Rochester’s Downtown Road Construction is Already Giving Me Road Rage

Here we go, Rochester, we're in the beginning stages of one of the biggest headaches of our lives. The construction on downtown Rochester roads is fully underway, and after what I experienced on my drive into work this morning, I decided it's time for a bit of a rant.

Downtown Rochester, MN Road Construction: A Rant

Why on Earth are we deciding to do construction on all of these roads all at the same time? It's making it nearly impossible to get places downtown, and I know where I'm going! I can't imagine what all of this is like for people who are visiting or have just moved here.

Couldn't we have spaced out all of the lane closures and road closures a bit? I mean, 2nd Street is a huge undertaking that just recently kicked off, and now a chunk of the street is closed for almost a year.

READ MORE: Nearly Year-Long Closure of 2nd St. in Downtown Rochester Starts

I understand that it'll be a pain in the butt no matter when they do it, but then, why are we closing other roads around it, too?

On my commute in the morning, it's usually super chill because I can take back roads to get to our building downtown. But now that all of these roads are closed, my commute has nearly doubled in time, and I don't live that far from the station!

Get our free mobile app

Yes, it will be great when it's all finished (in 5+ years...), but why are we making it so difficult for people to get in and out of downtown?

There are places that people want to see and things people want to do in the downtown area, but it's getting a thousand times more difficult to get there with everything being closed.

At this point, if you want to go east or west in Rochester, you're better off flying there or not going at all.

Good luck! I'll be pulling my hair out all summer.