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University Avenue Construction Update: October 20-26, 2012

For all construction questions or concerns, call the Construction Hotline:  (651) 602-1404

 Schedules subject to change due to weather and other unforeseen circumstances!  Check www.centralcorridor.org frequently for the latest updates or follow the twitter feed at www.twitter.com/cclrt. 

Hometown hospitality served up on Central Corridor

Butter burgers, cheese curds and frozen custard – just three of the menu items featured at the new Culver’s that opened Oct. 1 along the Central Corridor. The restaurant provides jobs to 65 local workers, said Jimy Quintana Leberon, general manager of the new Midway location at 1491 University Ave. W.

Open almost three weeks, Quintana Leberon reports that they will soon launch a mail campaign. He encourages anyone living or working within eight to 10 miles of the new Culver’s to look for coupons in the mail shortly. 

For hours, the custard of the day flavor and other menu offerings, visit the restaurant’s web site at: http://www.culvers.com/restaurants/st-paul-university/  

Highlights

• Crews will be installing overhead lines along University Avenue between Raymond and Hamline over the next few weeks. Expect intermittent delays at cross streets while crews work through the intersections. Flaggers will be on site to assist with traffic movements. - NEW
• Westbound traffic west of Mackubin will resume to the north side of University early in the week. Watch for lane shifts. - NEW 
• 12th St. will reopen to full width at Cedar mid-week. - NEW

Printable versions of these maps can be found online by clicking here. 

Traffic Details

• Westbound traffic west of Mackubin will resume to the north side of University early in the week. Watch for lane shifts. - NEW
•  St. Albans remains closed on the north side of University. - NEW
• 12th St. will reopen to full width at Cedar mid-week. - NEW
• Cedar open to one lane in each direction north of 12th. Cedar will open to one lane southbound between 12th and 10th mid-week. - NEW
• Traffic maintained on the south side of University between Mackubin and Marion with one lane in each direction. Traffic maintained on the north side of University between Rice and Marion with one lane in each direction. Watch for lane shifts.
• University between Rice and Robert closed to all traffic into fall 2012. See attached map for more information.
• Vehicle traffic can cross University at the following signalized intersections between Pascal and Robert: Pascal, Hamline, Griggs, Lexington, Victoria, Dale, Western, Marion, Rice and Robert.
• Traffic on Marion and Rice reduced to one lane in each direction at University. Watch for lane shifts.

Sidewalk and Crosswalk Details

• West and south crosswalks closed at University and Rice; use north and east crosswalks. -NEW
• West crosswalk closed at Robert and University; use north and east crosswalks. No south crosswalk available in permanent configuration.
• Three of the four crosswalks will be provided at University and Marion; follow marked paths.
• A temporary crosswalk will be provided at 12th and Cedar but will shift; follow marked path.
• Signalized pedestrian crossings installed at Hamline, Griggs, Lexington, Chatsworth, Victoria, Grotto, Dale, Mackubin, Western, Marion, Rice and Robert.

Bus Details

• Eastbound and westbound routes 16, 50 and 94B re-routed with the University closure between Rice and Robert.
• Bus stops closed at Rice and University, MLK and John Ireland, MLK and Cedar, and Cedar at Old    Columbus. Westbound stop closed at Marion and University.
• Eastbound temporary bus stops in place at Aurora and Rice, Rice at Sears, and Rice at St. Anthony.
• Westbound temporary bus stops in place at State Building entrance on Rice Street, Rice at Sears, Aurora at Rice, and Aurora at Marion.
• Routes 16 and 50 bus stops located at all signalized pedestrian crossings on University from Chatsworth to Marion. All other stops between Chatsworth and Rice on University are temporarily closed.
• Routes 16 and 50 have resumed normal routes west of Chatsworth as published in the route schedule. Westbound route 50 stop at Oxford temporarily moved to Chatsworth.

Visit www.metrotransit.org/construction for changes to bus routes during CCLRT construction. 

University Avenue closed to all traffic between Rice and Robert into Fall 2012

Details and Directions

• Traveling east on University Avenue: take a left on Marion, right on Pennsylvania, and right on Jackson to continue east on University.  
• Traveling west on University Avenue: take a right on Jackson, left on Pennsylvania, and left on Marion to continue west on University. 
• Rice open to north-south traffic at University.
• Robert open to north-south traffic at University when possible.
• Park/MLK closed at University; a pedestrian crossing is maintained north-south at Park/MLK.
• Capitol Boulevard closed at University. 

Please don't go around barriers into construction zones. Schedules are subject to change due to weather and other unforeseen circumstances! Check www.centralcorridor.org frequently for updates. 

Questions, Comments, or Concerns?

Call the 24 hour Construction Hotline so we know there is an issue! (651) 602-1404 

• Do not bring questions or concerns to crews in the construction field. Crews work on specific tasks and will not know details on schedule and the most current information on plans and priorities. Call the construction hotline to leave a message and you will receive a call back to answer your question or learn more about the concern. All concerns and questions need to be received at the project management level to ensure issues are addressed.
• Sign up to receive construction updates via email!  Visit www.centralcorridor.org and enter your email address in the yellow box on the upper right corner of the page.

For general project questions and comments for University Avenue, contact Community Outreach Coordinators:

• Nkongo Cigolo, Office: 651-602-1559, nkongo.cigolo@metc.state.mn.us
• Michelle Webb, Office: 651-602-1485, michelle.webb@metc.state.mn.us
• Raqib Abdi, Office: 651-602-1908, raqib.abdi@metc.state.mn.us

Utility Hotlines

• St Paul Regional Water Services 24-hour Hotline: 651-266-6868
• To report an electrical outage/check status of an outage, call Xcel Energy: 1-800-895-1999

 About the project:  

The Central Corridor Light Rail Transit Project will link downtown St. Paul and downtown Minneapolis along Washington and University avenues via the state Capitol and the University of Minnesota. Construction began in late summer 2010 on the planned 11-mile Central Corridor line, and service will begin in 2014. The line will connect with the Hiawatha LRT line at the Metrodome station in Minneapolis and the Northstar commuter rail line at the Target Field Station. The Metropolitan Council will be the grantee of federal funds. The regional government agency is charged with building the line in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Transportation. The Central Corridor Management Committee, which includes commissioners from Ramsey and Hennepin counties, the mayors of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota, provides advice and oversight. Funding is provided by the Federal Transit Administration, Counties Transit Improvement Board, state of Minnesota, Ramsey and Hennepin counties' regional railroad authorities, city of St. Paul, Metropolitan Council and the Central Corridor Funders' Collaborative. The Central Corridor LRT Project Website is www.centralcorridor.org.