With the start of the 2021 road construction season, the completion of the Highway 14 expansion between Owatonna and Dodge Center will get a little closer everyday. Beginning Monday, April 12 drivers will experience lane closures on the four-lane section west of Dodge Center. In a news release from the Minnesota Department of Transportation, officials say, "crews (will) build crossover lanes for construction related to the expansion project."

Traffic on the new four-lane is expected by this fall. Work to get to that point includes paving of the new 12.5-mile portion, completion of bridges on Dodge County Road 3 and Steele County Road 16, and work on intersections at Highway 14 interchanges with Dodge County Road 5 and Highway 56.

MNDOT states, "Once this project is completed, Highway 14 will be a four-lane highway from Mankato to Rochester.  This will provide the traveling public with an access controlled highway to improve mobility through southern Minnesota." Final touches on the project will continue in 2022, even as traffic begins to use the new stretch later this year.

Safety is a big aspect of the expansion to a four-lane, divided highway, "Improve travel safety concerns, travel time reliability, and reduce congestion on a corridor that has 18,000 daily commuters."

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A mini road trip to Rochester will be so much smoother once the Highway 14 project is complete. Maybe you'll want to try out a mouth-watering burger in the Med City...

11 Best Places to Get a Mouth-Watering Burger in Rochester

A delicious burger is ALWAYS a good idea! But it can be hard to figure out where to go with all of the burger places in our area. To help you decide where to get your next burger, check out the 11 best places to get a burger in Rochester according to Yelp (in no particular order).

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