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DOT traffic engineer details regional projects, says state will pilot automated flaggers and ITS work-zone tools

Dunn County Highway Safety Committee · April 14, 2026

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Summary

Jen Leach, covering for DOT traffic engineer Chad, described multiple state-let road and bridge projects near Menomonie and said the DOT will pilot automated flagger assistance devices and digital speed-limit systems to collect crash and speed data and evaluate work-zone safety.

Jen Leach, the Department of Transportation traffic engineer covering for Chad, summarized a slate of state-let projects in the Dunn County region and said the DOT will pilot new work-zone safety technologies.

Leach described projects including Highway 12 (from County Road 29 to Princeton Drive) and State Trunk Highway 40 (from 12 to M through Colfax), each specified as a 2¼-inch mill with a 3¼-inch overlay to be done under flagging. She said the 18 Mile Creek bridge project south of Highway 170 will use temporary signals and needs to be finished by May 31; contract completion dates for other projects include an October 10 target for one contract and a 70-working-day contract for the Red Cedar River bridge work on Highway 170 that starts after June 1.

"We're going to pilot an automated flagger assistance device," Leach said, adding that the item will be paid separately so contractors must use it and the DOT can collect speed and crash data to evaluate efficacy. She said the pilot is intended to compare results statewide and to determine whether any permanent changes should follow.

DOT presentations also described joint-replacement work on the Red Cedar River bridge west of Menomonie (35 working days), signal and approach changes on multiple ramps, and restrictions on work hours for some projects. Leach noted the DOT will use flashing yellow arrows at one trail-and-park entrance to reduce delay and described scheduling constraints, including projects let in January that do not yet have preconstruction meeting dates.

The DOT liaison also described plans to install digital speed limit reduction systems that temporarily lower limits during flagging operations and then restore posted speeds, and reiterated that the DOT plans to collect data to evaluate those systems.

The DOT reiterated that contractors will be required to use the automated flagger device on pilot projects so the agency can gather consistent data on speeds and crashes in work zones.