U.S. Route 63 in Minnesota

U.S. Highway 63
U.S. 63 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Mn/DOT
Length:	96.483 mi[1] (155.274 km)
Existed:	1934 – present
Major junctions
South end:	US 63 at the Iowa state line
	I-90 near Stewartville US 52 in Rochester US 14 in Rochester US 61 in Lake City and Red Wing
North end:	US 63 at the Mississippi River
Location
Counties:	Fillmore, Mower, Olmsted, Wabasha, Goodhue
Highway system
United States Numbered Highways List Bannered Divided Replaced Minnesota Trunk Highways Interstate US State Legislative routes ← MN 62 MN 64 →

U.S. Route 63 (US 63) is a highway in southeastern Minnesota that runs from the Minnesota-Iowa border south of Spring Valley to the Mississippi River at Red Wing. It connects the cities of Spring Valley, Stewartville, Rochester, and Lake City.

The route in Minnesota is 96 miles (154 km) in length.

Route description

U.S. 63 enters the state in Fillmore County, just north of Chester, Iowa. It travels north to Spring Valley where it becomes concurrent with State Highway 16, following it west for five miles entering Mower County. It continues north through Racine, then into Stewartville, after passing into Olmsted County, where it becomes a divided highway. Immediately after Stewartville, it intersects Interstate 90, near Rochester International Airport. The highway then enters Rochester 1 mile after the I-90 junction, where it is an expressway south of U.S. 52 (slowly becoming a freeway). It then follows U.S. 52 west of downtown Rochester to 75th Street NW, where it departs from U.S. 52. It follows 75th Street eastward to Olmsted County 33, where it continues north from a roundabout.

It continues north through Olmsted and Wabasha counties. It meets U.S. Highway 61 at Lake City and overlaps it into the city of Red Wing. U.S. 63 turns southeast on State Highway 58 for one block and then turns northeast on 3rd Street. It then curves back northwest to cross over 61, and then reaches the Red Wing Bridge where it crosses the Mississippi River and enters the state of Wisconsin.

Nearly all of the route is legally defined as Constitutional Route 59 in the Minnesota Statutes,^[2] except for the part between Red Wing and the Mississippi River, which is Legislative Route 161.^[3]

History

U.S. 63 was extended into Minnesota in 1934.^[4][5] The route had previously been marked the year before as U.S. 59, except for the segment running from U.S. 61 to the river crossing, which had been State Highway 58.^[4] U.S. 63 was an original 1926 U.S. Route and terminated in Des Moines, Iowa until it was extended north. The U.S. 59 designation was simultaneously reassigned to a new highway running from Laredo, Texas to Pembina, North Dakota.

The route was paved when it was marked.^[5]

In the spring of 2014, it was rerouted to follow U.S. Highway 52 west of downtown Rochester. This makes the route longer, but reduces transit time due to higher speed limits and fewer traffic lights. The segment of the old route 63 between 37th Street NE and 75th Street NE was turned over to Olmsted County, and renamed County route 33. Plans for the change were announced in April, 2012.^[6]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Fillmore	Beaver Township	0.000	0.000	US 63 south	Continuation into Iowa
		0.503	0.810	MN 56
	Spring Valley	13.569	21.837	MN 16	Eastern end of MN 16 overlap
Mower	Frankford Township	18.649	30.013	MN 16	Western end of MN 16 overlap
Olmsted	Stewartville	28.756	46.278	MN 30 (1st Street East)	Southern end of MN 30 overlap
	High Forest Township	30.794	49.558	I-90	I-90 exits 209A-B; interchange.
		31.250	50.292	MN 30	Northern end of MN 30 overlap
	Rochester	33.076	53.231	CR 16	Interchange. Access to Rochester International Airport
		35.727	57.497	48th Street South	Interchange
		36.512	58.760	40th Street South	Interchange
		37.405	60.198	US 52 south	Interchange; southern end of US 52 overlap
		39.571	63.683	CR 25 (16th Street SW)
		39.981	64.343	US 14 east (12th Street SW) – Winona	No access northbound, southern end of US 14 overlap
		40.755	65.589	6th Street SW	No southbound access
		41.065	66.088	2nd Street SW	Access to Mayo Clinic, Saint Marys Hospital
		41.692	67.097	US 14 west / Civic Center Drive NW – Owatonna	Partial cloverleaf, north end of US 14 overlap
		42.570	68.510	19th Street NW, Elton Hills Dr NW	Single point urban interchange
		43.924	70.689	CR 22 east (37th Street NW/41st Street NW)
		45.273	72.860	55th Street NW
		46.282	74.484	65th Street NW
		47.285	76.098	US 52 north / 75th St NW	Northern end of US 52 overlap
Farmington Township	55.709	89.655	MN 247
Wabasha	Zumbro Falls	64.343	103.550	MN 60 (Main Street)
	Lake City	79.180	127.428	US 61 south (Lake Shore Drive)	Southern end of US 61 overlap
Goodhue	Red Wing	95.987	154.476	US 61 north (Main Street) / MN 58 ends (Plum Street)	Northern end of US 61 overlap; northern end of MN 58
		96.059	154.592	MN 58 south	Southern end of MN 58 overlap
Mississippi River		96.483	155.274	Red Wing Bridge (Minnesota–Wisconsin state line)
Pierce	Hager City			US 63 north	Continuation into Wisconsin
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

Future

The Minnesota Department of Transportation also has plans to turn Highway 63 into a controlled-access freeway between U.S. 52 and Interstate 90.

References

1. Minnesota Department of Transportation (August 14, 2014). "Statewide Trunk Logpoint Listing" (PDF). St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. pp. 114,121–122,164–168. Retrieved 2015-07-06.
2. Minnesota State Legislature (2010). "§ 161.114, Constitutional Trunk Highways". Minnesota Statutes. Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved February 6, 2011.
3. "161.115, Additional Trunk Highways". Minnesota Statutes. Office of the Revisor of Statutes, State of Minnesota. 2010. Retrieved February 6, 2011.
4. 1934 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Minnesota Highway Department. May 1, 1934. § O20-O23. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
5. 1935 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Minnesota Highway Department. May 1, 1934. § O20-O23. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
6. City to take back Broadway in swap with state - Post-Bulletin http://postbulletin.com/news/stories/display.php?id=1493905

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• U.S. Highway 63 at the Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page