Twin Cities roads have some of the most congested bottlenecks in the U.S.
The Twin Cities area is home to four of the most congested roadways in the country.
The American Transportation Research Institute released its annual list of the worst bottlenecks for trucks in America. To come up with the list, the institute used GPS systems to assess "truck-oriented congestion" at 250 highway locations.
The worst bottlenecks in Minnesota are:
- I-35W at I-94 – Ranked No. 45 overall
- I-35W at I-494 – No. 55
- I-35W at I-694 – No. 71
- I-35E at I-94 – No. 87
At Minnesota's worst bottleneck – I-35W at I-94 – trucks average less than 20 mph from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
"Trucks move 70 percent of the nation's goods," said American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear. "Knowing where our highway system is most congested can lead to better decisions about what highways and bridges need improvement."
And considering Minnesota is home to 17 Fortune 500 companies, state Trucking Association President John Hausladen said Minnesota is a "major freight generator and player in the nation's economy."
Hausladen added he hopes these findings will allow them to target state and federal resources to clear up problem areas. However, there are no details as to what can or will be done to fix the problem.
Last year, the Minnesota Department of Transportation's Metropolitan Freeway System Congestion Report found Twin Cities traffic in general has gotten worse.
According to the report, 23.4 percent of Twin Cities freeways were congested in 2015 – up from 21.1 percent in 2014.
Transportation fixes
Tuesday, Gov. Mark Dayton dropped off the $45.8 billion budget he thinks should be Minnesota’s blueprint for the next two years.
Part of that budget includes fixing up Minnesota's roads, and keeping traffic jams from getting worse.
For years now, the DFL governor and Republican lawmakers have said something needs to be done, but they can’t seem to agree on a plan.
Dayton is bringing back his plan from last year – to use a gas tax increase to raise $6 billion over ten years. However, Republicans oppose any tax increase and have said money for road repairs can be raised by finding efficiencies in the Transportation Department and shifting money from elsewhere in the budget.