AASHTO Journal - North Dakota DOT Completes $10M Rest Area Revamp

The North Dakota Department of Transportation recently finished a $10 million overhaul of the Oriska Rest Area on I-94; a facility located roughly midway between the cities of Fargo and Jamestown, ND.

[Above photo by North Dakota DOT]

The agency said this project replaced the existing building and reconstructed the parking lot; adding 25 commercial truck parking spaces as well. The new facility also features four sheltered picnic tables, a courtyard, a walking path, a dog park, and an adult changing station.

“This project is a significant investment in improving the experience for people traveling along I-94, especially the freight haulers who rely on safe and accessible places to stop,” said Brandon Beise, North Dakota DOT’s maintenance division director, in a statement. “The new facility provides modern amenities, more space, and a welcoming environment for travelers.”

The agency added that the rest area’s new interior design features display items provided by the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, North Dakota Department of Commerce, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota.

“Due to its prime locations, we wanted this rest area to serve as a welcome center,” said Sara Otte Coleman, the state’s commerce tourism and marketing director. “The new facility provides travelers with digital planning tools, vibrant imagery and printed tourism materials to inspire visitors to explore more of North Dakota. Designed around the prairie pothole theme, the project gives the state an opportunity to tell that story, with displays that include wood decoys and taxidermy.”

Other state departments of transportation are making or have made similar interstate rest area upgrades as well.

For example, the Mississippi Department of Transportation recently began building a new $35.2 million welcome center in Jackson County along on I-10. The scope of work includes constructing a modernized, accessible highway rest area; making drainage and water system upgrades; and providing 62 truck parking spaces and five bus parking spaces. Construction is anticipated to wrap up in summer 2028, the agency said.

And in August, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for two rest areas along I-43 near the towns of Denmark and Maribel in Manitowoc County rebuilt to offer more truck parking and be more accessible for people with disabilities.

Originally built in 1980, those two safety rest areas had inadequate parking for commercial motor vehicles with only 20 truck parking spaces along with outdated facilities. The $20.4 million rebuilding of those two locations began in late April 2025, funded in part by a $12.5 million federal grant, and all major construction activities are now complete.