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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JULY 23, 2007 2 A resident raised the concern with the ability for traffic to make a left turn off of Snelling onto Highway 96. Mayor Harpstead indicated that the engineers will have to study that as they proceed with design engineering. The resident stated that there won't be much of a gap with out a signal there to provide a break to make the turn. Mayor Harpstead responded that the engineers will have to study that issue. A resident raised the concern that by widening Highway 96 it will become a by-pass for 1-694, and removing the signal will make traffic flows even worse. Noise and traffic will increase and residents will be closed in. It would be good to have a noise barrier. A resident, Jolene Poucher, stated that the Briarlmoll neighborhood concern is with turning onto Highway 96 from Snelling, traffic from the intersection already backs up that far. Mayor Harpstead responded that the goal is to try to get traffic from TCAAP on Highway 10 and keep it off Highway 96. He stated that there is a need for the overall system to balance. Another resident stated concern, why is it the City's responsibility to take an increase in traffic on Highway 10 versus i-35W. Resident George Grenander stated that numbers get thrown around regarding the intersection and its status within the County, State, etc. He stated that he heard it is unfunded. He wondered if the recent fatal accident is causing the safety ranking of the intersection to change. Since that accident involved a rear-end crash, why can't the State put in flashing amber lights at the intersection. He wondered if that could be a solution instead of re- doing the whole intersection at a high cost. Mayor Harpstead stated that there is little money for roads, so many proj ects are unfunded. The intersection has moved from 41 st (2001-2004) to 29th (2003-2005) on the states most dangerous list. Resident Pat Haick stated that the residents are hearing different information. He requested clarification regarding MnDOT's position. Mayor Harpstead responded that in MnDOT's Transportation System Plan, this is listed as one of the top four intersections needing safety improvements. Chris Roy, Mn/DOT North Metro Area Manager, and Mark Goess, Area Engineer, discussed the Mn/DOT rankings. They stated that they look at the dollar value for crashes and create a list. They use the list for studying trends. They also study for appropriate action to take to make it safer. They try to find solutions. Some other top 10 intersections are being addressed currently on Highway 169. Several intersections are being reconstructed from signals to interchanges. Bigger fixes are usually the only fix available. For county Road Band Snelling, the solution identified is adding additional lanes, but typically interchanges are necessary. In their opinion, at 10 and 96 the only solution for making it safer is an overpass. Chris Roy, Mn/DOT, stated that Highway 10 and 96 is in the top 50 of MnDOT's list. He stated that in the 1990's, when Highway 96 was turned back, there was discussion and it was determined that grade separation is the best solution for the intersection. The Mn/DOT Transportation System Plan looks out to 2030 to identifY projects. There is a safety category, in which four intersections are listed as ones that Mn/DOT wants to address. Three of the intersections are located along Highway 169, the fourth is Highway 10 and 96. Mn/DOT wants