Would it make sense to turn MN 100 into a division of 35? (interstate, system)

[A2DAC1985]

Originally Posted by golfgal

It makes no sense at all to turn 100 into part of 35.

A2DAC1985--the E or W designation for 35 has nothing to do with the direction the road runs. It designates which side of the Mississippi the road is on, kind of like the call letters for radio and TV stations used to do.

Oh, I am well aware of that.

I'm not sure there are other places in the country (besides Dallas-Ft. Worth) that designate a North-South running Interstate with opposite Cardinal directions.

My initial question pertains to how would another "35" be referenced?

35 East, 35 Middle, 35 West?

35 East, 35, 35 West?



My idea to not add confusion to roads that run N-S by giving them E & W modifiers would be to call them:

35 Minny
35 Pauly

And then if another road was made into "35", it could simply be called I-35.


And broadcast media still uses the Mississippi as a dividing line for K and W stations in radio and TV.

[Glenfield]

Originally Posted by A2DAC1985

And broadcast media still uses the Mississippi as a dividing line for K and W stations in radio and TV.

I think you got it... 35W becomes 35K and 35E becomes 35W.

[xandrex]

Originally Posted by A2DAC1985

And what?

35 turns into:

35W
35M
35E

???

Its bad enough a Northern state uses the same format as Dallas and Fort Worth for numbering an interstate.

I thought we sent someone to the Moon???

And there is no better way to differentiate between splits in 35 besides giving them completely different cardinal directions that are not indicative to the direction of travel?

It could also be argued that some southern state uses the same format as Minneapolis and St. Paul. What's your point. The way the freeway system is numbered at the moment, if we used a numbering format, we'd be copying some other city.

I also don't see why it's so weird that the E and W don't indicate direction. It seems pretty clear to me. It designates the split, not the direction. Plus it's just a letter. Nobody calls it "35 West". It's 35W and then the directional...northbound or southbound. The same would hold true for roads named with letters. It doesn't mean they're only eastbound!

If I remember correctly, the 35E/W split in MSP and DFW is unique at this point. Such things apparently used to be common, but the interstate system wanted it changed so many switched to numbering one of their routes differently.

[A2DAC1985]

Originally Posted by xandrex

...I also don't see why it's so weird that the E and W don't indicate direction. It seems pretty clear to me. It designates the split, not the direction. Plus it's just a letter. Nobody calls it "35 West". It's 35W and then the directional...northbound or southbound. The same would hold true for roads named with letters. It doesn't mean they're only eastbound!

If I remember correctly, the 35E/W split in MSP and DFW is unique at this point. Such things apparently used to be common, but the interstate system wanted it changed so many switched to numbering one of their routes differently.

If you've lived in Minneapolis/St. Paul or Dallas/Ft. Worth your whole life, it wouldn't be weird at all.

I know it is the most reliable source in the world , but you can look at this list on List of Interstate Highways - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and see that 35 is the only Interstate that is also labeled with anything other than an "I" or another single digit. So it's something that many people don't even know about, or have limited experience with it. It could be confusing for someone driving around there, who hasn't done so in the past.

And wouldn't it be confusing to be in a new city driving on an East/West street and come across an intersection and street with a clearly North/South direction but that street was called "E. Maple St.", or something of the sort? "Why is this called East? It just runs North and South... Wait, what direction am I facing? Does East Maple actually take you East? Did they change street signs or something?"

With the naming convention used by the Interstates I think 35 could have been designated with a 7, 8, or 9 (those haven't been used yet: 735, 835, 935). And if that wasn't quite adequate, the people of the Twin Cities could also attach an actual name to those stretches of 35 to differentiate which 35 they were on.

Just some thoughts.

[west336]

Hwy. 100 is NOT built to Interstate standards. There are many spots with no shoulders, for one, and also spots with too narrow lanes. Interstates have strict guidelines for how much space is needed for lanes and shoulders (on both sides) and most/all of Hwy. 100 doesn't fit the bill (and it'd be cost-prohibitive to do so).

The primary candidate for a state highway to turn to an interstate is Hwy. 52 from St. Paul to Rochester (and beyond?). Connecting the Mayo Clinic to the Twin Cities via interstate MAY be in the best interest of the Clinic, the Cities, and the State. Furthermore, St. Louis, MO may someday be connected more directly to the Twin Cities, as they are the closest, major metros with no direct interstate connection. I don't know what the chance of those two interstate possibilities being just one (TC to Rochester to St. Louis).

Read the passage about "I-53" - Interstate Aspirations for the Avenue of the Saints (near the bottom):
High Priority Corridors @ AARoads: Avenue of the Saints (Corridor 2)

[Globe199]

MN-100 does not connect with I-35 anywhere, so it would never be an auxiliary three-digit interstate of 35. It would have to be an auxiliary of I-94. And since it's essentially a bypass and not a spur, it would most likely start with an available even number (294 or 894). None of it matters, since MN-100 will never be a federally-funded road.

After the bridge fell, someone talked about converting MN-280 to an interstate, which sadly also will not happen.

btw, repeated 3DIs are allowed in different states. There's an I-405 in California and Washington. Many states have an I-110.

List of auxiliary Interstate Highways - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Bslette]

I quickly just want to make it clear that when i posted this, it was a scenario/thought, and I actually am not in favor of changing it, I like 100 the way it is, for many reasons. I did vote "don't change it" from the start.

Originally Posted by Globe199

MN-100 does not connect with I-35 anywhere, so it would never be an auxiliary three-digit interstate of 35. It would have to be an auxiliary of I-94. And since it's essentially a bypass and not a spur, it would most likely start with an available even number (294 or 894). None of it matters, since MN-100 will never be a federally-funded road.

After the bridge fell, someone talked about converting MN-280 to an interstate, which sadly also will not happen.

btw, repeated 3DIs are allowed in different states. There's an I-405 in California and Washington. Many states have an I-110.

List of auxiliary Interstate Highways - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

To the subject that MN 100 couldn't be changed to 35 because it isnt connected: Actually, if it were built to interstate standards, it could still be a part of 35. E.G., in Minneapolis, 35W and 94 do combine for a while, making them both 35 and 94 at the same time. Same with 94 and 694 on the northwestern part of the Twin Cities. So, it technically would be possible to convert a the portion of I-494 into a combined 494 and 35-something. But, once again, I wouldn't be in favor of it.

[xandrex]

Originally Posted by A2DAC1985

If you've lived in Minneapolis/St. Paul or Dallas/Ft. Worth your whole life, it wouldn't be weird at all.

I actually grew up outside the metro and I've never had a problem. If Wikipedia is to be believed, the reason these letters stay is because neither 35E or 35W is an obvious spur/loop of the other. It also doesn't seem as confusing as your example. Roads are often given directionals that have nothing to do with the direction you're driving. All of the U area uses SE on the streets even when you're not traveling southeast. And after all, your example wouldn't make sense for the north/south road to be an N or an S either. Because one direction you'd be driving north, the other south. So which direction is put on the street signs?

35 on the other hand is either 35E or 35W. It's not a directional.

Originally Posted by bslette

Actually, if it were built to interstate standards, it could still be a part of 35. E.G., in Minneapolis, 35W and 94 do combine for a while, making them both 35 and 94 at the same time

I don't believe any part of 35 and 94 are equally-marked. Rather, in one spot south of downtown Minneapolis, the two run side-by-side.

[Glenfield]

Originally Posted by Globe199

btw, repeated 3DIs are allowed in different states. There's an I-405 in California and Washington. Many states have an I-110.

List of auxiliary Interstate Highways - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are three interstates with three digits, I-110 in California and two numbered I-280, one in California and the other in New Jersey. I-405 is a spur or auxiliary highway of I-5. The other I-110s you see are part of I-10.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interst...10_(California)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_405_(California)

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by xandrex

35 on the other hand is either 35E or 35W. It's not a directional.

Well, it is in a way. 35E is the east branch, and 35W is the west branch.