MINOT – New roads may be in the future for southern Minot, for safety reasons as well as efficiency in traffic control.
Ward County Commissioners heard Tuesday a road plan to be a connector corridor somewhere south of Minot, though undetermined exactly where.
The purpose is to relieve congestion with local city growth and regional traffic, especially on Highways 2, 52, and 83. The plan is based on almost a decade of planning by the Minot Transportation Plan and Ward County Transportation Plan, as well as surveys done by Bolton & Menk out of Fargo.
Mike Bittner, with Bolton & Menk, said the company has conducted several surveys and meetings with freight professionals, emergency service professionals, and Minot area homeowners about three possible route ideas, though the company had around 75 ideas.
The first route idea would connect County Road 17 with County Road 16. Bittner said the overall opinions on this route were negative.
The second was similar, only different in the way the roads were connected. Bittner said the opinions were similar on this one. The third connected 30th Street Southwest down to Highway 52.
“We had a lot of commentary, a lot of support,” said Bittner. “They thought this was a nice connection to the hospital, but a lot of concern about the proximity of their homes to a potential route.”
Bittner said he hopes the federal government can assist with the funding for this project.
Minot City Council
The Minot City Council also approved the structure for the curbside pickup recycling with bi-weekly recycling collection, 95-gallon carts provided to all participants, and a one-time opt out option for citizens. Glass is not included in the program but Jason Sorenson, assistant director of Public Works, said it would not be hard to add if the market for glass improved.
