Median barrier to be installed on Highway 51 in Arden Hills and Roseville

Crews will be working to install a high-tension cable median barrier in Arden Hills and Roseville starting Wednesday.

According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), the barrier will be in the median of Highway 51/Snelling Avenue.

Installation will begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday, according to MnDOT, and will restrict northbound traffic to a single lane between County Road C and Interstate 694 until mid-May.

Afterwards, work will switch to the southbound side of the road, with single lane traffic expected in the same area of Snelling Avenue from mid-May through mid-June.

Transportation officials say the cable barrier allows the cables to flex and absorb the kinetic energy caused by a crash with the barrier. They add cables also help prevent a cross-median crash, reduce its severity and redirect the crashed vehicle along the median.