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Minnesota State Highway 610

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Trunk Highway 610 marker

Trunk Highway 610
MN 610 highlighted in red. The unbuilt portion is represented with a dashed line.
Route information
Defined by MS § 161.115(264)
Maintained by Mn/DOT
Length: 9.828 mi[2] (15.817 km)
Existed: June 2, 1975[1] – present
Major junctions
West end: CR 81 / CR 130 in Maple Grove
  US 169 in Brooklyn Park

MN 252 in Brooklyn Park

MN 47 in Coon Rapids
East end: US 10 in Blaine
Location
Counties: Hennepin, Anoka
Highway system
  • Minnesota Trunk Highways
← I-535 I-694 →

Minnesota State Highway 610 (MN 610) is an east–west freeway in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota. The freeway connects County Road 81 (CR 81) and CR 130 in northern Hennepin County to U.S. Highway 10 (US 10) in southern Anoka County. MN 610 crosses the Mississippi River on the Richard P. Braun Bridge between suburban Brooklyn Park and Coon Rapids. The highway is 9.8 miles (15.8 km) long.

The freeway was authorized in 1975, and most of the sections that are open were completed by 2000 (7.2 mi or 11.6 km); the 2.6-mile (4.2 km) section westward to CR 81 in Maple Grove was completed and opened in 2011. There is a segment that is planned to extend farther to end at Interstate 94 (I-94). The Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) scheduled the project to start in late 2014.

Route description

Western terminus of MN 610 as of March 2016. Notice the construction site in the background.

MN 610 starts at its interchange with CR 81 in Maple Grove. From this starting point, the freeway runs eastbound through the northern suburbs of the Twin Cities. MN 610 is four lanes in width and has several interchanges with local streets and county roads before expanding to six lanes and meeting the northern terminus of MN 252 on the west bank of the Mississippi River. After MN 252 interchange, the MN 610 freeway turns to the northeast and crosses the Mississippi River on the dual-span, eight-lane Richard P. Braun Bridge.[3][4]

Across the river, the freeway runs along the south side of the Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park before curving around to the east. It continues through suburban Coon Rapids as a six-lane freeway to a partial interchange with northbound MN 47. This interchange is used by eastbound traffic transitioning to westbound US 10. The final section east to US 10 in Blaine is four lanes. The second interchange along this section of the freeway with University Avenue is used to connect with MN 47 southbound. The last interconnected interchange is at the eastern terminus as traffic defaults onto US 10 eastbound.[3][4]

Legally, MN 610 is defined as Route 333 in the Minnesota Statutes § 161.115(264).[5] The highway is not marked with this legislative route number along the actual highway.[3] The entire route of MN 610 has been listed on the National Highway System,[6] a system of roads important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.[7]

History

Senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar with other dignitaries breaking ground on the MN 610 extension

MN 610 was proposed in the middle of the 1960s as a "North Crosstown" freeway. Studies for the highway started in the 1970s.[8] The highway was first authorized on June 2, 1975.[1] The westbound span of the Mississippi River bridge was built in 1985,[9] and, along with the existing freeway east of MN 252, was opened in October 1987.[10] Officials in Minnesota proposed tolls as a means to fund the construction on the highway in 1989.[11] Local officials supported the highway construction, but opposed the tolling plans.[12]

West of MN 252, the freeway construction started in June 1997. The freeway was opened to traffic in 2000, with a traffic light at the intersection of MN 610 and US 169 initially.[13] Construction on the second bridge over the Mississippi River for eastbound traffic started in 1999,[14] to be completed in 2002.[13]

Construction of the portion between US 169 and CR 81 was estimated to cost $48 million in 2010, of which $27 million is being funded by federal stimulus money. The project began in October 2009, and it was scheduled to be completed in July 2011.[15] The remainder of the highway to I-94 is not on a Mn/DOT schedule to be built.[15] The new western terminus will be located at Elm Creek Boulevard in Maple Grove. The freeway continues westward from this point in the median of CR 81, but this section will be an unused stub end past the ramps that connect to CR 81[8] During the 2011 Minnesota state government shutdown, construction on MN 610 was halted for 20 days. Until work stopped on July 1, 2011, a ribbon-cutting ceremony had been scheduled to open the new freeway section on July 12.[16] The ribbon cutting ceremony was on August 17 and the road opened on August 19.[17]

Future

MN 610 is planned to extend west to I-94 in Maple Grove,[1] and the freeway's mile markers reflect these plans, with the zero point calibrated to this future terminus.[2] A portion of this new section is very unusual; it is routed down the middle of the median of CR 81 in Maple Grove, forming a roadway within a roadway.[8]

There are worries about traffic after the last extension was opened in 2011. The local mayors are concerned with the traffic levels on CR 81 now that MN 610 is opened. "County Road 81 is already a fairly busy road without this additional traffic, and now there will be a substantial increase in traffic," according to Maple Grove Mayor Mark Steffenson; he is urging Mn/DOT to complete the remainder of the freeway to I-94 to alleviate these traffic concerns.[17] Construction on this last segment of highway was scheduled to start in October 2014.[18]

On April 4, 2016, construction started on an interchange with Maple Grove Parkway. The interchange is set to open in October 2016.[19]

Exit list

All exits are unnumbered.

County Location mi[2] km Destinations Notes
Hennepin Maple Grove 0.000 0.000 I-94 Future western terminus of MN 610
Maple Grove Parkway
2.486 4.001 CR 81 / CR 130 / Elm Creek Boulevard Opened on August 19, 2011;[17] current western terminus
3.579 5.760 CR 202 (Zachary Lane) Opened on August 19, 2011[17]
Brooklyn Park 5.117 8.235 US 169 Interchange reconstructed in 2011; former western terminus
5.806 9.344 CR 103 (West Broadway Avenue)
6.817 10.971 CR 14 (Zane Avenue)
7.850 12.633 CR 12 (Noble Parkway)
9.584 15.424 MN 252 south Northern terminus of MN 252
Mississippi River 9.815–
10.067		 15.796–
16.201		 Richard P. Braun Bridge
Anoka Coon Rapids 10.433 16.790 CR 1 (East River Road) Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
11.066 17.809 CR 3 (Coon Rapids Boulevard) Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
11.747 18.905 MN 47 north to US 10 west Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
Blaine 11.922 19.187 CR 51 (University Avenue) to MN 47 Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
12.314 19.817 US 10 east Eastern terminus of MN 610; eastbound exit, westbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

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External links

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  • MN 610 at The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page
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