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For the collapsed bridge in Minneapolis, see I-35W Mississippi River bridge.
For the replacement bridge, see St. Anthony Falls (35W) Bridge.
The Minnesota section of Interstate 35 and Interstate 35W respectively are defined as legislative routes 390 and 394 in Minnesota Statutes § 161.12(2).[1] The roads are not marked with those numbers. All of I-35 in the state of Minnesota from the Iowa state line to Duluth is named the Red Bull Highway, after the 34th Infantry (Red Bull) Division. At Medford, Minnesota, the on/off ramps lead to roundabouts rather than standard cross intersections.[7] This is the first site in the state linked to a major highway to use roundabouts. I-35 splits again into I-35W and I-35E in the Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota area. The mile- and exit-numbering sequence continues along I-35E. At one sharp turn in I-35W near the junction with I-94, it is advised to slow to 35 mph (55 km/h) (although many drivers are able to maintain the speed limit of 55 mph (90 km/h)). Additionally, it is not possible to go from westbound I-94 to northbound I-35W, from southbound I-35W to eastbound I-94, from eastbound I-94 to southbound I-35E, and from northbound I-35E to westbound I-94 without resorting to surface streets. On I-35E in Minnesota between Minnesota State Highway 5 and Interstate 94, in both directions, trucks weighing more than 9,000 lbs (4,082 kg) are banned from the freeway, and the speed limit drops to 45 mph (70 km/h) but it is rarely obeyed. This section was not completed until the late 1980s (although the route was cleared and graded earlier) due to opposition from the historic Crocus Hill neighborhood, which sits only a few hundred feet from the alignment. The four-lane alignment, "parkway" design was a compromise. The truck bypass for this section is signed on I-494 and I-694 to the east of Saint Paul. The I-35 / I-535 / U.S. 53 interchange in Duluth, Minnesota features a pair of left exits from I-35, a stoplight, and lane drops over the I-35 bridge. Map and aerial photo HistorySome sections of I-35 in Oklahoma City were already built in 1953, before the Interstate system was created.[8] Through Norman, Oklahoma, the interstate opened in June 1959. In Moore, it opened in two parts: the northern half, connecting Moore to Oklahoma City, opened in January 1960. The southern half, linking it to Norman, was opened to traffic in June 1967.[9] I-35 through Oklahoma largely parallels U.S. Route 77. This is in large part due to efforts of the towns of Wynnewood, Paoli, and Wayne, which fought to keep I-35 as close as possible to U.S. 77. This was successful due to a threat from Governor Henry Bellmon to build a toll road rather than I-35, and legislation preventing state funds for the interstate from being spent if it were more than 1-mile (1.6 km) from the U.S. route.[10] I-35 was completed in Oklahoma in 1971, when parts of the interstate running through Carter Co. and Murray Co. were opened to traffic.[8] The final segment of I-35 (as originally planned) to open was in north central Iowa, between Mason City and US 20 near Iowa Falls. This segment was delayed due to some controversy. Originally, I-35 was to follow the alignment of US 69 from Des Moines all the way to the Minnesota border. However, Mason City's business community lobbied for the route to be moved closer to their city. On September 1, 1965, the alignment was changed to instead parallel US 65 through northern Iowa, which brought the highway much closer to Mason City. This, however, created a long diagonal section through Wright and Franklin counties. Local farmers objected to their farms being bisected into triangular pieces, and resulting litigation delayed I-35 for several years. A November 1972 ruling rejected a lawsuit filed by the farmers, and the final segment of I-35 was allowed to proceed, eventually opening in 1975. One of the final pieces of the highway puzzle happened in Faribault, Minnesota. For approximately 25 years, Highway 35 actually went through the town and travellers had to deal with several traffic lights. In 1975, the highway went around Faribault where today a traveler actually has three exit choices for this southern Minnesota town. FutureOn September 1, 2005, MoDOT reopened the Paseo Bridge over the Missouri River in Kansas City, Missouri after completing a six-month rehabilitation project ahead of schedule. However, the rehab project is only a short-term fix; MoDOT is in the planning process of devising a six- to eight-lane crossing for the interstate, either by building a duplicate bridge to house one direction of traffic or a new bridge or bridges. The $245 million project includes $50 million in funding procured by Senator Kit Bond in the 2005 Transportation Bill. Project plans include significant updates to sections of the freeway and nearby interchanges beyond the bridge itself. NAFTA Superhighway
The proposed Trans-Texas Corridor toll-road project includes one proposal (TTC-35) to primarily parallel I-35 from the Mexico border up to the Oklahoma border.[11] There are major disagreements as to what impact this parallel route would have on I-35 in terms of traffic, maintenance, and commerce. The Trans-Texas Corridor was first proposed by Texas Governor Rick Perry in 2002. It consists of a 1,200 foot (366 m) wide highway that also carries utilities such as electricity, petroleum and water as well as railway track and fiber-optic cables.[12] In July 2007, U.S. Representative and candidate for the Republican nomination in the 2008 U.S. presidential election Duncan Hunter successfully offered an amendment to House Resolution 3074, the FY2008 Transportation Appropriations Act, prohibiting the use of federal funds for Department of Transportation participation in the activities of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). Hunter stated that: "Unfortunately, very little is known about the NAFTA Super Highway. This amendment will provide Congress the opportunity to exercise oversight of the highway, which remains a subject of question and uncertainty, and ensure that our safety and security will not be compromised in order to promote the business interests of our neighbors."[13] Fellow Republican Congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul brought the issue to mainstream prominence during the December 2007 CNN-YouTube GOP debate, where he rejected the concept and also called it "the NAFTA Superhighway" after the North American Free Trade Agreement, and, like Hunter, framed it within "the ultimate goal" of creating a North American Union. Major intersections
Auxiliary routes
References
External links
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