Earlier this month, several members of the Minnesota Senate visited Becker to hear about a proposed project at the intersection of Highways 10 and 25. 

The visiting senators were members of the transportation senate committee, their staff, and other local politicians who were interested to hear about the project. 

The idea for the project is to build an overpass over Hwy. 10 along Hwy. 25, allowing traffic to continue smoothly along both corridors. 

Council Member Rick Hendrickson of the City of Becker addressed the assembled politicians, explaining why the project was so important. 

Hendrickson noted the high number of accidents that occur at the intersection as vehicles attempt to get onto Hwy. 10 from 25. Just over two months ago, on Labor Day weekend, there was a fatal crash at the intersection. Traffic on Hwy. 25 can back up considerably as drivers wait for a safe opening to get onto 10. 

Hendrickson noted that he lives in a neighborhood close to the intersection, and he reminds his teenagers often to avoid the deadly intersection during busy times of the day.

City Administrator Greg Lerud added that, while the city was relatively small with only a population of around 5,000 people, Hwy. 10 through Becker serves as the main corridor for traffic between St. Cloud and the Metro area, serving 19,800 vehicles per day. On top of that, the BNSF railway that runs alongside Hwy. 10 is also busy with around 30 trains coming through on a daily basis. The trains can cause even further congestion during busy times of the day. 

Because of all of this, the city is requesting around $3.8 million from the state in order to begin planning the project.