The city of Sioux Falls is currently spending about $180 million in road construction projects, and leaders are encouraging drivers to abide by one specific method to ease traffic.
With summer comes construction and delays. And with road construction comes a question many southeastern South Dakotans have on their mind:
“Will 2025 be the year Sioux Falls learns how to zipper merge?”
That was the question posed by Mayor Paul TenHaken’s Chief of Staff Vanessa Gomez via the first line of her press release announcing the city’s effort to educate drivers on the zipper merge.
Andy Berg, a city engineer, explained how.
“Merge late, to merge at the merge point. And it functions as basically a zipper. One goes, and then the other goes and then the lanes take turns,” Berg said.
Mayor TenHaken addressed the media wearing an “I feel the urge to zipper merge” shirt. He encouraged the whole city to embrace it.
“One of the biggest complaints that we get right now is traffic flow and the backup of traffic flow. Zipper merging is fine. It’s acceptable. I would say it’s Godly," TenHaken said. "So, I want you to use zipper merging. It minimizes bottlenecks, it uses more available road space, it reduces congestion. So, if you feel the urge, zipper merge."
He said when done effectively, it can decrease traffic backups by 40%. TenHaken said it’s something residents are going to need to get used to.
He added as the city grows, it’s a way to keep traffic during construction season at bay.
"You don’t have to zipper merge in Rock Valley, or in Worthington or in Huron. It’s a learned behavior in more urban settings. That’s why it’s an educational kind of driving technique in the bigger cities," TenHaken said. "We’re basically trying to educate our residents to say, ‘Hey, this is not a rude behavior. It’s a correct behavior that will help us as we grow as a community."
As a result of the push, signs are posted throughout constructions zones in Sioux Falls telling residents to do just that.
