Hutchinson Leader - Highway 7 opening thoughts - Comments

The drop off there and along

Terry Davis — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 17:08:35 -0600

The drop off there and along other areas of the project that received bituminous surfacing results from the final thin "wear course" not being completed in time this year. That will be put down next year. Once that is added, there should be a smoother transition between the concrete and asphalt surfaces. That is also why some of the manholes look a little high this year. They wouldn't look that way when the wear course is added.

(Terry Davis is a staff writer for the Hutchinson Leader. He can be reached at davis@hutchinsonleader.com)

The bridge does have

Eric Kraushar — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 11:15:03 -0600

The bridge does have sidewalks. Eventually, the Luce Line Trail will also go underneath the bridge on the north side of the river so that people won't have to cross over the highway.

Staff writer Terry Davis said at some point, the dam will be reconstructed, not to bring back the view, but because the bridge is now closer to the dam. The timetable for this is unknown.

You are correct though, that view was pretty neat when you drove over the bridge, especially when the sun was setting.

The roads are ok, that dip

Peanut — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 03:44:37 -0600

The roads are ok, that dip silverlakian mentioned, I don't remember it being that bad, Unless the winter frost somehow messed that up. I wonder, if someday they re-do the dam, if they can move it back some so you can see the water fall from the bridge. A person use to take some amazing pictures from the old bridge sidewalk. Now that I think of it, does the new bridge have a sidewalk? humm I'll have to look once.

The new area of the highway

Silverlakian — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 18:36:47 -0600

The new area of the highway is nice. But there are two things that I do not like about it. First, you can't see the dam anymore when you go over the bridge...it takes away from the scenery a bit. Second, in the area of Hwy 7 and Adams Street there is a section of concrete at the bottom of the hill (towards the Napa store) where there is a bit of a drop off. It kind of jars the car a bit even when you drive over it slowly. Couldn't the workers have finished this up by just slanting the concrete or something so that it doesn't drop?

The intersection of Hwy 15

Paul Otte — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:46:31 -0600

The intersection of Hwy 15 and 7 looks very nice, but a closer look reveals some problems. When driving Northbound, why are there two left turn lanes and only a short (too short) right turn lane? When proceeding north up the hill, the right lane should not merge until past the top of the hill. Already people are using that right lane to try to quickly pass people while going up the hill. When it gets icy, it'll be trouble! Also, it's difficult to tell when traveling across the intersection which lane you should head for when going up the hill. I see confusion there every day. In short, I think it's laid out very poorly. By the way, I'm glad to see the city or county finally put street lights at the intersection of Airport Road and Hwy 15. That will be a much safer place after dark.

My recollection of the

Terry Davis — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 10:34:22 -0600

My recollection of the reason they eliminated four-lane traffic on Highway 15 through downtown was the danger it posed to people exiting the drivers' sides of their cars. The lanes were quite narrow.

To go back to that would probably mean eliminating parking on at least one side of the street through downtown. Merchants would likely object. Besides, having just two lanes seems to have a "calming" affect on traffic.

When you have four lanes, as Highway 7 is now, drivers tend to want to go faster. The 30 mph limit on the four-lane section of Highway 7 seems to be slow. Try driving 30 mph and see how many people pass you.

I miss the old days when

Peanut — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 18:53:01 -0600

I miss the old days when hutch was four lanes, But they killed that idea because kids would drive up and down the road all night. I didn't care, as long as kids weren't breaking or damaging anything.

It's about time they opened the bridge. I think the service road passed or behind hardee's is going to cause trouble also.

The new dam could be more

Matt McMillan — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 09:24:23 -0600

The new dam could be more visible. It is suppose to be about twice as wide -- part of Girl Scout Park will removed to widen the dam -- and maybe pushed back a bit. The drawing I saw last month was slightly rounded. Instead of coming straight from one river bank to the other, picture a half-moon shape curving back further upstream.

Hutchinson is waiting for federal money to go ahead with the project. It has passed the U.S. House, and will be brought up again when the new Congress convenes in January.

I went over the new bridge

Kay Johnson — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 08:15:09 -0600

I went over the new bridge this morning. I was disappointed with the view. I can't see the dam anymore. I liked watching the water pouring over the dam. Will we be able to see the dam again once its replaced?

I was also surprised by the

Eric Kraushar — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:09:00 -0600

I was also surprised by the conservative speed limit. While I agreed with the old posting of 30 through that section when it was two lanes and it seemed the houses and businesses were right on top of you. But now with four lanes, I believe it should be 40 miles per hour. I don't see much risk at that speed with the little pedestrian traffic that area has. Other thoughts?

I went over the bridge today

Jill Barrall — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 15:42:46 -0600

I went over the bridge today too. Wow! It feels so open at the intersection of Highways 15 and 7. It is sort of odd to see such empty lots where businesses used to sit. In a year, when all the finishing touches are put on and some landscaping is completed, I've no doubt we'll all be hard-pressed to remember what it looked like before the project started. (Of course, that's why historical photos are important.) In the meantime, we'll all be gawking at the new views with piqued interest.

It could be made even better

Tip up — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 15:39:17 -0600

It could be made even better yet.

The next step should be to four-lane it all the way through town to Airport Road. This would keep traffic moving briskly and prevent the backups that happen every Friday.

I just came across the bridge a few minutes ago and I can already see there being issues with the two lanes merging into one just a short distance from the first light by Dairy Queen. Let's open up the traffic as done in most progressive towns (New Ulm, Willmar, etc) so that you can actually get through town with little effort.

I was also surprised by the 30mph speed limit on Highway 7. Seems a bit conservative for a major four lane road compared to other towns where they have four lanes running through.

"Awesome" is the word that

Scott Hornemann — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 11:26:11 -0600

"Awesome" is the word that came to mind as I drove over the new bridge this morning. I love the size of the new bridge, multiple turn lanes and the center divider that was part of this project. The only down side is that I can no longer see the water flowing over the dam as I cross. It was fun to watch the water rise and fall with the season's rainfall. Anyway, this is a great improvement for the city of Hutchinson.

This morning, my first drive

Matt McMillan — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 10:57:52 -0600

This morning, my first drive on the newly-opened Highway 7 and Main Street Bridge in Hutchinson was better than expected. It was dusty, but vistas from the elevated road into the city allow motorists to see Hutchinson's water tower in North Park, Peace Lutheran Church's steeple and rooftops of commercial buildings.

The commercial district visible coming down "college hill" or Highway 15, and from Hwy. 7, seems larger. With fewer trees and no leaves on the remaining trees, the wider view into the city makes it appear larger.

The arches and vertical lines pressed into the concrete retaining walls, ironwork on top of the bridge and sidewalk design gives the new highway an historic appearance.

Highway 7 opening thoughts

Matt McMillan — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 07:00:03 -0600

Did you drive on the newly-opened Highway 7 or Main Street Bridge in Hutchinson today? What do you think? Is it wide enough for you?