Crime & Safety
Evening Commute Slow Going Across the Metro
The snow may have stopped but it's still creating problems on metro roadways.
The weekend’s storm went down as the third largest December snowfall on record, with anywhere from nine to 16 inches falling in and around the metro area. The snow snarled traffic this morning, with average travel times increased by 15-45 minutes, according to MN DOT and the evening commute wasn’t much better.
Plows were able to clear the main arteries making the ride home a little smoother than the morning rush hour, but as of 5p.m. almost all of the highways on MN DOT’s traffic maps show moderate to heavy congestion.
Plymouth resident Diane Jones said her evening commute from downtown Minneapolis to Plymouth took an extra 30 minutes.
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“It was slow going,” she said. “The first storm is always the worst. We all have to remember how to drive in snow again.”
Tom Ruben of Golden Valley says he left work early tonight hoping to beat traffic on the way home, but had no such luck.
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“There were fewer crashes than this morning, but traffic was barely moving,” he said.
The Minnesota State Patrol reported a total of 654 crashes by Monday morning. One accident near Red Wing was fatal, sixty-seven others involved injuries.
The evening commute will add to the crash total. As of 5p.m. the MN DOT traffic cameras showed crashes near:
- 169 and Plymouth Avenue
- 94 and Olson Memorial Highway
- 94 and Maple Grove Parkway
- 394 and 169
Extended Forecast
According to Kare 11, the snow is over but cold temperatures are here to stay for a while. Monday night will be the coldest with lows in the single digits. Temperatures will gradually warm through the week, hitting 32 by Thursday.
