Special Enforcement Targeting Highway 15 Through Stearns County

ST. CLOUD -- A coordinated effort has begun to reduce the number of crashes on Highway 15 in Stearns County. "Project 15: This Is You" is designed to promote traffic safety from the intersection of Highway 15 and Highway 10 in Benton County to the southern Stearns County Border south of Kimball.

Law enforcement agencies include St. Cloud, Sartell and Sauk Rapids police departments, the Benton and Stearns County Sheriff's Offices, and the Minnesota State Patrol.

You should expect to see increased traffic enforcement targeting speeders, red-light runners, and distracted drivers. Between 2016 and 2019 there were over 1,000 crashes resulting in four deaths and over 300 injuries in the Project 15 area. Organizers hope the project will help remove Stearns County from the top 10 list of deadliest Minnesota counties related to drunk driving crashes. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says aggressive behavior is especially evident when the road condenses from four lanes to two lanes south of Interstate 94 as drivers speed up to get ahead of the pack.

This project is similar to the Minnesota Highway 23 Crash Reduction Project.