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1 <br />MINUTES OF THE REGULAR ORONO CIT\' COUNCIL <br />MEETING HELD ON OCTOBER 14, 1996 <br />(Corridor Selection for Hv\y 12 Upgrade - Continued) <br />Anand Gopinath, 705 Old Long Lake Road, Orono, asked O'Keefe to comment on the <br />"no-build" option O'Keefe said this option is still an alternative in the succeeding <br />environmental study and still proposed as an alternative. <br />John Winston, Orono. asked what the average speed was during rush hour on Interstate <br />394 between Hwy 100 and east into Minneapolis to Interstate 94. He noted speeds of 5 <br />10 mph instead of the 25-35 mph expected. O'Keefe said he w as probably right but did <br />not know <br />Jonathan Thomhave, Orono Oaks resident, noted the rush hour timing from Wayzata <br />Boulevard to CoRd 6 was about 9 minutes. The 4-1/2 miles of proposed corridor is <br />expected tp take 6 minutes for a gain of 2-3 minutes O'Keefe was asked if this <br />performance equates to a wise investment O'Keefe noted this to be a tough issue He <br />said the commuters benefit from the 394 Interstate with 17 minute improvements <br />attained When asked if the proposal would result in such improvements, O'Keefe said <br />the improvement per mile is similar to that of the 394 project and makes a strong intuitive <br />case. It was noted that people in the western suburbs are able to commute to St. Paul, <br />Bloomington, and Minneapolis, and there is the need to look at the system and economic <br />health of the metro area to determine that it is worth it. <br />Thomhave also commented with regard to the 3-lane reversible proposal noting his <br />membership in the group that proposed the reversible lane concept. It was said that the <br />Canadian firm who performed the feasibility study concluded that the alternative was <br />feasible and safe. Mn/DOT was said to lack personnel experienced with reversible lane <br />knowledge. <br />Thomhave said the reversible lane should cure the traffic problem noting the proposal <br />was made to Dean Johnson, Senate Minority Leader, on June 26. The optional CoRd 11 <br />proposal has an extension of Hwy 12 at Delano, where it doglegs At a meeting later that <br />same day, which was also attended by O'Keefe, the commissioner of Mn/DOT said he <br />was intrigued by the proposal at the meeting where it was presented The resident asked <br />if the study was done on this proposal O'Keefe said it was as part of the process. 1 he <br />information has not yet been compiled into a study, but O'Keefe said it would be done. <br />Debbie Lewis, Orono. commented on the reversible lane suggested. She said she does <br />not see enough land available for this option. Lewis said she has come to understand that <br />the highway improvement is not to solve the length of travel time to Minneapolis but is a <br />part of a larger picture to the west. She said the benefit of saving time was not the sole <br />benefit of the improvement and did not believe the reversible lane was necessarily the best <br />choice She does not believe the City of Long Lake w ants 24,000 cars to go through <br />their town daily. She asked if depressing the railroad and the road was the right solution <br />in the long run. She asked that the three lane alternative, or tunneling under Long Lake, <br />not be chosen simply because it is used elsewhere, citing an example in Switzerland.