Interstate 90 (I-90) in the US state of

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 ...

runs for across the southern side of the state, parallel to the

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

state line. The route connects the cities of

Worthington Worthington may refer to: People * Worthington (surname) * Worthington family, a British noble family Businesses * Worthington Brewery, also known as Worthington's * Worthington Corporation, founded as a pump manufacturer in 1845, later a dive ...

Albert Lea Albert Lea may refer to: *Albert Lea, Minnesota, U.S. * Albert Lea Township, Freeborn County, Minnesota, U.S. *Albert Miller Lea Albert Miller Lea (July 23, 1808 – January 16, 1891) was an American engineer, soldier, and topographer with th ...

, Austin, and

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

. The city of Winona is also in close proximity to I-90, with about between the Interstate and the city.

Route description

I-90 enters the state from

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...

near Beaver Creek. This part of Minnesota has flat to gently rolling terrain and is the beginnings of

Corn Belt The Corn Belt is a region of the Midwestern United States that, since the 1850s, has dominated corn production in the United States. In the United States, ''corn'' is the common word for maize. More generally, the concept of the Corn Belt con ...

farmland. The flat terrain is often subject to blowing and drifting snow in colder months, and the western portions of the highway are closed multiple times each winter. Rock County, where I-90 enters Minnesota, is one of the only counties in the state lacking a natural lake. The change from semiarid to a wetter climate happens slowly moving eastbound on I-90 through southern Minnesota. The route passes through the cities of Luverne,

Adrian Adrian is a form of the Latin given name Adrianus or Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria from the Venetic and Illyrian word ''adur'', meaning "sea" or "water". The Adria was until the 8th century BC the mai ...

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

, Fairmont, and Blue Earth. I-90 has an interchange with I-35 at

. East of the city of Austin, I-90 changes direction slightly and heads toward

, and the route enters a much more hilly landscape. This is the

Driftless Area The Driftless Area, a topographical and cultural region in the American Midwest, comprises southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and the extreme northwestern corner of Illinois. Never covered by ice during the las ...

of southeast Minnesota. Unlike the rest of the state, where the most recent glaciations left terrain that is either flat or rolling under a deposit of glacial till, this area escaped the most recent glaciation. The bedrock to the top of the I-90 road cuts is noticeable at this point. The other notable feature of this area are deep, steep valleys cut by water that poured through this area as the ice cap melted. I-90 drops into the scenic

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

valley just west of Dresbach. The carriageways split apart as they descend, and they rejoin west of the junction with US Highway 61 (US 61). I-90 then parallels the Mississippi River before turning east and crossing the Dresbach Bridge over the river into

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

I-90 is atypical in that, just across the Minnesota–Wisconsin state line, (immediately west of the community of

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, ...

) the median is wide enough that farms exist between the road beds. Legally, the Minnesota section of I-90 is defined as unmarked

Legislative Route In the United States, a legislative route (LR) or legislative highway is a highway defined by laws passed in a state legislature. The numbering of such highways may or may not correspond to the numbers familiar to the public as part of the state, ...

391 in the

Minnesota Statutes Minnesota Statutes are a compilation of the official laws of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Minnesota Statutes comprise only of the general and permanent laws of the state. The Office of the Revisor of Statutes publishes a complete set of statutes ...

. I-90 is not marked with this legislative number along the actual highway.

History

I-90 in Minnesota was authorized as part of the original Interstate network in 1956. The first section of I-90 in Minnesota constructed was the bypass of Austin in 1961. The wayside rest area near Blue Earth is where the east-building I-90 and west-building I-90 teams linked up in 1978, thus completing construction in Minnesota and joining the of the Interstate. Plaques dedicating the pavement completion and describing the significance of this segment are on display at the rest area. Since being overlaid with bituminous paving in 2006, the original gold-colored cement concert line marking the completion of I-90 has been replaced with gold paint on just the shoulder portions of the roadway at the same location. I-90 in Minnesota closely follows the route of old US 16 over most of its route except from just east of Austin, where I-90 turns toward

and is constructed on a new alignment not previously covered by a highway. The section of I-90 east of Rochester was constructed just south of US 14 and south of the city of Winona. I-90 served as a replacement for old US 16 between the

state line and I-90's interchange with present-day

Minnesota State Highway 16 Minnesota State Highway 16 (MN 16) is a two-lane highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with Interstate Highway 90 in Dexter and continues east to its eastern terminus at the Wisconsin state line concurrent with U.S. H ...

(MN 16) at Dexter.

Exit list

References