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Minnesota State Highway 55

Route map:
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Trunk Highway 55 marker
Trunk Highway 55
Map
MN 55 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by MnDOT
Length220.572 mi[1] (354.976 km)
Existed1933–present
Tourist
routes		 Great River Road
Major junctions
West end ND 11 at the Bois de Sioux River near Fairmount, ND
Major intersections
East end US 61 in Hastings
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMinnesota
CountiesWilkin, Grant, Douglas, Pope, Stearns, Kandiyohi, Meeker, Wright, Hennepin, Dakota
Highway system
  • Minnesota Trunk Highway System
← MN 54→ MN 56

Minnesota State Highway 55 (MN 55) is a state highway that runs 221 miles (356 km) across the central part of state taking a diagonal route from its western most at the North Dakota state line near Tenney to its easternmost point at the intersection with U.S. Highway 61 (US 61) in Hastings. In Minneapolis and Golden Valley, portions of the route are also signed as Olson Memorial Highway.

Route description

[edit]

MN 55 serves as a northwest–southeast route between Elbow Lake, Glenwood, Paynesville, Annandale, Buffalo, Plymouth, Minneapolis, Mendota Heights, and Hastings.

MN 55 begins at the Bois de Sioux River, at the Minnesota—North Dakota state line near Tenney. North Dakota Highway 11 (ND 11) is its counterpoint upon crossing the state line. MN 55 continues east to Tenney, Nashua, and Wendell. The route has a junction with U.S. Highway 59 (US 59) before entering the city of Elbow Lake. US 59/MN 55 runs concurrently for 11 miles (18 km) until reaching Barrett.

MN 55 then continues independently again to Hoffman, Kensington, Farwell, and Lowry before reaching the city of Glenwood. At Glenwood, MN 55 has an intersection with MN 29 and an interchange with MN 28.

The route continues southeast to Sedan and Brooten before reaching its junction with US 71 in Belgrade. MN 55 passes through Regal before reaching its junction with MN 4 and MN 23 at the city of Paynesville.

MN 55 continues east to Eden Valley and Watkins before reaching its junction with MN 15 at Kimball.

The route has a junction with MN 24 in Annandale. MN 55 continues to Maple Lake and then Buffalo, where it has a junction with MN 25.

MN 55 enters the Twin Cities area at Rockford and Greenfield, continuing east to Medina and Plymouth. MN 55 has a junction with Interstate 494 (I-494) in Plymouth. MN 55 continues east and has a junction with US 169 at the Plymouth–Golden Valley boundary line. MN 55 continues through Golden Valley to its junction with MN 100. The route then continues east and enters the city of Minneapolis.

The highway has been designated Olson Memorial Highway,[2] named for Floyd B. Olson, a popular Minnesota governor of Norwegian ancestry. Olson grew up in North Minneapolis, near where the highway runs. While the entire route is designated as the Olson Memorial Highway, it is only consistently signed as such between Interstate 494 and N 7th Street in Minneapolis. The part of MN 55 southeast of downtown is known as Hiawatha Avenue. Light rail trains on the Blue Line, and Little Earth Trail and Hiawatha LRT Trail for bicyclists/pedestrians, run parallel to the highway for much of the Hiawatha Avenue stretch.

Olson Memorial Highway statue

MN 55 runs concurrently along I-94/US 52. MN 55 exits just before downtown at the westbound I-94/northbound US 52 exit, and leaves the concurrency at the exit for the Olson Highway, marked with the MN 55 shield. Eastbound, MN 55 leaves the Olson Highway at the interchange for I-94 eastbound/US 52 southbound, and leaves the freeway at the exit for Hiawatha Avenue, which is also marked with the MN 55 shield.

There has been some controversy with expansion of the highway.[citation needed] An area known as Camp Coldwater, considered by some as the "birthplace of Minnesota", was dug up during some construction. MN 55 joins with MN 62 at this point.

Fort Snelling State Park is located near the junction of MN 55 and MN 5. The park entrance is located on MN 5 at Post Road.

MN 55 crosses the Minnesota River via the Mendota Bridge, which was the longest continuous bridge made of poured concrete when it was completed in 1926. It is 4,119 feet (1,255 m) in length.

The Mendota Bridge between Fort Snelling and Mendota Heights carries MN 55 over the Minnesota River

The route enters Mendota Heights, diverges from MN 62, and then has a junction with MN 13.

MN 55 continues southeast through Eagan, joining briefly with MN 149. The route then has a junction with MN 3 in Inver Grove Heights. MN 55 then runs concurrently with US 52 through Inver Grove Heights and into Rosemount. At Rosemount, MN 55 leaves US 52. MN 55 continues independently again to its eastern terminus at its intersection with US 61 in the city of Hastings.

History

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MN 55 was authorized in 1933.[3]

The original alignment for MN 55 in Minneapolis was along old US 52 (now County State-Aid Highway 81, CSAH 81) to Rockford Road, then Rockford Road to MN 55's present-day alignment (now CSAH 9). The present-day alignment was constructed in the early 1950s.[3]

In July 2005, the section of MN 55 that runs through downtown Minneapolis was turned back to local maintenance. To fill the gap, MN 55 was rerouted along I-94/US 52.

Major intersections

[edit]
CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Bois de Sioux River0.0000.000
 ND 11 west – Fairmount		Continuation into North Dakota
North Dakota–Minnesota state line
WilkinCampbell Township3.4965.626 US 75 – Wheaton, Breckenridge
Champion Township10.70617.230 MN 9 – Morris, Breckenridge
GrantPomme de Terre Township27.83244.791
 US 59 north – Fergus Falls		Western end of US 59 overlap
Elbow Lake31.23050.260
 MN 79 east – Evansville, Alexandria		Western terminus of MN 79; access to Elbow Lake Medical Center
31.89251.325
 CSAH 54 south – Herman		Former MN 54
Barrett38.82062.475
 US 59 south – Morris		Eastern end of US 59 overlap
Hoffman45.68673.524 MN 27 – Wheaton, Alexandria
PopeBen Wade Township61.13598.387
 MN 114 north – Garfield		Western end of MN 114 overlap
Lowry61.79899.454
 MN 114 south – Starbuck		Eastern end of MN 114 overlap
Reno Township68.804110.729 MN 29 – Glenwood, Alexandria
Glenwood70.914114.125 MN 28 – Glenwood, Sauk Centre, MorrisInterchange
StearnsBelgrade93.643150.704
 US 71 south – Willmar		Western end of US 71 overlap
Crow River Township94.636152.302
 US 71 north – Sauk Centre		Eastern end of US 71 overlap
KandiyohiRoseville Township105.917170.457
 MN 4 north – Meire Grove		Western end of MN 4 overlap
StearnsPaynesville108.205174.139 MN 23 – Willmar, St. CloudInterchange
109.527176.267 CSAH 66 (Lake Avenue)Former MN 124; access to CentraCare Paynesville Hospital
MeekerUnion Grove Township113.487182.640
 MN 4 south – Grove City		Eastern end of MN 4 overlap
Eden Valley119.497192.312 MN 22 – Litchfield, Richmond
StearnsKimball131.977212.396
 MN 15 / MN 24 south – Dassel, St. Cloud		Western end of MN 24 overlap
WrightAnnandale141.622227.919
 MN 24 north – Clearwater		Eastern end of MN 24 overlap
Buffalo155.195249.762 MN 25 (Central Avenue) – MonticelloAccess to Buffalo Hospital
HennepinMedina176.393283.877
 CSAH 101 north (Sioux Drive)		Former MN 101 north
Plymouth177.572285.774
 CSAH 101 south (Peony Lane) – Wayzata		Former MN 101 south
180.515290.511 I-494Interchange; I-494 Exit 22
Plymouth–Golden Valley line183.052294.594 US 169Interchange
Golden Valley186.600300.304 MN 100Interchange; MN 100 exit 9
Minneapolis189.640305.196
 I-94 west (US 52)		Western end of I-94 overlap; I-94 exit 230
See I-94
191.887308.812
 I-94 east (US 52 / US 12)		Eastern end of I-94 overlap; I-94 exit 234A
191.944308.904
 I-35W north / 7th Street / 3rd Street / Washington Avenue – University of Minnesota		Westbound left exit and eastbound left entrance
192.619309.990

 To CSAH 5 (Franklin Avenue) / CSAH 152 (Cedar Avenue)		Interchange
193.521311.442 CSAH 3 (East Lake Street)SPUI interchange
195.527314.670
 CSAH 46 (46th Street) / Great River Road (National Route)		Western end of Great River Road overlap
Unorganized Territory of Fort Snelling197.430317.733
 MN 62 west (Crosstown Highway)		Interchange; western end MN 62 overlap
198.052318.734
 CSAH 204 south (Bloomington Road)		Fort Snelling Historic Site signed westbound
198.373319.250 MN 5 – Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport, St. Paul
Minnesota River198.424–
199.204		319.332–
320.588		Mendota Bridge
DakotaMendota Heights199.357320.834
 MN 62 east		Eastern end of MN 62 overlap; eastbound exit and westbound entrance
200.141322.096
 MN 13 / Great River Road (National Route) – MN 62		At-grade intersection; Eastern end Great River Road overlap
Eagan202.409325.746

 MN 149 north (Dodd Road north) to I-494		Western end of MN 149 overlap
202.943326.605
 MN 149 south (Dodd Road south)		Eastern end of MN 149 overlap
Inver Grove Heights205.005329.924 MN 3 (South Robert Trail)
206.421332.202 CR 73 (Barnes Avenue)Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
206.753332.737
 US 52 north (Lafayette Freeway) – St. Paul		Western end of US 52 overlap; westbound exit and eastbound entrance
328.733529.044
 CSAH 56 (Concord Boulevard) / Great River Road (National Route)		Former MN 56; western end of Great River Road overlap
Inver Grove Heights–Rosemount line210.290338.429117th Street
Rosemount211.074339.691
 US 52 south – Rochester		Eastern end of US 52 overlap; eastern end of freeway section; interchange eastbound, access via connector road westbound
213.919344.269
 CSAH 42 west (142nd Street) – Rosemount		Western end of CSAH 42 overlap
Nininger Township215.689347.118


 CSAH 85 south / CSAH 42 east / Great River Road (National Route)		Eastern end of CSAH 42 and Great River Road overlap
Hastings220.572354.976 US 61 / Great River Road – Red WingEastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

[edit]
KML file (edit • help)
Template:Attached KML/Minnesota State Highway 55
KML is from Wikidata
  1. ^ a b Minnesota Department of Transportation. "Statewide Trunk Logpoint Listing" (PDF). St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  2. ^ Minnesota Statutes section 161.14 subd. 3 - https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=161.14
  3. ^ a b Riner, Steve. "Details of routes 51–75". The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page. Retrieved October 23, 2010.[self-published source]
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