Minnesota Highways, February 1955

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mum
VOL.  4,  NO.  4
1246 University Ave., St. Paul 4, Minn.
FEBRUARY,   1955
Shipping Booms
Where Highways
Meet Blue Water
Ship-to-truck and truck-to-
ship transportation through
the Duluth-Superior Twin
ports has boomed during the
past three decades, according
to the following authoritative
fide. This development was
'pendent on the continuing
improvement of highways in
Minnesota and neighboring
states. It may be pointed out
that reduced transportation
costs mentioned in the article
are a material offset against
highway construction and
maintenance costs.
By ROBERT H. SMITH
Traffic Commissioner
Duluth Chamber of Commerce
Through the Duluth-Superior
harbor—second United States Port
in volume of tonnage handled—
moves an enormous volume of
bulk commodities such as coal,
grain and iron ore, as well as substantial quantities of manufactured
goods. Until the Second World
war, the commerce of the port
mgyed to and from its terminals
1H H entirely by rail. Since 1945,
n^^ver, an ever increasing proportion of this waterborne tonnage
is moving to and from the port
over the highways.
One of the earliest water-highway movements to develop was
that of automobiles from the Detroit area by water to Duluth, and
thence by transport truck to destinations in Minnesota, the Dako-
tas, and Montana. In its earliest
and simplest form, this joint water-
highway movement probably started as a "drive-away" movement,
from Duluth to nearby points. In
the twenties and thirties, that
movement extended for distances
in  excess  of  500  miles  from  the
Lport. Since 1946, however, it appears to have been gradually displaced by the automobile carriers
which handle from four to six ve-
7955 Highway Program
Widening of Congested Routes
Will Promote Traffic Safety
Widening and other improvement of some of Minnesota's most congested highways and
grading and surfacing of several hundred miles of roads throughout the state are included
in the Minnesota Highway department's projected 1955 construction program. Some of the
projects will eliminate dangerous curves, shorten some routes, and reduce grades to provide safer and more economical travel routes.
Another important part of the program is the projected construction of approximately
50 bridges, mostly to replace obsolete structures which are considered unfit for today's heavy
traffic.
The program, one of the biggest
in the department's history, with
an estimated total cost of 43.5 million dollars, is considered by highway officials to be necessary to
meet the acute needs of the state's
constantly increasing traffic volume.
Contracts already have been let
for about three million dollars of
the total. Some of the work to be
contracted in 1955 will extend into
next year.
Included in the projected trunk
highway program, with estimated
costs, are:
—Photo from Nicholson Transit Co.
With the development of heavy duty highways, thousands of new automobiles
are each year brought up the Great Lakes from Detroit to the Duluth-Superior
Twin ports and then trucked to dealers in Minnesota and neighboring states. Here
is the partly unloaded deck of a lakes freighter docked at Duluth. Cars also are
carried  below  decks.
hides on a single semi-trailer more
economically and with less hazard.
Until 1938 or 1939, the rail movement from the port was a substantial one, probably accounting for
over 90 per cent of the receipts.
Today the rail movement of
automobiles from Duluth is estimated to be less than five per cent
of the receipts at the port. In 1940
and 1941, receipts at Duluth
amounted to some 26,000 automobiles per year. During the war
years, of course, the vessel move
ment of automobiles was non-existent for all practical purposes. In
the first postwar year, 1946, automobile receipts at the port were but
8,635 units. The highest postwar
receipts were for the year • 1950,
when an all-time high of 40,889
units were received. In 1953, Duluth automobile receipts accounted
for 32,839 units, but in 1954, fell
off to only 15,179 units.
This substantial decline is attributed   primarily   to   an   unusually
(Continued   on   page   2)
387
105
$15,684,000
miles of grading
miles of concrete
paving        8,284,000
459.5 miles of base and
bituminous paving 8,530,000
131.1 miles of bituminous
surfacing        1,581,000
34     miles of widening and
resurfacing        2,820,000
50 bridges to be built 6,000,000
Traffic signals and
miscellaneous    ...        500,000
In addition to its program for
the trunk highways, the Highway
department will supervise the plans
and letting of contracts for a 1955
county-federal aid program for improvement of secondary roads estimated to cost a total of 10 million
dollars.
This includes an expected 600'
miles of grading, 500 miles of base
construction, 350 miles of gravel
and crushed rock surfacing, 400'
miles of bituminous surfacing, and
construction of 14 county bridges.
The projected state trunk and
county-FAS highway work for
1955  thus  totals  about  53.5 mil-
(Continued  on  page  7)