Minnesota Department of Transportation
This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2020) |
Agency overview | |
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Jurisdiction | Minnesota |
Headquarters | 395 John Ireland Boulevard Saint Paul, Minnesota |
Agency executives |
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Parent agency | State of Minnesota |
Website | www |
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT,
History
The agency's history can be traced to the state's Railroad and Warehouse Commission which emerged slowly from 1871 to 1905, and the State Highway Commission created in 1905. The Highway Commission was abolished in 1917 and replaced by a Department of Highways. The Minnesota Highway Department has been credited with numerous works listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. For air transport, the Minnesota Aeronautics Commission was created in 1933. Much of the railroad oversight was transferred to the Minnesota Department of Public Service in 1967. Two years later, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety was established and took over the Highway Patrol and Driver's License Bureau. MnDOT finally came into being in 1976 and took over the functions of the aeronautics and highway departments, plus transportation-related duties of the Minnesota State Planning Agency and Department of Public Service.
Services and projects
MnDOT operates networks of
In 2021, the department asked the public to name eight new snowplows introduced to the fleet. 24,000 submissions were received.[3] The winning snowplow names were:[4]
- Plowy McPlowFace
- Ope, Just Gonna Plow Right Past Ya
- Duck Duck Orange Duck
- Plow Bunyan
- Snowbi Wan Kenopi
- F. Salt Fitzgerald
- Darth Blader
- The Truck Formerly Known As Plow
Organization
MnDOT is led by the commissioner of transportation, who is appointed by the governor for a term coinciding with the governor's. The commissioner may appear as a party on behalf of the public in any proceeding before any governmental agency regulating public services or rates relating to transportation. The commissioner also provides technical and financial assistance to the Metropolitan Council and regional development commissions in the regional transportation planning process.[5]
List of commissioners
Below is a list of Minnesota Highway Department (1917–1976) and Minnesota Department of Transportation (1976–present) commissioners:[6]
- Charles M. Babcock (1917–1932)
- N. (Nels) W. Elsberg (1933–1938)
- M. (Michael) J. Hoffman (1939–1957)
- L. P. Zimmerman (1957–1961)
- James C. Marshall (1961–1965)
- John R. Jamieson (1965–1967)
- N. T. (Nils Theodore) Waldor (1968–1971)
- Ray Lappegaard (1971–1974)
- Frank Marzitelli (1974–1976)
- James Harrington (1976–1978)
- Dick Braun (1978–1986)
- Leonard Levine (1986–1991)
- John H. Riley (1991)
- James Denn (1991–1999)
- Elwyn Tinklenberg (1999–2002)
- Carol Molnau (2003–2008)
- Thomas K. "Tom" Sorel (2008–2012)
- Bernard J. "Bernie" Arseneau (2012), interim commissioner
- Charles A. Zelle (2013–2019)
- Margaret Anderson Kelliher (2019–2022)
- Nancy Daubenberger (2022–), interim commissioner
Districts
MnDOT is divided into eight construction districts, with each district responsible for highway construction projects, maintenance, and highway right-of-way issues for their area. Each district has a district area headquarters as well as a secondary maintenance area office.[7]
District # | Location | District office | Secondary office(s) |
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1 | Northeast | Duluth | Virginia |
2 | Northwest | Bemidji | Crookston |
3 | Central | St. Cloud | Baxter |
4 | West Central | Morris | Detroit Lakes |
M / (5+9) | Metro | St. Paul
|
Minneapolis |
6 | Southeast | Rochester | Owatonna |
7 | South Central | Mankato | Windom |
8 | Southwest | Willmar | Hutchinson, Marshall |
See also
Notes
- ^ a b "Commissioner of Transportation". Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
- ^ "Minnesota GO 50-Year Vision for Transportation". Statewide Policy Family of Plans. Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
- ^ Webster, Tony (February 19, 2021). "'Abolish ICE' was a top submission in Minnesota's snowplow naming contest". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- ^ "Name a Snowplow contest". Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
- ^ Minnesota Department of Transportation: An Inventory of its Audio-Visual Materials
- ^ MnDOT Library. "Minnesota Highway Department and Minnesota Department of Transportation Commissioners: 1917 - Present". Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
- ^ "MnDOT Districts". www.dot.state.mn.us. Retrieved July 19, 2023.