/ Southwest LRT Updates

Weekly Construction Photo: Road restoration near Golden Triangle Station

construction equipment near LRT station and train tracks

Crews can be seen working on restoring the roadway where the LRT tracks cross West 70th Street in Minnetonka near Golden Triangle station.

Eden Prairie Highlights

Ongoing:

  • Expect lane closures on Technology Drive and southbound Flying Cloud Drive between Valley View Road and Town Center Place into mid-October.
  • The westbound Highway 212 off-ramp to Shady Oak Road remains closed for LRT construction. The off-ramp is expected to reopen by mid-October.
  • West 70th Street is closed through the fall to complete LRT track construction. See Eden Prairie detour maps.

Visit our website for more details and visuals of construction activities in Eden Prairie.

Minnetonka Highlights:

Ongoing:

  • Road construction on the Yellow Circle Drive extension continues through the fall. Access to local businesses is being maintained. See Minnetonka detour maps.
  • Part of Red Circle Drive remains closed to westbound traffic as the second phase of the nearby pedestrian underpass construction continues. Drivers exiting Opus Park along Bren Road East can access Red Circle Drive and Shady Oak Road. Yellow Circle Drive is temporarily configured as a two-way road during this phase of construction to accommodate through traffic and access to local businesses. See Minnetonka detour maps.
  • Feltl Road is closed at Smetana Road as workers complete the roadway bridge and is expected to reopen in late October. See Minnetonka detour maps.
  • Crews continue to work on the Minnetonka-Hopkins LRT bridge.

Visit our website for more details and visuals of construction activities in Minnetonka.

Hopkins Highlights

Upcoming:

  • Expect a two-week trail closure beginning mid-October between 11th Avenue and 5th Avenue to complete systems construction. See Hopkins detour maps.

Ongoing:

  • Excelsior Boulevard remains closed to eastbound traffic through mid-November while crews advance LRT bridge construction over the roadway. See Hopkins detour maps.
  • The west sidewalk on Blake Road remains closed. Please use the sidewalk on the east side of Blake Road. Traffic on Blake Road continues to be one lane in each direction. Expect lane closures through the fall.

Visit our website for more details and visuals of construction activities in Hopkins.

St. Louis Park Highlights

Ongoing:

  • Earlier construction hours starting at 7:00 AM have been authorized for Saturdays between the Louisiana Avenue and Wooddale Avenue station areas.
  • There will be a northbound outside lane closure of Louisiana Avenue for the next 2-3 weeks to complete construction on the east sidewalk.
  • Retaining wall construction is underway at the Louisiana Avenue Station area. Expect pile-driving activities through 2022.
  • The east sidewalk along Louisiana Avenue South between West Lake Street and Oxford Street remains closed to advance LRT bridge construction. Please use the sidewalk on the west side of Louisiana Avenue.
  • The east sidewalk along Wooddale Avenue remains closed. Please use the sidewalk on the west side of Wooddale Avenue.
  • The City of St. Louis Park continues utility construction at Wooddale Avenue and 36th Street that will continue to impact traffic. Additional information is available on the City’s webpage.
  • There will be inside lane closures on Highway 7 by Beltline Boulevard through the end of the month. See St. Louis Park detour map.

Visit our website for more details and visuals of construction activities in St. Louis Park.

Minneapolis Highlights

Ongoing:

  • Secant wall work continues north of the West Lake Street Bridge.
  • West Lake Street, Market Plaza, and Excelsior Boulevard will experience traffic impacts due to private utility work until the end of October. This work is not affiliated with Green Line Extension LRT project construction. More details can be found on CenterPoint Energy’s website.
  • Pumps and generators will run overnight periodically in various parts of the construction corridor, especially at the Kenilworth LRT tunnel site. Pumps are used to manage water, and generators are used to power the pumps.
  • Cedar Lake Parkway is closed until spring 2023 to advance LRT tunnel construction. Pedestrian and bicycle access is maintained to the south via Depot Street and West 28th Street.
  • The Cedar Lake Channel is closed to recreational use until spring 2023. The Kenilworth Lagoon is accessible from Lake of the Isles. This closure is necessary to remove and reconstruct historic retaining walls in the channel that were originally built under the Works Progress Administration.
  • Construction at and around Bryn Mawr Station continues through 2022 for work on the pedestrian bridge and station platform. Lane closures are in place on Wayzata Boulevard at the intersection of Penn Avenue, lasting through the 2022 construction season.
  • Glenwood Avenue between Lyndale Avenue North and North 12th Street remains closed for construction of the LRT and two roadway bridges. See Minneapolis detour map.
  • Royalston Avenue between 5th Avenue and Border Avenue is closed. This closure will be in place at least into this winter.
  • Bridge work near North 7th Street and North 6th Avenue continues.

Visit our website for more details and visuals of construction activities in Minneapolis

Trail Highlights

  • Expect a two-week trail closure beginning mid-October between 11th Avenue and 5th Avenue to complete systems construction. See Hopkins detour maps.
  • Various trails within the Opus area are closed as crews advance many project elements. The Opus trails are anticipated to reopen in 2023.
  • The Minnesota River Bluffs Trail between Shady Oak Road and 11th Avenue in Hopkins is anticipated to reopen in 2023.
  • The Minnesota River Bluffs Trails between 11th Avenue and Excelsior Boulevard has reopened for local use. The South Cedar Lake LRT Trail between Excelsior Boulevard in Hopkins and Wooddale Avenue in St. Louis Park remains closed and is anticipated to reopen in 2024.
  • The segment of the South Cedar Lake LRT Trail between Wooddale Avenue and Beltline Boulevard has reopened for local use. The South Cedar Lake LRT Trail between Beltline Boulevard and France Avenue in St. Louis Park remains closed and is anticipated to reopen in 2024.
  • Temporary trails near Chowen Avenue and West Lake Street remain in place. For your safety and the safety of work crews, please follow signage for the temporary trail and stay clear of the work zone.
  • The Kenilworth Trail will remain closed until the completion of LRT tunnel construction in 2025.
  • The Luce Line Regional Trail bridge that crosses the BNSF rail corridor at Bryn Mawr Meadows Park is closed. A new bridge is being reconstructed to connect the new Bassett Creek Valley Station with the Park and is scheduled to reopen in 2025.
  • The North Cedar Lake Trail east of Van White Memorial Boulevard is anticipated to reopen in 2025.

Project staff share the community’s desire to see the trails reopen as soon as possible. The project office will continue to work with the contractor to improve on these opening dates.