Minnesota State Highway 62 (Hennepin County)

Trunk Highway 62 marker

Trunk Highway 62
Crosstown Highway

MN 62 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Mn/DOT
Length: 12.350 mi (19.875 km)
Existed: 1988 – present
Major junctions
West end: I-494 / CR 62 at Eden Prairie
 
East end: MN 55 at Fort Snelling
Location
Counties: Hennepin
Highway system
  • Minnesota Trunk Highways
MN 61MN 62

Minnesota State Highway 62 (MN 62) is a highway in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota. The route was part of Hennepin County Road 62 until 1988, when a portion of the route was inherited by the state. The western terminus of the route is at Interstate Highway 494 in Eden Prairie, where the roadway continues west as Hennepin County Road 62 to Hennepin County Road 101. The eastern terminus of the route is at State Highway 55 near the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport in Minneapolis. Locally, the route is known as "the Crosstown," though signage with this name does not appear on the highway itself, but only on local streets adjacent to the road. It is also used as an alternate name, even by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. Though it does follow the 62nd Street plane for most of its route, that name is less frequently used. Highway 62 is 12 miles (19 km) in length.

Route description

State Highway 62 serves as an east–west route between Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, Edina, Richfield, Minneapolis, and Fort Snelling. The route is constructed to freeway standards for most of its length, except for the western 1/2 mile, which is an expressway with two signal-controlled intersections. The route is located in Hennepin County.

Due to the existence of a second State Highway 62 in the southwest corner of the state between Fulda and Windom, the stretch of Highway 62 in the Twin Cities area starts its numbering at milepost 100. This is unorthodox in that the two state highways have a combined length of 36 miles (58 km). "Mile 100" is calibrated where Hennepin County Roads 101 and 62 meet at the Eden Prairie / Minnetonka boundary line; though the mileposts themselves, starting with mile 104, do not appear until the state-maintained section inside the I-494 beltway.

History

State Highway 62 in the Twin Cities area was authorized in 1988. Prior to 1988, the route was designated as Hennepin County Road 62. The route was built mostly in the late 1960s by Hennepin County.

The original Hennepin County numbering of 62 corresponded with 62nd Street in Minneapolis. However, some portions of Highway 62 do stray from the 62nd Street plane, as near the eastern terminus, Highway 62 runs along the plane of 58th Street.

Highway 62 previously had a traffic light at its eastern terminus at Highway 55 until an interchange was reconstructed during construction of the METRO Blue Line light rail in 2004.

I-35W and Highway 62 Crosstown Commons reconstruction project

A typical traffic jam, before reconstruction, in the Crosstown Commons. The atypical part was that this picture was taken on a Saturday afternoon, not during a Monday thru Friday rush hour.

The Twin Cities' Highway 62 had one of the most notorious junctions in the region where it interwove with Interstate Highway 35W. This mile-long stretch was known informally as the "Crosstown Commons". Plans to "unweave" and expand this section of roadway to improve traffic flow had come and gone for many years, frustrating the 200,000 drivers who used it daily. Construction of the current design was expected to begin in July 2006, but was delayed due to state budget deficits.

The project was adequately funded during Governor Tim Pawlenty's second term and bids were received in April 2007. The bid was won by the Ames, Lunda, and Schafer consortium for $288 million. Construction began in May 2007. The project included 25 new bridges, 63 lane-miles of highway, and expanded the total roadway width from 6 lanes to 12 lanes at Lyndale Avenue. The bridges were cast in Coates, Minnesota and trucked in for on-site erection. The new design includes transit / HOV lanes and was completed in November 2010.[1] The new interchange features three through-lanes for I-35W (including one HOV lane) in each direction and two separate through-lanes for Highway 62 in each direction, eliminating the need to weave across traffic. The 2007 cost of correcting the deficiencies in that short stretch of highway was estimated to be $285 million.[2]

Exit list

The entire route is in Hennepin County.

Locationmi[3]kmDestinationsNotes
Eden Prairie103.592166.715 I-494, CR 62 west
Minnetonka104.510–
104.942
168.193–
168.888
CR 61 (Shady Oak Road)
Eden Prairie105.459–
105.541
169.720–
169.852
US 212 westWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
105.706–
105.814
170.117–
170.291
US 169 northbound
Edina105.907–
106.025
170.441–
170.631
US 169 southbound
106.240–
106.679
170.977–
171.683
CR 158 (Gleason Road)
107.171–
107.481
172.475–
172.974
Tracy Avenue
108.124–
108.512
174.009–
174.633
MN 100
109.062–
109.102
175.518–
175.583
Valley View RoadEastbound exit and westbound entrance
109.292–
109.602
175.888–
176.387
CR 17 (France Avenue)
Edina-Richfield109.882–
110.142
176.838–
177.256
CR 31 (Xerxes Avenue)
Richfield110.352–
110.632
177.594–
178.045
CR 32 (Penn Avenue)
111.032–
111.172
178.689–
178.914
MN 121
111.362179.220Lyndale AvenueEastbound exit and westbound entrance
111.421–
111.475
179.315–
179.402
I-35W south Albert LeaWest end of I-35W overlap
Lyndale AvenueWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
112.032–
112.267
180.298–
180.676
I-35W north MinneapolisEast end of I-35W overlap
112.412–
112.612
180.910–
181.231
CR 35 (Portland Avenue)
Minneapolis113.242–
113.282
182.245–
182.310
Bloomington AvenueEastbound exit and entrance
113.462–
113.852
182.599–
183.227
MN 77 south / CR 152 north (Cedar Avenue)
114.202–
114.532
183.790–
184.321
28th Avenue
114.722–
114.962
184.627–
185.013
34th Avenue
Fort Snelling115.683–
115.982
186.174–
186.655
MN 55 west (Hiawatha Avenue) / Minnehaha Avenue
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. Olson, Dan (May 15, 2007). "Untangling the infamous Crosstown Commons now underway". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved May 31, 2007.
  2. "Mn/DOT invites contractors to bid on I-35W/Crosstown project". Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 31, 2007.
  3. "Trunk Highway Log Point Listing — Construction District 5" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Transportation. August 20, 2010. Retrieved November 15, 2010.

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

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