Interstate 35W (I-35W) is an
Interstate Highway
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...
in the US state of
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
, passing through downtown
Minneapolis
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
. It is one of two through routes for
I-35
Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexico–Uni ...
through the
Twin Cities
Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...
of Minneapolis and
Saint Paul
Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...
, the other being
I-35E through downtown Saint Paul.
Traveling north, I-35 splits at
Burnsville, and the I-35W route runs north for , carrying its own separate sequence of exit numbers. It runs through the city of Minneapolis before rejoining with I-35E to reform I-35 in
Columbus near
Forest Lake. I-35W supplanted sections of old
U.S. Highway 8 (US 8) northeast of Minneapolis and old
US 65 south of Minneapolis that have since been removed from the
United States Numbered Highway System
The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these ...
.
During the early years of the Interstate Highway System, branching Interstates with directional suffixes, such as N, S, E, and W, were common nationwide. On every other Interstate nationwide, these directional suffixes have been phased out by redesignating the suffixed route numbers with a loop or spur route number designation (such as
I-270 in Maryland, which was once I-70S) or, in some cases, were assigned a different route number (such as
I-76, which was once I-80S). In the case of I-35 in the Twin Cities area, since neither branch is clearly the main route and both branches return to a unified Interstate beyond the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, officials at the
(AASHTO) have allowed the suffixes of E and W in Minnesota to remain in the present day. I-35 also splits into
I-35E and
I-35W in
Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas, for similar reasons as the I-35 split in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.
Route description

The southern terminus of I-35W is at
Burnsville, where I-35 splits into I-35E and I-35W. While I-35E takes a northeasterly path into Saint Paul, I-35W heads north into Minneapolis. I-35W maintains a northbound direction in Burnsville with two lanes and adds a third lane at Burnsville Parkway. It then crosses the
Minnesota River
The Minnesota River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa.
It rises in southwestern ...
into
Bloomington. At the Bloomington–
Richfield city boundary, I-35W has a
cloverleaf interchange
A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange (road), interchange in which all turns are handled by slip roads. To go left (in right-hand traffic; reverse directions in left-driving regions), vehicles first continue as one road passe ...
with
I-494
Interstate 494 (I-494) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway making up part of a beltway of I-94, circling through the southern and western portions of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in Minnesota. The road is coupled with I ...
at exits 9A and 9B. I-35W continues northbound into Richfield, where it turns east and joins with
Minnesota State Highway 62 (MN 62) for about in what is locally known as the ''Crosstown Commons''. I-35W and MN 62 split as two lanes of I-35W turn northbound toward downtown Minneapolis, where it adds back a third lane and then later a fourth and a fifth lane at the 46th Street onramp.
I-35W swerves slightly northeast immediately south of downtown to avoid the
Washburn-Fair Oaks Mansion District. Three lanes then split north onto
MN 65 (Old
US 65), which exits into downtown. The two righthand lanes of I-35W curve a sharp right east where it runs side by side with
I-94 and
US 52 for less than , allowing drivers to exchange highways. Here, the interchange with I-94/US 52 does not have direct access for southbound I-35W to eastbound I-94/southbound US 52 or westbound I-94/northbound US 52 to northbound I-35W. Drivers must use the Cedar and Washington avenue exits to make these connections. Alternatively,
MN 280 provides an expressway link for motorists needing to make these connections.
I-35W completes its eastern loop around downtown, and then crosses the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
on the
St. Anthony Falls Bridge and winds northeast out of
Northeast Minneapolis
Northeast is a Neighborhoods of Minneapolis, defined community in the U.S. city of Minneapolis that is composed of 13 smaller neighborhoods whose street addresses end in "NE". Unofficially it also includes the neighborhoods of the University, ...
. Here, I-35W passes through industrial areas near the suburbs of
St. Anthony,
Lauderdale
Lauderdale is the valley of the Leader Water (a tributary of the River Tweed, Tweed) in the Scottish Borders. It contains the town of Lauder, as well as Earlston. The valley is traversed from end to end by the A68 road, A68 trunk road, which run ...
,
Roseville, and
Arden Hills.
I-35W then meets
I-694
Interstate 694 (I-694) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway located in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in the US state of Minnesota. The western terminus of the route is at its junction with Interstate 94 in Minneso ...
in
New Brighton and
Arden Hills at a
cloverleaf interchange
A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange (road), interchange in which all turns are handled by slip roads. To go left (in right-hand traffic; reverse directions in left-driving regions), vehicles first continue as one road passe ...
at exits 26B and 26C.
US 10 joins I-35W north of the I-35W/I-694 interchange at exit 28A. I-35W and US 10
run concurrently for another before the latter turns westward in
Mounds View and
Shoreview
Shoreview is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 26,921 at the time of the 2020 census. It is part of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the ...
at exit 30. I-35W passes next to the former site of the
Twin Cities Ordnance Plant and again turns northeastward through the suburbs of
Blaine and
Lino Lakes. The communities of
Lexington and
Circle Pines are also nearby throughout this stretch. I-35W then merges with I-35E to reform I-35 at
Columbus near
Forest Lake.
I-35W carries its own set of exit numbers in the Twin Cities area, while I-35E continues the I-35 exit numbering scheme, which goes between the
Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
state line and the city of
Duluth
Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
. (The same setup also applies to the other I-35E/I-35W splits in
Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas.)
Legally, the route of I-35W is defined as part of unmarked
Legislative Route
In the United States, a legislative route (LR) or legislative highway is a highway defined by law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise d ...
394 in the Minnesota Statutes § 161.12(2); I-35W is not marked with this legislative number along the actual highway.
History
Flooding
I-35W is prone to heavy-rain event flooding in several areas, intersecting both natural habitats, including the
Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge between
Burnsville and
Bloomington, and the dense urban areas through the city of Minneapolis. In the great 1965 Minnesota River flood, the highway was underwater in the floodplain wetlands south of the Minnesota River bridge at Burnsville.
Dikes
Dyke or dike may refer to:
General uses
* Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian"
* Dike (geology), formations of magma or sediment that cut through and across the layering of adjacent rocks
* Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess ...
have been constructed, and the highway has been raised since then. The storm sewer system under I-35W in the urban core of south Minneapolis has also been cited as a place prone to flashfloods during rain events. Improvements continue to be made to this area as part of future projects.
Minnesota River crossing

When the Minnesota River bridge between Burnsville and Bloomington was completed in 1960, it was two lanes in each direction. I-35W, at the time, only extended as far south as
MN 13 in Burnsville. Improvements were made in 1984 to redeck and widen the bridge, but subsoil problems found at the north end resulted in the new lanes being temporarily closed. In 1989, the lanes were opened as
high-occupancy vehicle lanes
A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and at least one passenger, i ...
when the
Minnesota Department of Transportation
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT, ) oversees Transportation in Minnesota, transportation by all modes including land, water, air, rail, walking and bicycling in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The Cabinet (government), cabinet-lev ...
(MnDOT) expanded the north approach to carry the additional traffic.
Mississippi River crossing
On August 1, 2007, the
I-35W Mississippi River bridge
The I-35W Mississippi River bridge (officially known as Bridge 9340) was an eight-lane, steel truss arch bridge that carried Interstate 35W across the Mississippi River one-half mile (875 m) downstream from the Saint Anthony Falls in Minneap ...
in Minneapolis collapsed into the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
around 6:05 pm
CDT, killing 13 people and injuring 145.
The metal arch bridge had a length of approximately and a roadway height of over above the river. The bridge connected Minneapolis southwest of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
to the
Northeast Minneapolis
Northeast is a Neighborhoods of Minneapolis, defined community in the U.S. city of Minneapolis that is composed of 13 smaller neighborhoods whose street addresses end in "NE". Unofficially it also includes the neighborhoods of the University, ...
neighborhood and served residents in the northern suburbs of the
metro area
Metro Area is a Brooklyn-based house and nu-disco duo formed in 1998 by Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani.
History
Geist grew up in Wayne, New Jersey, Spring Arts Clubs: Electro-Shock by Tricia Romano">village voice > nyclife > Spring Arts ...
. Because of the collapse of the bridge, I-35W traffic was temporarily detoured through eastbound
I-94 to northbound
MN 280 where it meets up with I-35W in
Roseville.
The replacement
I-35W Saint Anthony Falls Bridge
The I-35W Saint Anthony Falls Bridge crosses the Mississippi River one-half mile (875 m) downstream from the Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the U.S., carrying north–south traffic on Interstate 35W. The ten-lane bridge repl ...
was built in less than a year and opened to traffic on September 18, 2008, at 5:00 am CDT, three months ahead of schedule.
I-35W and Highway 62 Crosstown Commons reconstruction project
The ''Crosstown Commons'' was one of the most congested traffic
interchanges in
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
. While it is sometimes referred to as an intersection, it is a merger or
concurrency
Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to:
Law
* Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea''
* Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...
of I-35W and
MN 62. The layout is not a typical intersection: there is only a single level of roadbed and it creates a dogleg in I-35W. This shared
right-of-way
A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...
intersection for I-35W and MN 62 has been a topic of political debate for many years. As originally built, there were only six lanes on the commons, and all drivers merging from one highway to the other are required to change at least one lane as they merge and then diverge again. The name comes from the fact that MN 62 is also known locally as the ''Crosstown Highway''.
The project to improve the interchange began in May 2007 after bids were received in April 2007. The new interchange features three throughlanes for I-35W in both directions, ending at 42nd Street, and two separate throughlanes for MN 62 in each direction, eliminating the need to weave across traffic. The cost of correcting the deficiencies in that short stretch of highway was estimated to be $285 million (equivalent to $ in ).
In 2004, the City of Minneapolis threatened to withhold municipal consent for the project unless new bus lanes and bus stations were included. Lake Street currently has a bus station at grade with I-35W on both sides. Eventually, the project was altered to include the desired additional bus access. The bid was won by the Ames, Lunda, and Schafer consortium for the 2007 cost of $288 million (equivalent to $ in ). The project included 25 new bridges, of highway, and expanded the total roadway width from six lanes to 12 lanes at Lyndale Avenue. The bridges were cast in
Coates and trucked in for onsite erection. The new design includes transit/
HOV lanes
A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and at least one passenger, ...
and was completed in November 2010.
35W@94: Downtown to Crosstown
The 35W@94 Downtown to Crosstown Project was a construction project to repave and reconfigure I-35W and
I-94. The work took place from 15th Street to 43rd Street on I-35W, and I-94 from Portland Avenue to 3rd Avenue in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
. The project added a southbound entrance at County Road 3 (
Lake Street), added a northbound exit to 28th Street, reconstructing and widening frontage roads to accommodate new ramps.
HOV lanes
A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and at least one passenger, ...
using
E-ZPass
E-ZPass Interagency Group (E-ZPass Group trade name and E-ZPass product brand) is an electronic toll collection system used on toll roads, toll bridges, and toll tunnels in the eastern half of the United States. The group itself is composed of ...
replaced the dynamic shoulder lanes in the center of the freeway. Retaining walls, noise barriers, and bridges being replaced throughout the entirety of the project. The METRO Orange Line uses a new station at Lake Street, and a bus-only transit ramp on 12th Street connecting I-35W to downtown. The entire project was completed in September 2021.
Transit
The METRO
Orange Line bus rapid transitway runs from the southern suburb of
Burnsville to downtown Minneapolis on I-35W, passing through
Bloomington, and
Richfield.
It uses HOV lanes and a transit ramp into downtown Minneapolis.
Exit list
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:35W
W (Minnesota)
Interstate Highway System
Interstate Highways in Minnesota
Interstate 35W
Interstate 35W
Interstate 35W
Interstate 35W
Interstate 35W
High-occupancy toll roads