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Standard Minnesota Route shield, 1960s-present
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Trunk Highway X (TH X or MN X)
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Interstate X (I-X)
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US Highway X (US X)
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The organized system of (typically abbreviated as '''TH''' or '''MN''', and called '''Trunk Highways'''), the
State Highway system for the
U.S. State of
Minnesota , was created in
1920 under the "Babcock Amendment" to the state
Constitution .
2 No real pattern exists for the numbering of highways. Route commissioning beyond these routes was by legislative action, thus the term legislative route. This included additions and revisions that took place when
U.S. and
Interstate routes were commissioned.
Minnesota State Highway markers use Type D FHWA font for all route numbers and type C for three digit route markers only if type D font cannot be used. All routes except Interstate routes use 24 inch x 24 inch or 36 inch x 36 inch markers. Interstate markers for 3d routes are wider shields (24 inch x 30 inch or 36 inch x 45 inch).
3
Although
Minnesota state highways do not follow a distinctive pattern in numbering, they are numbered to avoid conflicting with
Interstate Highway s and
U.S. Highway s. Any instance of a state number that matches one is often a "Continuation" of the particular route (for example U.S. Route 169 and TH-169).
Mn/DOT does not consider this a violation of the rule.
4
There are also routes officially numbered in the 800s and 900s, but they do not have signage. Examples include part of the Sibley Memorial Highway that was bypassed in Mendota in the mid 1990s (Highway 913A, numbered for former designation MN-13), and Robert Street between I-494 and University Ave in St. Paul and West St. Paul (Highway 952, numbered for former designation US-52).
Other roads under Minnesota jurisdiction include the Minnesota 371 Business Route, which follows the former route of MN-371 through
Brainerd . Minnesota State Highway 23 also has a designated Business Route through the city of
Willmar (as MN-23 is bypassed around the city), but unlike Business MN-371, Business MN-23 is under local jurisdiction.
Legislative Route s defined in the
Minnesota Constitution were signed until 1934, when many were renumbered. Several routes, like
U.S. Highway 208 , were planned in the
1934 Renumbering but eliminated before the final plan.
