I-35 Northern Metro Fringe

Northern Metro Fringe

This page covers I-35 from the northern I-35W/I-35E split to Chisago CSAH 22/US 61 in Wyoming, MN. Total length of this section is approximately 8.3 miles.

Description

I-35 serves as the "gateway" to the Twin Cities metropolitan area from the north. Its northern terminus is in Duluth, MN, and it further connects to International Falls and Thunder Bay, Ontario. A significant truck route, it also serves the bedroom communities of northern Washington and southern Chisago Counties and is a heavily used recreational route during summer weekends.

Roadway Configuration

6 lanes south of US 8
4 lanes north of US 8

Average Daily Traffic Counts (from MnDOT records)

Location	1980	1982	1984	1986	1988	1990	1992	1994
South of MN 97	24,200	26,900	29,000	33,400	37,000	42,700	48,500	53,000
North of MN 97	22,500	23,600	27,400	30,500	33,500	38,000	41,500	45,500
North of CSAH 2	20,900	21,800	24,100	26,700	32,600	37,000	39,000	45,500
North of US 8	14,700	15,300	16,500	18,400	23,000	26,500	27,000	31,500
North of US 61	12,100	12,760	14,800	16,100	20,100	22,800	22,800	28,000

Location	1996	1998	2000	2002	2004	2006	10-yr '96-'06 Change
South of MN 97	58,000	65,000	72,000	75,000	83,000	86,000	+48%
North of MN 97	51,000	55,000	63,000	66,000	72,000	72,000	+41%
North of CSAH 2	50,000	55,000	63,000	66,000	71,000	75,000	+50%
North of US 8	34,000	39,000	44,000	47,000	50,000	55,000	+62%
North of US 61	31,700	36,500	40,100	43,000	44,000	43,500	+37%
North of CSAH 19	29,300	31,600	35,000	36,800	34,000	37,000	+26%
North of MN 95	23,400	24,900	27,700	27,200	24,900	27,700	+18%

Traffic counts north of Chisago CSAH 19 unavailable prior to 1996.

Click HERE for the Exit List (from Matt Salek's site)

Speed Limit

70 MPH throughout

History

Constructed between I-35W/E and MN 95 in 1969.
A new interchange was built at Chisago CSAH 17 (located between Stacy and North Branch) in 2006.

Future Plans

MnDOT recently completed a corridor management plan for I-35 North, extending all the way to Hinckley. The plan recommends interchange improvements at all of the interchanges along the corridor (including making the US 8 interchange a full interchange), a new interchange at Chisago CSAH 17 (recently completed), and widening to 8 lanes between the 35W/35E merge and US 8 and 6 lanes between US 8 and MN 95. Except for the now-completed CSAH 17 interchange and some proposed improvements to the MN 95 interchange, no funding or timeline has been identified for these recommendations.

Froggie Suggests

Widen to 10 lanes from the I-35E/35W merge to MN 97/CSAH 23.
Reconstruct the MN 97/CSAH 23 interchange as proposed (with a SB on-loop).
Widen to 8 lanes from MN 97/CSAH 23 to US 8.
Reconstruct the CSAH 2 and US 8 interchanges, to incorporate a WB CSAH 2 to SB I-35 loop, full movement at US 8, and C/D roads in between the two interchanges.
Widen to 6 lanes from US 8 north to MN 95 in North Branch.

Links

Last updated 12 May, 2008