Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog.net

Misplaced Priorities: Spending $20 Million for 1,200 Drivers

The state of Minnesota is planning to spend $20 million to expand highway access to the town of Good Thunder, population 600. Photo: Wikipedia
Minnesota is planning to spend $20 million to widen and straighten the state highway through the town of Good Thunder, population 600. Photo: Wikipedia
false

Even a lot of routine road projects don't make much sense when you apply a little critical analysis.

Here's a great example from the Minneapolis area, via Matthias Leyrer at Network blog Streets.mn. Minnesota DOT is gearing up to pour $20 million into a state highway so the road will have 12-foot lanes, 6-foot shoulders, and fewer curves. But hardly anyone uses this road:

MNDOT recently announced that it will be spending roughly 20 million to fix up Highway 66 which connects Good Thunder with Mankato.

Now I’m no economist, but Good Thunder isn’t exactly a burgeoning center of local commerce. The residency as of the 2010 census stood at 583 people. Yes, 583, as in less than 600. As in I have enough money to give everyone in that city a dollar–scratch that–THREE DOLLARS.

Why spend $20 million on improving a route to a city that small? Great question, reader, here’s the answer: THERE IS NONE.

The AADT (Average Annual Daily Traffic) for this road is 1,100 cars. Roughly double the residency of Good Thunder or essentially every citizen coming to and from Mankato every day. If you want, think about it as $20,000 per car. Oh, did I mention that the road is about 12 miles long? So yet another way of thinking about it is roughly $1.6m a mile.

It would actually be cheaper to spend 10 million on the road and then just PAY those 1,100 cars 5k a year to take a different route (only for one year, but you get the idea).

Elsewhere on the Network today: World Streets relays the news that Helsinki has a plan to make private cars obsolete. The Wash Cycle is skeptical that GPS directions are a major factor in the decline of vehicle miles traveled. And Bike Pittsburgh announces that the city's bike-share has been delayed until 2015.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

New Camera Tech Hopes to Stop Drivers From Close-Passing Cyclists

If only policymakers could fully experience the pervasive problem of drivers passing too closely to cyclists perhaps they'd find a way to stop the deadly practice and get victims justice.

December 11, 2024

Wednesday’s Headlines Are Staying Put

Cities like Atlanta, Denver and Minneapolis provide blueprints for how transit can improve neighborhoods without pushing people out.

December 11, 2024

Do Tuesday’s Headlines Live in a 15-Minute City?

Find out how long it takes to walk to stores, restaurants and transit stops in your neighborhood with this Washington Post widget.

December 10, 2024

‘Trojan Horse’: NYC’s E-Bike Licensing Bill Would Fuel Anti-Immigrant Policing

Council members fail to address the e-bike registration bill's potential harmful outcomes.

December 10, 2024

Even at Slower Speeds, SUVs and Pickups are a ‘Big’ Problem for Pedestrians

Pedestrians hit by median-height cars have a 60 percent chance of suffering moderate injuries, but that figure rises to 83 percent when they are struck by a median-height pickup truck at that same speed.

December 10, 2024
See all posts