County Project 46-50
Dakota County and the City of Hastings conducted a corridor study of 160th Street (County Road 46) from 1,300 feet west of General Sieben Drive to Highway 61.
Project overview
This corridor provides an east-west connection between Interstate 35 in Lakeville and Highway 61 in Hastings. County Road 46 is also important to the City of Hastings. It provides an additional east-west connection, access to the Vermillion River and nearby parks and the businesses on Highway 61.
As development continues, the county and city anticipate County Road 46 to continue to serve as an east-west corridor, and traffic volumes will likely continue to increase. The corridor study will help develop a vision for this segment of County Road 46 that will balance the needs of all users.
The corridor study included:
- Review of traffic operations for current and future conditions
- Development of corridor design alternatives
- Evaluation of pedestrian and bicyclist mobility and connectivity improvement areas
- Inclusion of Vermillion River Greenway enhancements
- Improvements for Vermillion River natural resources
Study recommendations
Based on issues, needs and potential options, the project team developed recommendations. The recommendations include a defined project that incorporates study data and input from community engagement. The Hastings City Council adopted the study recommendations on March 21, 2022 and the Dakota County Board of Commissioners adopted the study recommendations on March 22, 2022.
The defined project includes:
- Reconstructing County Road 46 as a divided 2-lane roadway with a raised center median from Pleasant Drive east to Highway 61
- Constructing a trail along the north side of County Road 46 from General Sieben Drive to Highway 61 and a trail along the south side from Pleasant Drive to Pine Street.
- Constructing single lane roundabouts at Pleasant Drive and Pine Street
- Replacing the existing Vermillion River bridge east of 31st Street with a wider bridge that will accommodate pedestrian and bicyclists
County Road 46 Study Recommendations