Minnesota State Highway 55

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Minnesota State Highway 55 is a highway in Minnesota. It is 225 miles (362 km) in length.

Trunk Highway 55

Length:

221 mi (356 km)

Formed:

1933

East end:

in Hastings

West end:

near Tenney

Major cities:

Inver Grove Heights, Eagan, Mendota Heights, Minneapolis, Golden Valley, Plymouth, Buffalo, Annandale, Paynesville, Glenwood

Minnesota State Highways
< TH 54		TH 56 >

1 Termini
2 Notes
3 Communities along the route
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Termini

The western terminus of Highway 55 is the North Dakota border near Tenney, Minnesota. In North Dakota, its counterpart is North Dakota Highway 11. The road extends eastward to Hastings, Minnesota where it meets U.S. Highway 61.

[edit] Notes

The western portion of the highway coming into downtown Minneapolis is known as Olson Memorial Highway, named for Floyd B. Olson, a popular Minnesota governor of Norwegian ancestry. The part of Highway 55 southeast of downtown is known as Hiawatha Avenue. A light rail corridor, the Hiawatha Line, runs parallel to the highway for much of the Hiawatha Avenue stretch.

Mendota Bridge

In July 2005, the section of Highway 55 that runs through downtown Minneapolis was turned back to local maintenance. To fill the gap, Highway 55 was rerouted along Interstate 94. Westbound, 55 now exits just before downtown at the westbound I-94 exit, and leaves the concurrency at the exit for the Olson Highway, marked with the Highway 55 shield. Eastbound, 55 leaves the Olson Highway at the on-ramp for I-94 eastbound, and leaves the freeway at the exit for Hiawatha Avenue, which is also marked with the Highway 55 shield.

Olson Memorial Highway statue

There has been some controversy with expansion of the highway. An area known as Camp Coldwater, considered by some as the "birthplace of Minnesota," was dug up during some construction.

Highway 55 crosses the Minnesota River via the Mendota Bridge, which was the longest continuous bridge made of poured concrete when it was completed in 1926. It is 4,119 feet (1,255 m) in length.

In late December 2006, someone added a 7-foot (2.1 m) painting of Pac-Man near one of the anti-tailgating dots on the road. This is located on the portion of Highway 55 between Buffalo and Rockford, traveling east of Buffalo. [1]