Minnesota State Highway 7
| ||
---|---|---|
Major junctions | ||
West end | MN 28 near Beardsley | |
| ||
East end | MN 100 at St. Louis Park | |
Location | ||
Country | United States | |
State | Minnesota | |
Counties | Big Stone, Swift, Chippewa, Kandiyohi, Meeker, McLeod, Carver, Hennepin | |
Highway system | ||
| ||
|
Minnesota State Highway 7, or Trunk Highway 7, (MN 7, TH 7) is a
The highway was first designated along a series of roads between Appleton and
Route description
Legally, MN 7 is defined as several different constitutional and legislative routes in state law. The highway follows roadways defined as parts of constitutional routes 12 and 40 in Minnesota Statutes § 161.114.[4] The remainder of the highway follows all, or part, of legislative routes 119, 147, 148, 304, and 319 in the Minnesota Statutes § 161.115.[5] The highway is not marked with these routes number along the actual highway.[6] The route of MN 7 between Ortonville and Montevideo along with the segment between I-494 and MN 100 in the Twin Cities have been listed on the National Highway System,[7][8] a system of roads important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.[9] Like other trunk highways in the state, MN 7 is maintained by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). According to the department, up 12,000 vehicles a day used the highway outside of the Twin Cities,[10] and up to 55,000 vehicles traveled the highway daily in the metro area in 2010.[11]
Beardsley to Montevideo
The highway starts at an intersection with MN 28 on the eastern edge of Beardsley and heads south. From here, MN 7 passes through farm fields before turning southeasterly along the shore of
Near the town of
Montevideo to Hutchinson
Continuing northward in Montevideo, the highway turns back to the east between J. Harley Smith and Lagoon parks. MN 29 separates at the intersection between Washington Avenue and 8th Street, and MN 7 continues eastward on Washington through residential areas. The avenue passes the hospital before leaving town. The street name attached to the highway in rural
The next county along the course of MN 7 is Meeker County. Running due east through farmlands in the southern area of that county, the highway intersects MN 4 in Cosmos and passes through Cedar Mills. Just east of Cedar Mills, MN 7 crosses into McLeod County and merges with MN 22. The combined highway turns southeasterly toward Hutchinson. On the west side of town, the roadway crosses Campbell Lake and follows an arm of the lake through the downtown area. The highway passes several parks before coming to an intersection with MN 15 and exiting the business district for residential neighborhoods. MN 22 separates from MN 7 east of Hutchinson, and the latter highway continues eastward.[6][12]
Hutchinson to St. Louis Park
In rural eastern McLeod County, MN 7 jogs to the north around Silver Lake in the city of the same name. Northeast of Lester Prairie, the highway crosses into Carver County. This area is also rural farm country as the roadway bypasses New Germany and Mayer to the north. Near the latter community, MN 7 intersects MN 25 which provides a connection to both Mayer and the city of Watertown. North of Waconia, the roadway begins to meander southeasterly through an area dotted with several lakes and crosses into the western edge of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.[6][12]
After briefly passing through
The western edge of St. Louis Park is marked by the interchange with
History
First authorized in 1933–34, MN 7 ran between Appleton and the
The route was completely paved by 1959, the last section to be paved with at least bitumen was along the former MN 103 northwest of Ortonville.[18][19] MN 7 used to extend into downtown Minneapolis until 1965, where it terminated at its intersection with Washington Avenue (old US 52).[20][21] From 1965 to either 1987 or 1988, the eastern terminus was located at the intersection of Lake Street and France Avenue in Minneapolis; the part, about one mile (1.6 km) long, between the interchange with MN 100 and the intersection of Lake Street and France Avenue is now called County State-Aid Highway 25.[22][23] In 1995, the section between MN 28 and the southern US 75 junction was named a Minnesota State Scenic Byway; it was also made a National Scenic Byway on June 13, 2002.[24]
Major intersections
County | Location | mi[3] | km | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Browns Valley Township | 0.000 | 0.000 | MN 28 / Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway – Beardsley, Morris | Western terminus | |
Ortonville | 26.138 | 42.065 | US 12 west – Milbank SD | West end of US 12 concurrency | |
26.267 | 42.273 | US 12 east / Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway – Benson | East end of US 12 concurrency | ||
27.028 | 43.497 | US 75 north / Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway | West end of US 75 concurrency | ||
US 75 south – Madison | East end of US 75 concurrency | ||||
West end of US 59 and MN 119 concurrencies | |||||
49.084 | 78.993 | MN 119 south – MN 40 | East end of MN 119 concurrency | ||
Chippewa | Milan | 57.529 | 92.584 | MN 40 – Madison, Willmar | |
East end of US 59 concurrency; west end of MN 29 concurrency | |||||
73.838 | 118.831 | MN 29 north – Benson | East end of MN 29 concurrency | ||
Stoneham Township | 85.850 | 138.162 | CSAH 4 – Maynard, Gluek | Formerly MN 277 north | |
90.719 | 145.998 | MN 23 | |||
US 71 – Willmar, Redwood Falls | |||||
Meeker | Cosmos | 124.332 | 200.093 | MN 4 – Sauk Centre, St. James | |
Melrose Township | 134.125 | 215.853 | MN 22 north – Litchfield | West end of MN 22 concurrency | |
Hutchinson | 141.951 | 228.448 | MN 15 – St. Cloud, Fairmont | ||
Hutchinson Township | 143.747 | 231.338 | MN 22 south – Mankato | East end of MN 22 concurrency | |
Winsted Township | 157.894 | 254.106 | CSAH 1 – Lester Prairie, Winsted | Formerly MN 261 | |
Watertown Township | 166.929– 166.975 | 268.646– 268.720 | MN 25 – Mayer, Watertown | Roundabout | |
Saint Bonifacius | 173.070 | 278.529 | CSAH 92 (Main Street) | ||
Shorewood | 181.884 | 292.714 | MN 41 south – Chaska | Northern terminus of MN 41 | |
Excelsior | 182.671 | 293.980 | CSAH 19 north (Oak Street) | ||
182.991 | 294.495 | CSAH 82 (Mill Street) | Eastbound entrance only | ||
183.327 | 295.036 | To CSAH 82 (Mill Street) / 2nd Street / Old Log Way | Westbound exit only, CSAH 82/Mill Street not signed | ||
Minnetonka | 186.128 | 299.544 | CSAH 101 | Formerly MN 101 | |
188.807 | 303.855 | I-494 | Exit 16 on I-494 | ||
189.014 | 304.189 | CSAH 60 (Baker Road) | No westbound entrance | ||
189.550 | 305.051 | Lake Street Extension | Westbound entrance only | ||
Hopkins | 189.980 | 305.743 | CSAH 61 (Shady Oak Road) | ||
190.435 | 306.475 | CSAH 73 north (Hopkins Crossroad) / 17th Avenue | |||
191.632 | 308.402 | US 169 | |||
Dumbbell interchange | |||||
193.646 | 311.643 | Wooddale Avenue | |||
194.174 | 312.493 | MN 100 / CSAH 25 | Eastern terminus | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
|
See also
- United States portal
- U.S. Roads portal
References
- ^ . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library. (Showing road conditions as of April 1, 1933)
- ^ . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library. (Showing road conditions as of May 1, 1934)
- ^ a b Minnesota Department of Transportation (August 14, 2014). "Statewide Trunk Logpoint Listing" (PDF). St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
- ^ Minnesota State Legislature (2009). "§ 161.114, Constitutional Trunk Highways". Minnesota Statutes. Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
- ^ Minnesota State Legislature (2009). "§ 161.115, Additional Trunk Highways". Minnesota Statutes. Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
- ^ . Retrieved April 3, 2015 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration (August 2003). National Highway System: Minnesota (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved January 26, 2011.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration (August 2003). National Highway System: Minneapolis–St. Paul (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved January 26, 2011.
- ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderley, Kevin (June 26, 2013). "What is the National Highway System?". National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
- ^ Minnesota Department of Transportation Office of Transportation Data & Analysis, Traffic Forecasting Unit (2010). Trunk Highway AADT Overview: Greater Minnesota (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2012.
- ^ Minnesota Department of Transportation Office of Transportation Data & Analysis, Traffic Forecasting Unit (2010). Trunk Highway AADT Overview: Metro Area (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Google (April 7, 2012). "Overview Map of MN 7" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration (n.d.). "Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway". America's Byways. Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
- ^ . Retrieved April 3, 2015 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- ISBN 9780873514712.
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library. (Showing road conditions as of April 1, 1935)
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library. (Showing road conditions as of January 1, 1952)
- ^ . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- ^ . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- . Retrieved April 7, 2012 – via Minnesota Digital Library.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration (n.d.). "Minnesota River National Scenic Byway: Official Designations". America's Byways. Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on July 18, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2012.