Drivers traveling between Blue Earth and Fairmont will soon be able to make their trip a little bit faster when utilizing County Road 16 in Faribault County and County Road 26 in Martin County following a decision by the Faribault County Commissioners at their meeting on Thursday.
While the posted speed limit will be raised to 60 miles per hour in Faribault County, the speed limit in Martin County, will be 55 mph, at least for now.
A speed study done the prior year showed CR 26 met the 60 mph requirement but CR 16 did not.
It was explained that at the time of the study, CR 16 did not have paved shoulders or rumble strips. In October of 2021, MnDOT was advised that Faribault County had completed work on CR 16, which included four foot paved shoulders and rumble strips.
A new speed study was conducted and completed in October of this year.
CR 16 was approved for 60 mph, but CR 26 was not. MnDOT wants CR 26 kept at 55 mph for another year. This is because of three crashes which all happened at one intersection in a 30 mph zone on the eastern edge of Fairmont. Martin County has since made significant safety improvements to that area.
After some discussion, the Faribault County Commissioners passed a motion to raise the speed limit to 60 mph on CR 16, beginning west of the Blue Earth Industrial Park to the Martin County Line.