Minnesota Truck Bans & Hazmat Routes

Where Minnesota keeps trucks out

Minnesota has two real ones. Minneapolis park parkways, the Grand Rounds loop like Minnehaha and West River Parkway, bar commercial vehicles except a brief local delivery (Minneapolis Park Board ordinances). And the Lowry Hill Tunnel on I-94 bans placarded hazmat, which must follow signed hazmat routes; since the 2017 lane reconfiguration, semis and vehicles over 9,000 lb are also barred, enforced by camera and troopers at a $300 fine. A car GPS knows none of this.

Key restrictions

• Minneapolis park parkways (Grand Rounds: Minnehaha, West River, Theodore Wirth) bar commercial vehicles except brief local delivery
• Lowry Hill Tunnel (I-94): placarded hazmat banned, must follow signed hazmat routes
• Lowry Hill Tunnel: semis and vehicles over 9,000 lb barred since the 2017 lane reconfiguration, enforced by camera and troopers at a $300 fine
• Twin Cities post designated truck routes and street weight limits; a car GPS won't know the park parkways

• Parkway / road ban: Minneapolis park parkways, the Grand Rounds loop such as Minnehaha Parkway, West River Parkway, and Theodore Wirth Parkway, bar commercial vehicles and trucks except a brief local delivery, under Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board ordinance. These are park roads, not a NY-style low-bridge parkway system.
• Hazmat: The Lowry Hill Tunnel on I-94 in Minneapolis bans placarded hazmat; those loads must follow signed hazmat truck routes around it. No other major tunnel bans statewide. Placarded loads otherwise default to the Interstates and state-designated preferred routes under 49 CFR 397.
• Through-truck routes: Minneapolis and St. Paul designate truck routes and post weight limits, and Minneapolis park parkways are effectively cars-and-local-traffic only. A through truck with no local stop stays on the designated network; a local truck leaves it only for the most direct path to and from its stop.
• Fine: The Lowry Hill Tunnel restriction carries a $300 fine, camera- and trooper-enforced. Commercial vehicles on Minneapolis park parkways face a park-ordinance citation. A placarded load in the tunnel or off the signed hazmat route can draw state and federal hazmat penalties on top.

More for Minnesota