This is a direct result of the RT and will never get better because the Traffic people are basically incompetent.

What I am talking about is taking a left away from the tracks. I just don't understand why it should take 10 minutes to turn left when you aren't even going across the tracks!?##% It is just not common sense to keep the left turn lane that is turning away from the tracks on a red light for 10 minutes straight. The engineering department can't even give us poor souls a green turn arrow for 20 seconds?

Dear shiggityshawn ,

We appreciate your comment via Clickfix.

We have forwarded your concerns to our Traffic Department. Your reference number is 680235.

In the meantime, please review our previous response forwarded from our Traffic Department.

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for emailing the City of Minneapolis.

Gina

i love that 311 doesnt even try! they just have the same crappy excuse comment for everything. they COULD try harder and actually fix things but instead its just excuses.

So if you KNOW that you are in for a 10 minute wait, why don't you take an alternate route?

Thank you for contacting the City of Minneapolis. You can expect a response from one of our customer service agents within two business days (*note: our business hours of operation are Monday-Friday 7 AM to 7 PM). If you wish to speak to a customer service agent immediately, please call 311.

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Because EVERY SINGLE LEFT-TURN LANE going south on Hiawatha is a long wait! My only alternative would be to take a right off of Hiawatha while going south, making a quick u-turn and waiting for the light to go across Hiawatha. That is probably faster, but not an option depending on the time of day and the traffic backing up to cross Hiawatha. I can only imagine that the City does not want motorists doing that. Also, I've seen several people turn left on a RED arrow - I plead the Fifth on whether I've done that. But, there is not doubt that such action is very dangerous and it appears to be commonplace for several motorists. I've also seen cars back up in the left-turn lane so much that they creep into the dominant thru-lane. Then cars driving south on Hiawatha have to swerve to get around them...then cars in the left turn lane get anxious and pull out into the dominant lane to go elsewhere. I am very surprised that there have not been more accidents and I would be very curious to see the accident stats. In conclusion, I do not understand why it is so difficult to change the timing of the light and let it turn green once every three hours.

yeah ive seen all that happen too. very dangerous!!
and for me I work on one side of the light rail and live on the
other. My option would be exactly the same if I took the other
lightrail crossings because they are all this bad. If I took lake street im in for dangerous traffic since rush hour on lake street
is just terrifying. whoever you are common sense I think that comment was rude since you obviously dont HAVE to cross the light rail like the rest of us do.

Did not know, in middle of pack, and did not want to jeopardize others in the traffic flow. OK?

Yes, this is a problem and the authorities are ignoring it and hoping it will go away. This is what happens when we have Poor Planning, Poor execution and Poor management.

Thank you for contacting the City of Minneapolis. You can expect a response from one of our customer service agents within two business days (*note: our business hours of operation are Monday-Friday 7 AM to 7 PM). If you wish to speak to a customer service agent immediately, please call 311.

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Dear shiggityshawn/SeeClickFix,

We appreciate your email.

Your service request 680235 was closed out back on 12/30/2011 as that had been checked many times. On Sunday evening, 2/19/2012 the Martin Sabo Bridge on Hiawatha near 26th Street East had a suspension cable break and now because of safety concerns, traffic on Hiawatha Avenue will continue to be closed from 26th Street East to Lake Street. In addition, Metro Transit will continue to use buses to replace Light Rail trains serving Franklin Avenue, Lake Street/Midtown and the 38th Street stations. City and County bridge and engineering staff, in collaboration with MnDOT and Metro Transit, will determine when the bridge is stabilized enough to reopen Hiawatha Avenue to traffic and the Hiawatha Light Rail line. The Sabo Bridge itself will remain closed until repair work is completed.

If you can provide us a specific location on Hiawatha, that is not currently closed off, we will be happy to enter a new service request for our Traffic Department to research.

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for emailing the City of Minneapolis.

John

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000 Hours: 7 am - 7 pm (Monday - Friday)
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Dear Laura Houlding/SeeClickFix,

We appreciate your email.

Please let us know the specific intersection where there is a problem, and we will be happy to enter a service request entered so that the problem can get addressed. There is a section of Hiawatha that is now closed due to the Martin Sabo Bridge suspension cable break.

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for emailing the City of Minneapolis.

John

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000 Hours: 7 am - 7 pm (Monday - Friday)
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Dear Billy Bigrigger/SeeClickFix,

We appreciate your email.

Did you have a specific question that we can assist you with?

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for emailing the City of Minneapolis.

John

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000 Hours: 7 am - 7 pm (Monday - Friday)
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

The left turn signal on northbound Hiawatha at 38th is especially egregious. Every time the LRT comes through, everyone else gets to go while the people waiting to make a left turn have to keep waiting. That part makes perfect sense, of course, but then, once the train has passed and the whole cycle of traffic signals starts again, the people who have been kept waiting all that time are last in line. And then, all too often, another train comes through before they get to start moving.

Also, the traffic light at the entrance to the transit station should be synchronized with the left-turn signal so that people who have been waiting 5-10 minutes to turn onto 38th do not end up either blocking the box or (if they are highly observant of traffic regulations) holding back and waiting another 5-10 minutes.

Thank you for contacting the City of Minneapolis. You can expect a response from one of our customer service agents within two business days (*note: our business hours of operation are Monday-Friday 7 AM to 7 PM). If you wish to speak to a customer service agent immediately, please call 311.

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Thank you for contacting the City of Minneapolis. You can expect a response from one of our customer service agents within two business days (*note: our business hours of operation are Monday-Friday 7 AM to 7 PM). If you wish to speak to a customer service agent immediately, please call 311.

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Dear Eric and other Minneapolis Drivers,

We appreciate your post. MN State Highway 55/Hiawatha is owned and maintained by MNDOT. Light Rail is owned and maintained by Metro Transit. We would recommend that you contact them regarding your concerns with congestion.

Here is our statement from Minneapolis Traffic Control:

I certainly recognize and appreciate the concerns you have raised, but I must assure you that the Minneapolis office of Traffic Engineering has made and continues to make every effort to work diligently and cooperatively with the Hiawatha Project Office, MN/DOT, and Metro Transit in attempting to minimize the congestion and delay impacts on non-LRT users of the Hiawatha Avenue and 5th Street corridors.

The stark reality is, however, that it is highly unlikely traffic flow along Hiawatha Avenue will ever return to flow conditions experienced prior to installation of the light rail line. Train frequency of arrivals at signalized crossings and the time required for the light rail vehicles to cross these points has essentially precluded coordinated operation of the traffic signals along Hiawatha Avenue, except during the lightest periods of LRT operation. This does not imply the situation is completely un-manageable, just that there is now a noticeably significant negative impact to traffic flow on Hiawatha Avenue.

The intended operational conditions for this corridor were for the traffic signals on Hiawatha to operate in a coordinated mode to minimize the impact to traffic. Coordinated signal operation on Hiawatha Avenue would seek to minimize the number of times a motorist would stop at a traffic signal and how long they might be delayed if stopped. Since the LRT tracks run alongside Hiawatha Avenue, there are "at grade rail crossings" where each street connects with Hiawatha Avenue. These crossings employ active crossing gates which are activated by sensors in the LRT track way. These sensors also cause signals to be sent to the traffic signal systems. Upon receipt of this signal, traffic signals commence special sequencing designed to minimize the impact to vehicle movements and to begin the process of clearing the tracks for arriving LRT vehicle.

The type of preemption implemented on this corridor for the light rail operation is the same as provided for heavy rail crossings. Heavy rail vehicles are structurally larger than light rail vehicles and usually require a much longer stopping distance than light rail vehicles. The preemption sequence for heavy rail is designed assuming that the rail vehicle has absolute right of way and will not reduce speed or stop at the crossing. This is the same provisions afforded to the LRT vehicle which, by definition, gives them priority over all other operations at the intersection, including emergency vehicles.

The following is a description of the operation which occurs at each of the preempted intersections each time an LRT vehicle approaches the crossing. During peak periods of the day with 7.5 minutes headways between vehicles, there is, on average, an LRT vehicle crossing each intersection every 3 to 4 minutes. I am including this information here not as an excuse but only to provide a frame of reference for the reader regarding the parameters within which we must operate the traffic signals given the decision by the owners of the system to operate using absolute priority for LRT vehicles.

When a light rail vehicle is approaching a signalized intersection and passes an upstream detection point, the traffic signal is programmed to begin the process of clearing the tracks so that the crossing can be closed with the gate arms. The location of the upstream detection point has been chosen based on the longest time it will take to terminate the current signal display and begin the track clearance. In all cases, the greatest amount of time occurs when we have just begun a pedestrian sequence for crossing Hiawatha Ave. Most of the time we are in some other movement at the intersection when the preempt call from the train occurs which will result in beginning to clear the tracks earlier than actually required. As the light rail vehicle approaches the intersection another detection point is crossed which begins the gate lowering operation. In some cases we may take as much as an additional 30 seconds longer than necessary to clear the crossing waiting for the gates to be lowered. We cannot however terminate the track clearance without the gates being lowered, because there is no way to insure the crossing won’t be reoccupied during a red signal by another vehicle. Once the LRT vehicle has cleared the crossing or left the station and cleared the crossing, we begin the process of resynchronizing the traffic signal with the adjacent traffic signals, and frequently are unable to complete the coordination effort before the next LRT arrival.

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for notifying the City of Minneapolis.

Nancy

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000 Hours: 7 am - 7 pm (Monday - Friday)
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Dear SeeClickFix/Guest,

We appreciate your email.

Minneapolis Public Works Traffic division works with Metro Transit to minimize congestion and delay impacts on non-LRT users of the Hiawatha Avenue and 5th Street corridors.

On the Hiawatha portion of the corridor when a LRT train is approaching an intersection, the traffic signal is programmed to begin the process of clearing the tracks and closing the gates. The train has absolute right of way and will not reduce speed or stop at the crossing except in an emergency.

During peak periods of the day with 7.5 minutes between LRT trains, there may be a train crossing an intersection every 3 to 4 minutes.

Once the LRT train has cleared the crossing, resynchronization of the traffic signal with the adjacent traffic signals restarts. The signal is often unable to complete this coordination effort before the next train arrives. Public Works has adjusted the signals to the best of their ability and under current Metro Transit operational policies further adjustment is not possible.

However, we have submitted a service request to our Public Works/Traffic Department. Your reference number is 834499. Your case should be addressed by 5/04/2012.

If there is anything else we can help you with please contact us. Thank you for emailing the City of Minneapolis.

John

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000 Hours: 7 am - 7 pm (Monday - Friday)
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

Thank you for contacting the City of Minneapolis. You can expect a response from one of our customer service agents within two business days (*note: our business hours of operation are Monday-Friday 7 AM to 7 PM). If you wish to speak to a customer service agent immediately, please call 311.

Minneapolis 311
Office 612-673-3000
Email minneapolis311@minneapolismn.gov
www.minneapolismn.gov

This person is not exaggerating. The wait is ridiculous.

Yeah, Hiawatha is so irritatingly slow I get off right away on Cedar and just take streets. Always faster.

Timing has been updated.