MnDOT District 8 awarded highway safety improvement funding
MnDOT District 8, Southwest Minnesota, has been awarded $1,090,000 from the Highway Safety Improvement Program for three safety improvement projects within the district. HSIP is a federal-aid funding program designed to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries on public roads.
In District 8, the three projects which received HSIP awards include:
- Highway 67 between Wood Lake and Echo – lighting will be installed at Highway 67 and Yellow Medicine County Road 6, and at Highway 67 and Yellow Medicine County Road 21. Highway 67 has been rerouted between Granite Falls and Echo due to a large slope failure. The rerouted roadway uses Highway 23, Highway 274 (old designation), and Yellow Medicine County Road 2 (old designation). As a result, two new state highway to state highway intersections were created (as Highway 67 turns east, and then south). Lighting the two intersections will meet standard practice and enhance safety. The project received $90,000 in HSIP funding and is scheduled for implementation in 2025.
- Highway 23 and Highway 7 south of Clara City – the intersection will be converted to an all-way stop. In 2021, MnDOT, Clara City, Chippewa County, and the Highway 23 Coalition, partnered to conduct a safety study evaluating different intersection alternatives to improve safety and traffic flow. The recommendation of the study was to convert the intersection to an all-way stop. The project received $440,000 in HSIP funding and is scheduled for implementation in 2026.
- Highway 23 and Highway 67 (formerly Highway 274) south of Granite Falls – Highway 67 as it approaches Highway 23 will be realigned to eliminate a skew. The realignment will enhance sight lines, particularly for drivers with reduced head and neck mobility. The project received $560,000 in HSIP funding and is scheduled for construction in 2027.
