Star Tribune flags Twin Cities crash route

The Minnesota Star Tribune reported on May 17 that the drive from the Twin Cities to northern Minnesota ranked among the country’s more dangerous Memorial Day weekend routes, citing crash-risk data from transportation analytics firm INRIX. The newspaper said the corridor toward Ely stood out as Minnesotans prepare for the long holiday weekend that often marks the start of cabin season. The report landed as AAA projected a record 45 million Americans will travel at least 50 miles over Memorial Day, including 39.1 million by car between Thursday, May 21, and Monday, May 25. Minnesota road-safety officials, meanwhile, reported 64 traffic fatalities statewide through the first three months of 2026, according to preliminary state data. ### Which Minnesota route did the newspaper single out? The Star Tribune identified the Twin Cities-to-Ely drive as the Minnesota route that showed one of the sharpest holiday-period increases in crash risk. A syndicated version of the story said INRIX found a 70% increase in crash risk for motorists heading from the Twin Cities to Ely over Memorial Day weekends. (article.wn.com) The Star Tribune’s mobile site listed the article on May 18 under News & Politics with the headline, “That Memorial Day weekend drive to the cabin could be deadly.” The story was tied to the annual migration from Minneapolis-St. Paul toward northern lake country and the Boundary Waters gateway communities. ### Where does the 18.7% Minneapolis figure fit in? (article.wn.com) The card summary provided by the user said the Star Tribune reported Minneapolis had the highest increase on outbound holiday routes, at 18.7%. Search results available publicly confirmed the Ely corridor and the 70% route-specific increase, but did not expose the full text of the Star Tribune story needed to independently verify how the newspaper presented the 18.7% Minneapolis figure. (m.startribune.com) Because the underlying article is paywalled in the available search results, the public material supports the broader finding that outbound Twin Cities holiday travel toward northern Minnesota carried a sharply higher crash risk. It does not, from the sources reviewed here, provide enough visible text to quote the Minneapolis ranking language directly. (article.wn.com) ### Why is this surfacing just before the holiday weekend? AAA said on May 11 that Memorial Day travel in 2026 is expected to set a record, with 45 million Americans traveling and 39.1 million of them driving. AAA said drivers should expect the heaviest congestion on Thursday and Friday between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., with Monday afternoon also busy. (article.wn.com) Stacey Barber, vice president of AAA Travel, said in the group’s forecast that “travel demand remains strong” despite higher fuel prices. AAA also said the national average gasoline price last Memorial Day was $3.17 a gallon and that current pump prices are the highest since the summer of 2022. (newsroom.aaa.com) ### What do Minnesota’s own traffic-safety numbers show? The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said preliminary 2026 figures showed 54 fatal crashes and 64 fatalities statewide through March. The same page listed 19 fatalities in January, 24 in February and 21 in March. The Minnesota State Patrol’s traffic safety snapshot dashboard, updated through April 6, showed troopers had responded to 1,000 personal-injury crashes in 2026, up 7.6% from the same point in 2025, and 29 serious-injury crashes, up 81.3%. (inrix.com) The dashboard also said those figures cover only State Patrol activity, not work by local law-enforcement agencies. (dps.mn.gov) Minnesota Toward Zero Deaths, a statewide traffic-safety program, listed 101 traffic fatalities year to date on its homepage when the page was crawled. The site said its 2030 goal is no more than 225 traffic deaths. ### What should drivers watch as the weekend starts? AAA said Memorial Day travel for 2026 runs from Thursday, May 21, through Monday, May 25. (dps.mn.gov) INRIX’s traffic outlook, as published by AAA, said the worst congestion will build first around metro departures before spreading onto getaway corridors. (minnesotatzd.org) For Minnesota drivers, that means the heaviest pressure is likely to come as Twin Cities travelers leave for northern destinations later this week. The next public markers will be AAA’s holiday travel window beginning May 21 and updated Minnesota crash and fatality counts published by the Department of Public Safety and related state traffic-safety sites. (newsroom.aaa.com)