Minnesota State Highway 121 (MN 121) is a short

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

stub 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 ...

. It is less than one mile (1.6 km) in length. MN 121 runs between Interstate Highway 35W in Richfield and Lyndale Avenue South (CSAH 22) in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

where it intersects West 58th Street. There was one interchange leading to westbound MN 62, but this has been reconfigured from a freeway-to-freeway configuration into a half-trumpet configuration with signals on MN 121.

Route description

MN 121 serves as a freeway connector stub on the Minneapolis / Richfield boundary line. The short route connects I-35W, MN 62, and Lyndale Avenue in South Minneapolis. The route is located in

Hennepin County Hennepin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its county seat is Minneapolis, the state's most populous city. The county is named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. The county extends from Minneapol ...

. When traveling on I-35W northbound in Richfield, MN 121 is accessed by the "Highway 62 west / 58th Street" exit. 58th Street is then followed.

History

Before

I-35W Interstate 35W may refer to: * Interstate 35W (Texas), an Interstate highway serving Fort Worth, Texas, and its suburbs * Interstate 35W (Minnesota), a Interstate highway serving Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its suburbs **The I-35W Mississippi Riv ...

was completed to downtown Minneapolis, old U.S. Highway 65 briefly took this stub (present day MN 121) to rejoin its old alignment on Lyndale Avenue South. A 1961 road map shows I-35W separating from Lyndale Avenue South at about 58th Street, then continuing south along its present alignment in Richfield and south into Bloomington. MN 121 was designated on its current alignment in 1979 after I-35W was built along the Crosstown ( MN 62) and along 2nd Avenue South going into downtown.

Early history

Prior to 1979, MN 121 was routed on different alignments on various surface streets in South Minneapolis. The first alignment of MN 121 on France Avenue South was signed in 1935 between 50th Street northbound to Excelsior Boulevard. The route alignment of MN 121 was changed in 1957, 1969, 1979, and 1988. The surface streets that MN 121 had followed throughout these years included France Avenue South, 50th Street, Lyndale Avenue South, and 46th Street. All are now county-marked routes.

Major intersections

References

{{Reflist 121 State highways in the United States shorter than one mile Transportation in Hennepin County, Minnesota Freeways in the United States U.S. Route 65