PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Nearly all of South Dakota’s 66 counties have volunteered to report information about local road conditions this winter as part of a new feature on the state Department of Transportation’s SD511 system.
But Minnehaha County won’t be one of them, even though it’s one of the most heavily traveled in South Dakota.
Minnehaha County Commission administrative officer Tom Greco explained why.
“The primary reason for this decision is that the ‘County and Tribal Traveler Information’ component offered is too generalized to accurately capture the variation in road conditions throughout the entire county,” Greco told KELOLAND News.
Conditions can vary greatly from a geographic standpoint and by municipality, according to Greco.
“The county recognizes the valuable service the current 511 platform provides to travelers and is eager to see the county-level functionality expanded in the coming years,” he said. “In the meantime, we will continue to implement measures to provide the public with information about county road closures and advisories.”
Tribal and county governments will be able to enter no-travel advisories and road closures directly into the SD511 Traveler Information System.
Adding information at the county level is intended to help travelers stay off local roads that travel apps often erroneously recommend when state routes have been closed.
State Transportation Secretary Joel Jundt highlighted the new feature in the 2024-25 winter maintenance summary.
“This localized information advances communication efforts for South Dakota travelers,” Jundt stated. “I want to thank everyone involved in this complex, yet vital, implementation process.”
Last month the state Transportation Commission approved the 2024-25 winter plan with a $28 million budget. That’s more than last winter, when $23.2 million was budgeted and $20.7 million was spent.
As of that time six other counties — Miner, Turner, Hutchinson, Gregory, Mellette and Todd — also hadn’t volunteered to participate this winter.
