06. Transportation Element - Laserfiche WebLink

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2001 Comprehensive Plan Amended February 26, 2002 Possible New Mississippi River Bridge Anoka County has proposed locating a new Mississippi River bridge in Ramsey. Although not endorsed by the City of Ramsey, the County proposed alignment for this bridge would generally be the southerly extension of Ramsey Boulevard through right-of-way already owned by Anoka County. In addition to crossing the river, the bridge could offer grade-separated crossings of the BNSF railroad tracks and TH 10/169. In the scenario proposed by Anoka County, Ramsey Boulevard would be upgraded and become part of the State's trunk highway system. The City of Ramsey opposes this scenario. Mn/DOT has not yet agreed with either the new river crossing or the highway jurisdictional changes referenced in the Anoka County Plan. The Major River Crossings Study Report of 1989 by the Transportation Advisory Board indicated that projected traffic volumes on Highway 10 warrant an additional bridge crossing. With the improvements to the 610 Bridge and the new east-west highway through Brooklyn Park currently under construction, now would be a good time to start coordinating efforts to study potential needs and solutions to the River Crossing issue. Public opinion in Ramsey tends to favor a new bridge. Further study is needed to determine the need and exact location of a future bridge; however, this study should not be performed until all local and regional government agencies and public have reached some consensus on the need and location for a new bridge. The Ramsey community consensus is for a bridge location located westerly of Alpaca Estates as illustrated on Figure VI-2. The City of Ramsey is currently working cooperatively with the City of Dayton and has prepared a letter of agreement on a location of a future bridge corridor that would run through vacant lands approximately 3/4 of a mile west of the corridor proposed in the Anoka County 2015 Transportation Plan. (See Appendix D for letter to City of Dayton from the City of Ramsey outlining an agreement on a potential river bridge crossing.) The Comprehensive Plans for the Cities of Dayton and Ramsey are consistent with respect to locating a future Mississippi River Crossing. This location is generally illustrated on Figures V-2 and VI-2. Another critical component of studying improved crossing of the Mississippi River is adherence to the State and Federal regulations of the Mississippi River according to the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and Critical Areas Act. Essentially, these acts require that prior to planning for an additional river crossing, all alternative solutions to improving traffic problems associated with the river be studied including expanding the existing crossings and adding an additional bridge adjacent to existing crossings. The purpose of the corridor study would be to pursue these and other alternatives. 2001 Ramsey Comprehensive Plan Amended February 26, 2002 Page 1~-9