The above photograph is part of the campaign now underway to raise public awareness for safety in work zones.

Mn/DOT’s Worker Memorial Day commemoration takes place statewide on Monday, April 29.

The day honors workers who were injured or killed performing their jobs as highway maintenance and construction workers. Since 1960, 28 Mn/DOT transportation workers have been killed in work-related crashes.

Employees will hear a taped message from Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg at 1:55 p.m. and observe a moment of silence at 2 p.m.

As in the past, there is an official Worker Memorial event to mark the day and this year it is part of the James L. Oberstar Forum on Transportation Policy and Technology. The worker memorial event begins at 1:30 p.m. at the Radisson Metrodome on the East Bank of the University of Minnesota and will include remarks from Tinklenberg, U.S. Rep. Oberstar, U.S. DOT Secretary Norman Mineta and Executive Director of AFSCME Council 6, AFL-CIO, Peter Benner.

"We hope Mn/DOT employees will wear their orange-ribboned worker memorial pins on Monday the 29th in honor of our maintenance and construction workers who have been killed on the job," said Ray Vial, construction safety supervisor and Worker Memorial Day event planner. "These pins also remind us to share with friends and family the importance of staying alert in the work zones. We have a beautiful new memorial dedicated in 2000—we don’t want to add any more names to it."

During the last five years there have been 10,951 work zone crashes on Minnesota streets and highways, resulting in 52 fatalities and 4,911injuries.

"Safety is Mn/DOT’s top priority," Tinklenberg said. "Motorists need to drive like the lives of our workers depend on them—because they do. Safety does not just happen—we all must make it happen."

Click here for more information about work zone safety.

By Mary Meinert

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Dick Unzen, a transportation generalist at Duluth, was killed April 22 when he got out of his vehicle to remove a hazard from traffic lanes on the John Blatnik Bridge that links Duluth and Superior, Wis. Unzen, seen here in a 1998 photo, was remembered as "a kind man who was looked up to by his fellow employees."

Richard (Dick) Unzen, 61, a transportation generalist at Duluth, was killed Monday when he got out of his vehicle to remove a hazard from traffic lanes on the John Blatnik Bridge, part of I-535 that links Duluth and Superior, Wis.

Unzen, who was off-duty when the incident occurred, stopped to remove a ladder which had fallen from a truck and was blocking both southbound lanes of the bridge.

Unzen was struck by a vehicle involved in a chain-reaction crash on the bridge and knocked over a concrete barrier, falling 130 feet into the frigid waters of St. Louis Bay. The Coast Guard pulled him from the water within a few minutes but resuscitation efforts failed.

Unzen had left work around noon, after completing a snowplowing shift that started at 3 a.m.

"He was a Good Samaritan trying to do a good deed and it got him killed," said Capt. Clarence Nylund of the Minnesota State Patrol, according to a report in the Duluth News Tribune.

"This is such a tragic loss. My sympathies go out to the family, co-workers and friends who were clearly touched by such a caring person," said Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg. "Those who knew Dick best said they are not surprised he stopped to help someone in need. He lived his life helping people and he died helping people. He was a family man, a dedicated employee and will be missed by all."

Unzen’s attempt to remedy the situation typifies the expectation co-workers at Duluth held of him.

"Dick was a kind man who was looked up to by his fellow employees," said Maureen Talarico, the district’s public affairs coordinator. "People who knew him know it would have been impossible for him not to stop and help."

John Shallow, maintenance supervisor at Duluth said Unzen "was the kind of guy you want to have on your crew. He always loved what he did whether it was plowing snow or bridge maintenance or working in the sign shop. He was reliable and well-respected, very good at what he did and the kind of guy you could always reach. He didn’t leave his job at the door. We will miss him here."

Unzen had worked at the Duluth District since 1985, serving as a seasonal laborer, bridge worker and transportation generalist. His spouse, five children and five grandchildren survive him.

By Craig Wilkins

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The Senior Management Team last week approved recommended changes for the Office of Technical Support. The recommendations are part of the department-wide Shaping Our Future effort to adapt to changing state and national priorities, the economic climate, new technology and customer needs. Most of the operational change in this office will involve cost estimating, layout review and municipal agreements.

Technical Support will develop expertise to support early project cost estimating, evaluation of new estimating methods and tools, and training services for district offices. District offices will perform the actual early cost estimates. Final plan estimates will continue to be done by the districts, where needed, for purposes such as cost-share agreements between state and local governments. The Engineer’s Cost Estimate, used to assess bid quality and required by state statute for all projects, will remain a function of Technical Support.

Geometric Layouts now include four levels based on design type and complexity. Central Office Geometrics will now limit its reviews to Level One layouts. These layouts involve major work on interstate highways, high-profile projects like the Wakota Bridge and design/build projects like Hwy 52. Mn/DOT is working with the Federal Highway Administration to define appropriate design delegation as part of the FHWA-Mn/DOT Stewardship Agreement.

Municipal agreements now prepared in Technical Support may be prepared by districts in the future at the district’s choice. The Streamlining Steering Committee had also recommended a move in this direction. Technical Support will review and approve the agreements. The office will also provide training, develop a checklist approach to ensure that all key items are completed, and provide boilerplate language to simplify the process.

Processes for review and approval of design exceptions and plan title sheet signatures will remain in place. Visualization services will remain in Technical Support, but will be focused more on guidance, leading edge research and support for districts that do not have this expertise. Other areas within the office may need to be addressed.

For more information contact Del Gerdes, Technical Support director, at 651/296-3036.

Click here for more information about Shaping Our Future and to read an earlier Mn/DOT Newsline article discussing other changes to the Office of Technical Support. Send questions to change@dot.state.mn.us or to Change, Mail Stop 150.

By Jeanne Aamodt

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Saying that it sent a "dangerous message," Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg sent a letter to General Motors Corp. last Friday objecting to a TV commercial that depicts two stopped trains waiting for a Cadillac Escalade to cross the tracks.

A television commercial for Cadillac, which portrays two stopped trains waiting for a Cadillac Escalade to cross the tracks before they resume their travel, sends a dangerous message, says Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg. He sent a letter to General Motors Corp. April 19 expressing his concern.

"Trains and cars can be a deadly mixture," Tinklenberg said. "A train traveling 50 miles per hour takes 1.5 miles to make a complete stop. When a train crushes a car, it does it with the same force that a car crushes a pop can. All of us need to remember to be alert and careful at railroad crossings."

According to April 24 Associated Press reports, GM said it stands by the television advertisement. AP also reported that GM officials planned to meet with Tinklenberg to discuss the concerns he raised in his letter to company Chairman John F. Smith.

In 2001, there were 962 fatalities, 10,418 injuries and countless near misses at national highway rail crossings. In Minnesota, fatalities have declined over the past 20 years; however, during the first three months of 2002, there have already been four fatalities in Minnesota—one less than in all of 2001.

Research shows that most people are not aware of the dangers at railroad crossings. Trains are not required to stop at crossings; they are only required to blow their whistles. What drivers do—or don’t do—can mean life or death.

In an interview with Fox 29 news, Al Vogel, director of the Office of Freight, Railroads and Waterways, stated that Mn/DOT invests $4 to $5 million annually in improving engineering at crossings. Vogel attributed the general decline in accidents over the last 20 years to engineering improvements such as signals and gates and a concerted effort by Mn/DOT, railroads and Operation Lifesaver to educate drivers. Minnesota has almost 4,700 miles of railroad track and more than 5,000 public grade crossings.

Mn/DOT’s Grade Crossing Safety Improvement Program upgrades safety at rail-highway intersections by improving visibility, recommending and funding warning devices. However, a host of warning devices cannot prevent a driver from making a bad choice and becoming a statistic.

The Office of Freight, Railroads and Waterways partners with Minnesota Operation Lifesaver and Minnesota’s railroad companies to make educational presentations and distribute railroad safety information. To find out about the services offered, contact Deb Hipp at 651/296-0359 or check out the Web site at http://www.dot.state.mn.us/rail.html.

By Sue Stein

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Seven plans Mn/DOT developed with its local partners show that almost 600 miles of Minnesota’s interregional corridor system need short-term operational or safety improvements.

The Minnesota Statewide Planning Steering Committee released the recommendations today after working for almost one year with local residents, business leaders and government representatives who live and work along seven Minnesota interregional corridors. Committee members came from the Metropolitan Council, the state departments of Natural Resources, Transportation, Planning, Pollution Control, and the Federal Highway Administration.

These seven plans are a first step toward protecting and improving the interregional corridor system that Mn/DOT adopted in 2000. The IRC system identifies 2,900 miles of highways connecting the state’s important regional trade centers.

"By establishing trust with local communities early in the process, Mn/DOT can act as a catalyst and resource for local transportation and land use planning efforts," said Doug Weiszhaar, deputy commissioner/chief engineer.

"Equally important is the need to promote long-range comprehensive planning by the townships, cities and counties along the routes to help improve, maintain and offer transportation alternatives," Weiszhaar said.

According to Weiszhaar, improvements are needed to ensure the economic connections throughout the entire state. However, long-term projects to improve system performance, such as replacing signalized intersections with bridges or interchanges, remain critical to protect long-term efficient movement of goods and people.

Recommendations for future improvements include preserving property near major intersections for future projects and promoting access control as part of site planning by city councils and planning commissions. Traffic impact studies may also be required if future land development will affect state and local roads.

Mn/DOT held open houses and public hearings along the corridors to gather public comment and suggestions.

"We wanted this to be a truly coordinated community effort," said Dick Bautch, interregional corridor manager, citing positive feedback Mn/DOT received from in the 212 Corridor Study.

A key component of Mn/DOT’s Moving Minnesota plan is improvement and protection of important highway connections between Minnesota’s regional trade centers. The Moving Minnesota funding package approved by the Legislature in 2000 provided one-time money for the ABCs of transportation—Advantages for transit, Bottleneck removal and Corridor connections. This study focused on the connections.

For more information about the studies or Moving Minnesota, check Mn/DOT’s Web site at www.dot.state.mn.us/movingminnesota/ircstudies.

By Judy Jacobs

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The Office of Motor Carrier Services is testing a new Web-based system that allows contractors and other users of large commercial vehicles to apply electronically for permits in less than 15 minutes. The pilot program includes nine companies; Mn/DOT hopes to have a complete automated system available to all customers by June 2003.

Applying for permits for over-dimension or oversized vehicles has now become a lot simpler, thanks to an automated processing system Mn/DOT is piloting.

The Web-based system allows contractors and other users of large commercial vehicles to apply for permits electronically in less than 15 minutes.

Mn/DOT launched the new application in late February in response to the large volume of requests it received for road permits and the slow turn-around time for issuing the permits.

"The old way of applying for permits required customers to call in their request—it could take up to two days to issue a permit," said Becky Ellinghuysen, a supervisor with the Office of Motor Carrier Services and project manager for the new system.

The department processes more than 57,000 single-trip permits each year and receives nearly 120,000 requests by telephone for information or for over-dimension or oversized vehicle permits.

Mn/DOT chose nine companies that are members of the Minnesota chapter of the Associated General Contractors, the nation’s largest and oldest construction trade association, to test the new system.

"We’ve worked with Mn/DOT for the last two and a half years in developing this system," said Wayne Murphy, director of AGC’s Minnesota chapter. "The new system is phenomenal—it’s faster, and it seems to be flawless."

"We request an average of 30 permits a week," said Jim Hartman, a contractor with Truck Crane Service of St. Paul. "It’s a giant step forward (for the department). It’s definitely a privilege to be in this pilot."

With the new system, applicants type in basic information consisting of vehicle size and weight, requested travel route and final destination.

The system is highly advanced, according to Pierre Carpenter, Motor Carrier Services permit supervisor.

"After the customer enters the information, the system will edit it and decide if it’s correct or not; if not, drop-down screens will help the customer to enter the correct information," he said.

The permit process plays a major role in the completion of construction projects by transporting heavy equipment and materials. The quicker the permit process works, the faster contractors can get their crews out on the road to deliver those projects in a safe, timely manner.

"This process is a stepping stone. Our ultimate goal is to have a system that requires no human intervention," Ellinghuysen said.

Mn/DOT continuously seeks ways to advance highway safety for commercial transportation and the motorists who share the roads with these over-sized vehicles.

The agency is currently expanding its Minnesota Condition and Acquisition Reporting System that contains weather, road condition, construction, special event and permit information. This system will allow Mn/DOT along with other state agencies to store road and weather conditions through a central collection system.

"Our goal is to link our permit routing system to MnCARS, along with other data sources to help implement a fully automated system," Ellinghuysen said.

Mn/DOT hopes to have a complete automated system available to all customers by June 2003.

Click here for more information on how Motor Carrier Services is improving service to its customers.

By Daneeka Marshall-Oquendo

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Officials from Mn/DOT, two counties, four cities and other agencies participated April 18 in the groundbreaking ceremony for a new Hwy 169/Hwy 19 interchange near in Belle Plaine. Photo by Rebecca Arndt

Sunlight glinted off their shovels and clods of earth flew as legislators and officials from Mn/DOT, cities, counties and other agencies turned the first ground for a new Hwy 169/Hwy 19 interchange near Belle Plaine on Thursday, April 18.

The $6.8 million project received $4.2 million to speed its completion by the Legislature in 2000 to as part of Moving Minnesota’s interregional corridor improvement program.

The project comprises part of the Hwy 169 Corridor Management Plan designed to improve the flow of traffic between the Twin Cities metro area, St. Peter, Mankato and other cities in the busy corridor.

The project enjoys strong support from area residents and businesses because of the safety improvements it will create, noted Rebecca Arndt, Mankato public affairs coordinator.

The project will be completed in fall 2003.

In addition to the symbolic groundbreaking, the event also included a reception where citizens could meet with elected officials as well as design and construction staff from the Mankato District to address questions and concerns about the project and other future changes in the Hwy 169 corridor.

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Tom Peters, Office of Traffic Engineering/Intelligent Transportation Systems, has been appointed the new project manager for the Transportation Operations Communications Centers.

Tom Peters, Office of Traffic Engineering/Intelligent Transportation Systems, has been appointed to the position of project manager for the Transportation Operations Communications Centers, announced Nelrae Succio, District Operations director.

Peters succeeds Steve Bahler, who will be leaving Mn/DOT to work with a consulting firm in Nebraska.

Peters previously worked as an ITS program manager in the Office of Advanced Transportation Systems for almost five years. Prior to Mn/DOT, Peters spent 10 years with the Federal Highway Administration and four years with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Peters has a B.A. in Civil Engineering with a minor in Business Administration and has been a professional engineer since 1987.

As TOCC project manager, Peters will be able to combine his background in ITS, his project management skills and his current experience working with districts to implement ITS technologies in the TOCC, to solidify the partnership between Mn/DOT and the Department of Public Safety.

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In her new role as Detroit Lakes District public affairs coordinator, Pamela McLeod will provide leadership to management and staff in areas such as internal communications, media relations and community relations. Photo by Craig Wilkins

The Detroit Lakes District appointed Pamela McLeod as its public affairs coordinator. Before her new appointment, McLeod served as an employee development specialist with the district.

She succeeds Pat Vogt, who transferred to full-time duties with the district’s business office.

In her new role, McLeod will provide leadership to management and staff in areas such as internal communications, media relations and community relations.

Before joining Mn/DOT in 1999 at Detroit Lakes, McLeod worked with the state Office of Tourism and the Department of Employee Relations in communications and training since 1988.

A native of Moorhead, McLeod holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Concordia College, St. Paul.

McLeod may be reached at 218/847-1568.

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Tanaya Holmes, Administrative Services, used sign language to recite "Thoughts of a Deaf Child," by Stephen J. Bellitz, at an April 17 event celebrating National Poetry Month. Margaret Walsh, Human Resources, read aloud as Holmes signed the poem, which ends with these words: "I never cared about the sound of radios and bands/What hurts me most, I never heard/My parents’ signing hands."

The words of Maya Angelou, Stephen Crane, Black Elk and Langston Hughes echoed in the halls of the Transportation Building in St. Paul on April 17 during a lunch hour program celebrating National Poetry Month.

Mixed in with the poems from world-renown writers were original poems from a number of Mn/DOT employees, including Elizabeth Kay Brzoska, Metro Division MIS; Justina Dansky, Human Resources; Leo Holm, Environmental Services; Ron McLane, Information Resource Management; Qin Tang, Mn/DOT Library; Andy Terry, Electronic Communications, and Aurora Walls, Information Resource Management.

The diversity committees for Program Support/Modal Operations and the Management Operations Group sponsored the event, which included a colorful buffet of desserts, fruits, cheeses and beverages.

Other poetry reciters were Maya Beecham, Bruce Biser, Eric Davis, Rebecca Fabunmi, Linda Gremillion (emcee), Barb Hogan, Tanaya Holmes, Liz Pawlak and John Tompkins. Bev Kelley and Margaret Walsh, both from the Office of Human Resources, provided sign language services for the program.

Poems ran thematically from the patriotic to the sorrowful to the inspirational, such as Dansky's poem, "That Day," about the tragic events of Sept. 11; Holm's poem, "Ramona," about the loss of his sister, and Walls' poem, "Life Like Basketball," about the rhythms of life.

Not all of the poems were products of recent artistic endeavors. Terry recited a poem that he wrote in high school—"before I suppressed that side of me and became an engineer," he told a laughing audience.

Some of the poems are available for viewing in the display case outside the cafeteria on ground floor.

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