Background
The Hwy 23 corridor extends across the sate of Minnesota from I-90 to I-35 and beyond. It connects many cities including Marshall, Granite Falls, Willmar and St. Cloud. Locally and regionally, Hwy 23 serves as a major connection between the area's residents, employment and service centers as well as a key recreational and tourist access route. Tourist travel along the corridor creates high seasonal and weekend traffic peaks.
Highway 23 is also an important freight route. MnDOT District 8 completed a Manufacturer's Perspective on Transportation Study that interviewed manufacturers and carriers in southwest and west central Minnesota to determine their most important transportation issues. Hwy 23 was frequently mentioned as a critical connection to deliver goods to national and international markets.
The segment of Hwy 23 between Willmar and I-94 is a distance of approximately 53 miles. Of those 53 miles, all but 16 have been constructed as a four-lane roadway. The two gaps in the four-lane roadway are between New London and Paynesville (South gap) and Paynesville and Richmond (North gap).
The environmental review and layout development for the Paynesville to Richmond (North gap) segment began in June of 2015. MnDOT issued its Findings of Fact and Conclusion document in December of 2017.
Construction of the North gap is scheduled to begin in 2022. For more information on the North Gap visit the project webpage.