Minnesota Highways, February 1957

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VOL.  6,  NO.  4
1246 University Ave., St.  Paul 4, Minn.
FEBRUARY,   1957
6-Month Program Covers 530 Miles
Improvement of more than 530 miles of Minnesota trunk
highways at an estimated total cost of $37,817,000 is called
for in a record shattering revised construction program
adopted by the Highway department for the last half of the
fiscal year ending June 30.
Added to the $28,278,000 of work contracted during the
first half of the fiscal year, July 1 to December 31, 1956, the
fiscal year's program will total the sizeable sum of more than
$66 million, the biggest 12 months' contract total in the
department's history.
Refugee Enters
Design Section
Imre Vida, 40-year old Hungarian refugee newly employed in
the Highway department, is having some difficulty with the English language. But, as a patriot in
the Hungarian people's fight for
freedom, he has encountered no
difficulty in adjusting to American
democracy.
Vida is working as a draftsman
in  the  geometrical  design section
• the Plans division, of which
rrvey Dartt is supervisor. A
German speaking member of the
section, Paul Valters, translates
words Vida does not know and
drafting is drafting the world
around. Actually, Vida already
knows quite a bit of English.
Landing in New York January
11   under   Lutheran   sponsorship,
(Continued  on  page   10}
Imre Vida
The  $37,817,000 total for  the
current  six months represents   86
projects.   As   listed   by   Commissioner Hoffmann, they include:
74 miles of concrete pavement.
156   miles   of  plant-mixed
bituminous surfacing.
112 miles of grading, base
and bituminous.
74 miles of base and bituminous surfacing.
102  miles  of  grading  and
base.
47 structures to be built.
In turn,  the  structures  include
22   traffic   separations,   19   stream
crossings   and   six   railroad   overheads and underpasses.
The largest single river bridge
to be built is a new one over the
Mississippi at Newport, on T.H.
100. It will replace the present
crossing at nearby Inver Grove,
which is being used on a lease
basis.
Some Work from 1956
In addition to the $37,817,000
in contemplated new contraction
projects, Commissioner Hoffmann
stated that there is being carried
over for completion this year a
total of $29,090,000 in contracts
awarded in 1956.
Begarding the revision of the
program for the 1956-57 fiscal
year, the Commissioner said it
was found necessary at the close
of the 1956 construction season "to
revise our program for the balance
of the year to better utilize the
various funds available to the de
partment for construction purposes."
He noted that although some of
the projects announced last spring
as part of the program have been
deferred, they will be undertaken
as soon as possible.
It has been found necessary, because of the department's limited
engineering staff, to proceed now
with those projects for which plans
are ready or can be completed in
the very near future. This will permit continuance of construction
work at a high level while department and consulting engineers
hasten preparation of plans for "a
balanced program giving full consideration to all classes of trunk
highways," Commissioner Hoffmann said.
An important added feature, he
said, is the inclusion of several
projects on the newly designated
Interstate highway network.
This will provide a material
start on Minnesota's share of the
40,000-mile network. It also will
make good use of state highway
funds, since the state is required
to provide only $10 for each $90
of federal aid the state will receive
for construction of the network
highways.
How extensive is to be the construction for the state's network
routes is shown in five projects
listed to be contracted before June
30 on T. H. 252, all in Mower
county.
(Continued on page 10)
Five Employees
Receive Awards
The state employees Suggestion Award program paid off for
five Highway department employees in the past month for a
total of $105. Four prize winners
are auto mechanics, the fifth, an
auto mechanic foreman. For two of
the men, the award was supplemental to a previous one for the
same suggestion.
Development of a quick detachable snowplow hookup for
mounting the plows on trucks has
brought a $30 Suggestion program award to Lawrence Purring-
ton, auto mechanic in Maintenance
district 16, Windom. In granting
the recognition, the state Merit
Award board said snowplows
throughout the district are now
equipped with the device and that
(Continued   on    page   2)
Lawrence  Purrington
Read: Network Routes Will Have Big Impact .... Page 5