Project Abstract
Minnesotaﾒs Truck Highway 61, North Shore Scenic Drive, runs northeasterly along the rock and heavily forested edge of Lake Superior, for than 150 miles, from the regional trade center of Duluth to Canada. TH 61 is both a scenic highway as well as a vital interregional and international trade corridor for northeastern Minnesota. Proactive project management and stakeholder involvement, along with design flexibility, resulted in a successful balance among transportation, community and environmental objectives.
Project Description
Minnesotaﾒs Trunk Highway 61, North Shore Scenic Drive, runs northeasterly along the rock and heavily forested edge of Lake Superior, for than 150 miles, from the regional trade center of Duluth to Canada. TH 61 is both a scenic highway as well as a vital interregional and international trade corridor for northeastern Minnesota.
Context-Sensitive Objectives
- Improve roadway safety and traffic flow.
- Enhance the scenic and visual qualities of the corridor.
- Preserve historic and traditional views and vistas from the highway.
- Preserve and enhance public access to the lakeshore.
- Avoid adverse impacts to residential and commercial property owners.
- Avoid adverse impacts to the environment and state parkland.
- Reduce erosion along the lakeshore and Cutface Creek.
History
Visitors who travel along the North Shore Scenic Drive are able to experience the magnificent landscapes, the cascading rivers, the rugged shorelines, and the breathtaking vistas along with the other natural and cultural resources and history that abound along this Lake Superior region. The characteristics that draw visitors to this region are so unique that TH 61 was recently designated as an ﾓAll-American Roadﾔ in the National Scenic Byways Program.
Aside from being a tourist and recreational driving destination, within an environmentally challenging area, the North Shore Scenic Drive provides adequate safety, mobility and access for local residents, businesses, recreation areas and commercial trucking while accommodating bicyclists, pedestrians and rail crossings. Balancing transportation, community, environmental and stakeholder needs along this corridor was a tremendous challenge.
The Minnesota Department of Transportationﾒs (MN/DOTﾒs) reconstruction and realignment of TH 61, along Lake Superiorﾒs Good Harbor Bay, illustrates a context-sensitive design approach that balanced transportation, community and environmental needs without requiring exceptions to geometric design guidelines. This project also illustrates context-sensitive design that did not arise out of contentious public involvement and controversy but rather out of proactive project management and involvement of stakeholders.
Further Reading:
Route 61, North Shore Drive - Minnesota PDF
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