Anyone who’s driven through Two Harbors in the summer knows traffic can be a headache.

That’s why leaders with MnDOT want to make some equally big changes to Highway 61 in town.

MnDOT project manager Josie Olson said her team has been exploring options on how to speed things up through the city in summer.

“We are here to show the public what we’ve come up with after listening to their feedback the last couple of years,” said Olson.

Olson said at a series of open houses in that time, her team presented the community with several ideas.

Tuesday night at Two Harbors High School, they held their final meeting where they shared what the community liked most.

One option they’re proposing is adding two roundabouts on the stretch of road in Two Harbors.

The first one would be at 7th Ave. and the other just a couple blocks down the road at 11th St.

“With our proposed recommended alternative, we give vehicles a left-turn pocket throughout the whole corridor to be able to turn left in,” said Olson.

They also plan to make the stretch more pedestrian and bicycle friendly, re-align Park Rd, and make other minor adjustments.

Some residents, like John Hansen, said it’s not enough.

“So, we’re going to keep trying to push more traffic through what boils down to a two-lane highway through town,” Hansen said. “And traffic is not a desirable thing.”

He said he’d like to see a by-pass route that goes around Two Harbors to lighten the load of folks who come through during tourist season.

But Olson said MnDOT’s plan will also help with that congestion.

“With the elimination of the traffic signals at those intersections, you’re gonna have a better flow,” she said.

Construction for this project isn’t planned to begin until 2025.

Olsen said the next steps for her team are to create a layout and work with the city council to create a resolution that would need to be approved before construction begins.

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