County roads in Minnesota are roads locally maintained by county highway departments in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

County road A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the County (United States), county highway departme ...

s span a wide variety of road types, varying from A-minor

arterial An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pul ...

s that carry large volumes of traffic to

gravel road A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the Unit ...

s. Most county roads in Minnesota are designated with numbers that are unique within each county. Although most counties designate with only numbers, a few in Dodge County use letters instead, and two in Isanti County use a combination of a number and letter.

County Roads

County roads in Minnesota are marked with a general white square shield with black lettering and route number. Though route numbers are unique only within a county, due to historical reasons, some county routes maintain their number from one county to another, such is the case with County Road 1 in Chisago and Pine Counties (following a historical road named Kettle River Trail from the early part of Minnesota's history) or County Road 61 in Pine and Carlton Counties (following former

U.S. Highway 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designated ...

County State Aid Highways

Some county routes are designated as County State Aid Highways (CSAH). These routes are constructed and maintained by counties, but they are eligible for funding from the County State Aid Highway Fund. Differences in signage between CSAH routes and other county roads depends on the county. Some counties, such as Stearns County, delineate between the two by using the "standard" M1-6 blue pentagon shield for CSAH designated routes and Minnesota's general white square shield for other county routes. The M1-6 blue pentagon shield's route number may be shown in either white or gold, depending on the county. In many counties, CSAH are given low route designation numbers and non-CSAH are given higher route designation numbers, but this is not a rule, for example, Hennepin County Road 26 is a non-CSAH, but other county roads in this series are CSAH.

Inter-county Highways

A few roads that cross county borders are also signed with an "inter-county" designation and a letter, but this system is not shown on most maps. However, as these highways provide important alternate routes to the state highway system, the

Minnesota Department of Transportation The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT, ) oversees transportation by all modes including land, water, air, rail, walking and bicycling in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The cabinet-level agency is responsible for maintaining the state' ...

have recommended a local route numbering / labeling system that clearly identifies county routes that are continuous into neighboring counties. These routes, if marked, are marked with either a white square shield or a blue pentagon shield, with a blue square shield containing the route letter directly under shield with the route number. Like the M1-6 blue pentagon shield's route number, the inter-county route letter may be shown in either white or gold, depending on the county.

Lists of county roads in Minnesota

References

External links

{{Commons category, County roads in Minnesota
The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page: County Highway Systems
by Steve Riner