U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (middle) joins Moorhead Mayor Shelly Carlson (left) and community leaders at the intersection of Center Avenue and 11th street in Moorhead (KFGO News Photo / Jake Anderson)
MOORHEAD (KFGO) – U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar visited Moorhead Tuesday morning to highlight the completion of the new 11th Street underpass, a $171 million project expected to reduce train-related delays and improve emergency response times in the city.
The new underpass is the largest transportation project in Moorhead’s history. It is expected to eliminate more than 70 train blockages each day, according to project estimates.
Senator Klobuchar says she’s seen firsthand how much time people in Moorhead lost waiting for trains.
“I’ve been up here a lot, seeing my own delays, I know what this is like, then heard from the community about these delays and what was happening to so many people when they simply had to get their kid to a practice or then the risk with emergency services and the like and how important this was.” Klobuchar said.
Project estimates say over the next 20 years, the project is projected to save about 7 million hours of vehicle delays, 2.5 million gallons of fuel and 23,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. It also is expected to prevent an estimated 258 crashes.
The project includes 1.8 miles of new or reconstructed trails for pedestrians and bicyclists and is expected to reduce exposure to rail crossings by 35%.
The project was funded through $120 million in state legislative appropriations, $21.5 million in Minnesota Department of Transportation funds, $3.8 million from the city and county and $26.3 million in federal funding through the Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program, funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Moorhead applied nine times for federal funding before the project was awarded the grant.
Klobuchar said she pushed for the federal funding each year and contacted then-U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg after repeated unsuccessful applications.
“I made calls for nine years in a row,” Klobuchar said.
Clay County Commissioner and Former Moorhead Police Chief David Ebinger says the project is especially important for emergency responders because the 11th Street area is home to the Moorhead Fire Department headquarters, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and the Moorhead Police Department.
David Ebigner (City of Moorhead Photo / Jamie Waller)
“The 12 years I was here, the first thing a field training officer taught a rookie was how to get around the tracks.” Ebinger said. “It adds minutes, sometimes really essential minutes for emergency response to scenes.”
Klobuchar also pointed to the project while discussing her campaign for Minnesota governor. She said she would work with the state’s congressional delegation, including Democrats and Republicans, to pursue federal funding for infrastructure projects if elected.
“If I am governor, I will advocate for this funding along with our congressional delegation, Democrats and Republicans,” Klobuchar said.
Klobuchar said her experience in Washington would be an advantage in finding federal money for infrastructure.
“I actually know where the money’s buried,” she said. “I know how we can get things done.”
The project is also expected to benefit businesses in downtown Moorhead after about three years of construction.
Sean Syverson, co-owner of Swing Barrel Brewing Company, said businesses have missed customers who would normally stop downtown while passing through the area.
Sean Syverson, co-owner of Swing Barrel Brewing (City of Moorhead photo / Jamie Waller)
“One of our workers said the other day, ‘I just miss people who stop in and say, I was just driving by,’” Syverson said.
Moorhead leaders said the underpass will improve traffic flow through downtown and create new opportunities for businesses and development.
The city will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday at 4 p.m. to officially mark the project’s completion. A community block party featuring local businesses, live music, food trucks and beverages will follow the ceremony.
Klobuchar called the completion a major milestone for Moorhead.
“The train will be a positive sign,” she said. “It’ll be above us, not at us.”
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