Highway 16 (Wisconsin)

State Trunk Highway 16 (often called Highway 16, STH-16 or WIS 16) is a Wisconsin state highway running from Pewaukee across the state to La Crosse, Wisconsin, La Crosse. Much of its route in the state parallels the former mainline of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, Milwaukee Road and current mainline of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Interstate 90 in Wisconsin, Interstate 90 (I-90) or Interstate 94 in Wisconsin, I-94 parallels Highway 16 for most of its length in the state. It serves local traffic in nearby cities including La Crosse, Wisconsin, La Crosse, Tomah, Wisconsin, Tomah, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Dells, Portage, Wisconsin, Portage, Columbus, Wisconsin, Columbus, Watertown, Wisconsin, Watertown, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, Oconomowoc and Waukesha, Wisconsin, Waukesha. The highway is mainly two-lane surface road or urban multi-lane expressway from La Crosse to Oconomowoc, and it is a freeway east of Oconomowoc.

Route description

WIS 16 enters from Minnesota via a connection with Minnesota State Highway 16, Trunk Highway 16 on the Mississippi River, concurrency (road), running concurrently with U.S. Route 14 in Wisconsin, US Highway 14 (US 14) and U.S. Route 61 in Wisconsin, US 61. After the two US Highways turn south to follow 3rd Street in downtown La Crosse, WIS 16 passes through La Crosse via Cass Street, 7th Street and La Crosse Street, crossing Wisconsin Highway 35, WIS 35 at La Crosse Street and Lang Drive. WIS 16 passes the northern edge of the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse campus, then turns north at Losey Boulevard.

The route then turns northeastward and junctions with Interstate 90 in Wisconsin, I-90 northeast of the city. WIS 16 becomes a parallel route to I-90 and passes through West Salem, Wisconsin, West Salem where it connects with Wisconsin Highway 108, WIS 108. Wisconsin Highway 162 junctions just north of Bangor, Wisconsin, Bangor. WIS 16 crosses into Monroe County, Wisconsin, Monroe County in Rockland, La Crosse County, Wisconsin, Rockland. WIS 16 enters Sparta, Wisconsin, Sparta and junctions with Wisconsin Highway 21, WIS 21, Wisconsin Highway 27, WIS 27, and Wisconsin Highway 71, WIS 71. WIS 16 provides access to the Elroy-Sparta State Trail, Elroy-Sparta State Bike Trail.

The route then follows I-90 very closely as a frontage road to Tomah, Wisconsin, Tomah where it junctions with Wisconsin Highway 131, WIS 131 and joins U.S. Route 12 in Wisconsin, US 12. The highways continue paralleling I-90 and Interstate 94 in Wisconsin, I-94 southeast and pass through Oakdale, Wisconsin, Oakdale and into Juneau County, Wisconsin, Juneau County.

WIS 16 and US 12 pass through Camp Douglas, Wisconsin, Camp Douglas and cross Wisconsin Highway 80, WIS 80 in New Lisbon, Wisconsin, New Lisbon. The highways then junction with Wisconsin Highway 58, WIS 58 and Wisconsin Highway 82, WIS 82 in Mauston, Wisconsin, Mauston as they continue southeast. The routes slowly trek eastward and pass through Lyndon Station, Wisconsin, Lyndon Station where Rocky Arbor State Park is located. The highways turn southeast again and crossing the Interstates and into Sauk County, Wisconsin, Sauk County and Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Dells.

WIS 16 turns east off of US 12 onto Wisconsin Highway 13, WIS 13 north and passes through downtown Wisconsin Dells and into Columbia County, Wisconsin, Columbia County. Wisconsin Highway 23, WIS 23 East also joins the highways at the same point. WIS 16 turns off from WIS 13 and WIS 23 on the east side of Wisconsin Dells and junctions with Wisconsin Highway 127, WIS 127 southeast of town. WIS 16 follows the Wisconsin River into Portage, meeting the other terminus of WIS 127 at the interchange with Interstate 39, I-39.

The highway then passes through Portage, Wisconsin, Portage, crossing Wisconsin Highway 33, WIS 33 and joining U.S. Route 51 in Wisconsin, US 51 south for . WIS 16 turns east off the US route and crosses Wisconsin Highway 22, WIS 22 in Wyocena and passes through Rio, Wisconsin, Rio, Doylestown, Wisconsin, Doylestown and Fall River, Wisconsin, Fall River. Wisconsin Highway 60, WIS 60 joins WIS 16 and together, they cross U.S. Route 151 in Wisconsin, US 151, Wisconsin Highway 73, WIS 73 and junction with Wisconsin Highway 89, WIS 89 in Columbus, Wisconsin, Columbus as they enter Dodge County, Wisconsin, Dodge County.

WIS 16 and WIS 60 turn east and pass through the unincorporated town of Astico and Lowell, Wisconsin, Lowell. WIS 16 leaves WIS 60 and joins WIS 26 at the junction of the two highways in Clyman, Wisconsin, Clyman. WIS 16 leaves WIS 26 and bypasses Watertown to the north and east and into Jefferson County, Wisconsin, Jefferson County. Wisconsin Highway 19, WIS 19 terminates on WIS 16 east of Watertown.

WIS 16 passes around Ixonia, Wisconsin, Ixonia, becomes an expressway, and enters Waukesha County, Wisconsin, Waukesha County along a bypass of Oconomowoc. Wisconsin Highway 67, WIS 67 joins the expressway north of Oconomowoc. WIS 16 turns east onto the freeway segment and passes into Hartland, Wisconsin, Hartland, crossing Wisconsin Highway 83, WIS 83 there. Wisconsin Highway 190, WIS 190, also known as Capitol Drive, terminates at WIS 16 as the freeway turns south in Pewaukee. WIS 16 ends at a flyover Interchange (road), interchange and its traffic merges onto I-94 east near Waukesha.

History

In 1918, today's alignment of WIS 16 was WIS 21 from La Crosse to New Lisbon, along with WIS 12 east of Tomah. The route from Kilbourn (Wisconsin Dells) to Clyman was Wisconsin Highway 29, WIS 29. WIS 26 followed its current alignment to Watertown and the route from Watertown to Waukesha was WIS 19. Wisconsin Highway 29, WIS 29 was extended westward to La Crosse when WIS 21 was truncated back to north of New Lisbon. When the U.S. Routes debuted in 1926, WIS 29 was removed from the books as the entire alignment was replaced by U.S. Route 16, US 16. WIS 19 was truncated back to its current terminus.

The current eastern terminus of WIS 16 was the site of the dedication ceremonies for the first completed segment of Interstate 94 in Wisconsin. The segment was opened on September 4, 1958. The first major interchange on the new Interstate was originally where US 16 turned north towards Pewaukee and Wisconsin Highway 30, WIS 30 continued west with Interstate 94, I-94. The section of US 16 between the interchange outside of Waukesha, Wisconsin, Waukesha and downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Milwaukee was truncated at the interchange in the 1960s. US 16's designation was removed from the route and replaced with the current WIS 16 in 1978.

The original WIS 16 followed Wisconsin Highway 29, present day WIS 29 from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, Chippewa Falls to Green Bay, Wisconsin, Green Bay via Wausau, Wisconsin, Wausau and Shawano, Wisconsin, Shawano. The route then followed a route that would become U.S. Route 141 in Wisconsin, US 141 to Manitowoc, Wisconsin, Manitowoc where it ended at then WIS 17 (present day Wisconsin Highway 42, WIS 42).

Oconomowoc bypass

The alignment of the eastern section of Highway 16 changed in late 2006 when the rest of the Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, Oconomowoc bypass was opened to traffic. The four-lane, limited access divided highway routes Highway 16 around Lac La Belle on the west side of the city, meeting up with Highway 67 (Wisconsin), Highway 67 north of downtown. Eventually, the bypass will result in the removal of the state highway designation from Wisconsin Avenue through downtown Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, Oconomowoc.

The signs for Highway 16 through downtown Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, Oconomowoc have not yet been changed, due to the reconstruction of Wisconsin Avenue through the downtown area during the summer of 2008. As of November 2008, Oconomowoc officials and WisDOT had not yet set a firm date for the jurisdictional transfer, though it was likely that it will be done by the summer of 2009.

Currently, the limited-access highway around Oconomowoc is designated as Wisconsin Highway 16 on signage. Some signage, especially the signs located at the end of the freeway segment on West Highway 16 when a right turn must be made to continue on the bypass, say Bypass West Wisconsin Highway 16.

Major intersections

Related routes

Watertown business loop

Business State Trunk Highway 16 (Bus. WIS 16) follows a former alignment of US 16 through downtown Watertown, Wisconsin, Watertown. The route travels south along Wisconsin Highway 26 Business (Watertown), Bus. WIS 26 (North Church Street) and east along Wisconsin Highway 19, WIS 19 (Main Street). It was created as Business U.S. Highway 16 (Bus. US 16) in 1961, when US 16 was re-routed onto a bypass of Watertown.

See also

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References

External links

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Wisconsin Highway 16 at StateTrunkTour.com

State highways in Wisconsin, 016
U.S. Route 16, Wisconsin
Freeways in the Milwaukee area
Transportation in La Crosse County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Monroe County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Juneau County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Sauk County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Columbia County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Dodge County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Jefferson County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Waukesha County, Wisconsin