rest area system and found that Culkin, due to its proximity to the Thompson Hill Travel Information Center, does not significantly improve highway safety by reducing the number of drowsy driver accidents.

Rest areas that serve a significant safety purpose also:

• Eliminate unsafe highway shoulder stops
• Occur at critical locations for commercial trucks
• Situated 50 miles in distance from adjacent rest areas on that roadway allowing drivers to stop once every hour
  
  Other important benefits of rest areas include enhanced comfort and convenience for motorists, a reduction in excess travel and time spent searching for services.

“Mn/DOT has explored alternate or shared uses with other state and local governments and will continue this exploration for the next several months. We hope this investigation will lead to a partnership that will allow the state to provide alternate public recreational uses for the site," said Robert Williams, Mn/DOT rest area program manager.

"Regardless, Mn/DOT will closely monitor the impacts caused by closing the Culkin rest area, Williams said. "We may decide to reopen Culkin in the future if a partnership develops or if impacts on the public are significant,” he said.

For more information about Mn/DOT's system of rest areas, go to the Rest Area Web site at http://www.dot.state.mn.us/restareas.

########