Highway 10 though Wadena
Background
Hwy 10 from Moorhead to Hastings is comprised of mostly four-lane expressway with isolated segments of controlled freeway. There is a six-mile gap through Wadena that remains a two-lane highway. The urban segment in Wadena was recently reconstructed in 2020 with a width sufficient for the reconfiguration of the additional through lanes in anticipation of the four-lane expansion of the rural two-lane segments. The rural two‐lane sections east and west of town are in an area of mixed uses, both commercial and agricultural.
In April 2021, District 3 received $5 million of Project Development Bond Funds for the Hwy 10 gap project from the bonding package passed in Fall 2020. An additional $30 million of Trunk Highway Bond Funds was appropriated for the project in June 2021 as part of the 2021 Omnibus Transportation Bill.
Considerations
Project development and and MnDOT will consider:
- Safe speed transitions and access management along the corridor
- Anticipate need of federal funding; gap with state bond funds alone
- 2026 roadwork on Hwy 71 and Hwy 29 in Wadena
- Contaminated properties
- BNSF Railway line runs along Hwy 10
- Environmental commitments
- Tri-County Hospital development in 2022
- Public expectations to construct as soon as possible