AET is honored to be part of a project near Blue Earth, MN, that has ties to the history of the U.S. Interstate Highway System. This month, the Minnesota Department of Transportation will celebrate the 46th anniversary of the completion of I-90 by dedicating golden panels of concrete marking the final segments of the roadway installed.
Back in 1869, railroad executives set a precedent when they marked the completion of the first transcontinental railroad by using a 17.6-karat golden spike to join the rails where east met west. A century later, the completion of I-90 was commemorated in a similar fashion, with a panel of golden concrete to mark the point where the nation’s longest interstate highway was completed.
Construction of the 3,021-mile I-90 began in 1957 in Seattle, WA, and Boston, MA, with work progressing from both ends before east and west segments met near Blue Earth, MN. The original golden panel was lost to road reconstruction, but new golden panels, added to both east and westbound lanes, will be dedicated in a ceremony this July.
The replacement of the golden panels is part of a two-year-long 22-mile I-90 concrete pavement overlay project extending from Highway 169 near Blue Earth to Highway 22, south of Wells, MN. The work includes improvements to the eastbound and westbound lanes as well as ramps, bridges, culverts, and rest areas. AET was retained by PCiRoads for construction quality management on the project. As a subconsultant to Alliant Engineering, we also provided geotechnical services for pavement design.
The AET team includes Robert Anderson, serving as the Lead Construction Quality Manager and Lucas Loveall as Deputy Construction Quality Manager. Erik Enerson is the Lead Grading Inspector, Nate Tschanz is the Structures/Grading Inspector, and Nick Chouanard is the Grading Inspector. Jake Michalowski is serving as Materials Engineer.
The project began in the spring of 2023 and is scheduled to be completed by October.
