Minnesota State Highway 252 (MN 252) is a state highway 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 ...

, which runs from its interchange with Interstate 94 (I-94),

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 I-94, I-494, and US H ...

and US Highway 52 (US 52) in

Brooklyn Center Brooklyn Center is a first-ring suburban city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. In 1911, the area became a village formed from parts of Brooklyn Township and Crystal Lake Township. I ...

and continues north to its northern terminus at its interchange with MN 610 in Brooklyn Park. MN 252 generally follows not far from the west bank of the

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 ...

throughout its route.

Route description

MN 252 serves as a north–south highway in suburban

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 Minneapo ...

between

and Brooklyn Park. The route is heavily stoplighted and has a posted speed limit. MN 252 is built as an

expressway Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. * Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road. *Expressway, the fictional s ...

with access limited to signalized intersections and interchanges only. MN 252, together with MN 610, serves as a connection between the northern suburbs and I-94/ US 52 towards downtown

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 ...

. The route is built as a six-lane expressway from I-94/

/US 52 to 73rd Avenue North. The route is built as a four-lane expressway from 73rd Avenue North to its junction with MN 610. The highway is one of the most traveled highways in the state that still has traffic signals; and for which interchanges are not immediately planned. MN 252 near its junction with I-94/I-694/US 52 in Brooklyn Center, carries 70,000 vehicles a day as of 2006. Legally, MN 252 is defined as part of 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, ...

110 in the Minnesota Statutes. Highway 252 is not marked with this legislative number along the actual highway.

History

MN 252 was marked in the late 1970s. Previously, this was the old routing of US 169 between downtown

and the present day suburb of Champlin. Old US 169 had followed Lyndale Avenue North out of downtown Minneapolis and proceeded northbound to a junction with old US 52 (now US 169) in Champlin. US 169 was rerouted west of that position in the late 1970s, and this route was then renumbered MN 252. After intersecting MN 610 was built, and as part of the 1988 highway swap, the portion of MN 252 north of MN 610 was turned back to

maintenance and renumbered County Road 12. MN 252 was built to

standards in the mid 1980s. The intersection of MN 252 and 85th Avenue North in Brooklyn Park is particularly dangerous for pedestrians to cross. In 1999, an 11-year-old girl, Kara Kavanagh, was struck by a car and killed at the intersection, sparking renewed debate about building a pedestrian bridge in that location. In 2004, a pedestrian bridge was finally built in this location, and dedicated to Kara Kavanagh.

Major intersections

References

External links

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252 Year 252 ( CCLII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Trebonianus and Volusianus (or, less frequently, year 1005 '' Ab urb ...

Transportation in Hennepin County, Minnesota U.S. Route 169