Business routes of Interstate 94
There are 19 business routes of Interstate 94 (I-94) in the United States. These business routes connect the downtown business districts of cities to the freeway along Interstate 94.
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Montana
There are five business routes in Montana for Hysham, Forsyth, Miles City, Glendive and Wibaux.
Hysham business spur
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| Location | Hysham |
A former Interstate 94 Business Spur (BS 94) ran along "Old US Highway 312," and Buford Street from Exits 67 on Interstate 94 in Montana and Montana Secondary Highway 311 in Hysham, Montana.
Forsyth business loop
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| Location | Forsyth |
The former Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Forsyth ran from Exits 93 at U.S. Route 12 then onto "Old Highway 10" (a.k.a.; Front Street) along the north side of Interstate 94 in Montana, and then onto 18th Avenue to end at Exit 95.
Miles City business loop
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| Location | Miles City |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Miles City runs from Exits 135 and 141 on I-94. It consists of Main Street, Valley Drive East and a former segment of US 12.
BL 94 in Miles City begins at a trumpet interchange with I-94 and heads northeast where it passes by the Miles City State Fish Hatchery. The road continues in the same direction as it climbs a bridge over a former Northern Pacific Railroad line, until it turns more to the east, running between the Range Riders Museum and the Miles City Fairground. The route doesn't officially enter the city limits until it crosses a bridge over the Tongue River, and even then cuts between Riverside Park before running through the Main Street Historic District, which begins at Fourth Street and includes an intersection with Seventh Avenue where it encounters Montana Highway 59, and that route joins it in a concurrency. The historic district ends just before the bridge under the same Northern Pacific Railroad line, and then turns left onto Valley Drive East, while MT-59 continues east along Main Street.
Along this segment, BL 94 flanks the east side of that former NP line and serves as the terminus of numerous local streets, except for Leighton Boulevard. North of the intersection of Haynes Avenue, BL 94 turns right onto a former segment of US 12, while Valley Road East continues to the northeast flanking that former NP line. From there, the road passes by a truck weigh station next to a self-storage facility, but continues to run relatively east mostly through local farmland. After passing by a local RV park, BL 94 ends at a diamond interchange with I-94 and the road continues onto U.S. Route 12 in Montana towards Baker and through the North Dakota State Line.
Glendive business loop
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| Location | Glendive |
Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Glendive runs between exits 210 and 215 on I-94. It includes West Towne Street and North Merrill Avenue, both of which are former segments of US 10.
BL 94 begins at an unorthodox trumpet interchange known as Exit 210 south of West Glendive, and branches off to an upper right angle along West Towne Street. North of the interchange, the route is mostly a four-lane undivided highway with a center-left turn lane, except at the bridge over the Upper Seven Mile Creek, where it briefly becomes a four-lane divided highway. From there it passes by a pair of agriculture-related factories. Though signs on I-94 direct motorists to MT 200S, the road does not encounter that route until Alder Avenue in West Glendive, north of a parallel railroad crossing. Dividing again at another bridge over Dry Creek, the route begins to curve to the east, the road starts to run along the north side of some parkland, which also borders a former section of the road named Crisafulli Drive just before approaching the southern terminus of MT 16 and immediately crosses a railroad line on the border of West Glenside and Glendive.
The road narrows down from four lanes with a center left-turn lane to two lanes before crossing the bridge over the Yellowstone River and at the intersection of River Avenue and Douglas Street enters the Merrill Avenue Historic District. West Towne Street ends at Merrill Avenue where South Merrill Avenue is marked as S-335, while BL 94/MT 200S makes a sharp north turn onto North Merrill Avenue. Two blocks later at Clement Street, the historic district fades away within the vicinity of a former Northern Pacific Railway station now owned by Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway. Some BNSF related buildings can be found north of there before the route passes by the chamber of commerce along the tracks, and later across from that, the grounds of Dawson County High School. North of that point, the surroundings become slightly more rural. BL 94 and MT 200S end at the diamond interchange with I-94 known as exit 215, while North Merrill Avenue continues as a local street, with an immediate intersection of a road leading to the Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum and Frontier Gateway Museum.
Wibaux business loop
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| Location | Wibaux |
The former Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Wibaux ran from Exit 241 on I-94 at S-261. The interchange is a half-diamond interchange with an eastbound only off-ramp and westbound only on-ramp. South of there, the route then turned onto "Old Highway 10" (Second Avenue) in the middle of the city, and then onto Montana Highway 7 which joins the former route from North Wibaux Street as they cross a bridge over the Beaver Creek. A rest area for I-94 can be found on the southwest corner of Second Avenue and Log Cabin Road, which is only accessible from Second Avenue. The former BL 94 and MT-7 make a left turn onto Log Cabin Road and both routes end at Exit 242 on I-94, which is another half-diamond interchange that in this case has only a westbound off-ramp and eastbound on-ramp. Due to the fact that the rest area extends as far north as the embankment on the southwest corner of the bridge, it obstructs any potential conversion into a full interchange if the Montana Department of Transportation were to decide to make such a conversion.
North Dakota and Minnesota
There are five business routes wholly in North Dakota with a sixth that crosses into Minnesota. They connect to Medora, Dickinson, Mandan–Bismarck, North Dakota, Jamestown, Valley City in North Dakota and the border cities of Fargo and Moorhead, Minnesota.
Medora business loop
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| Location | Medora |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Medora, North Dakota runs from Exits 24 to 27 on I-94 within the Theodore Roosevelt National Park; South Unit. Named "Pacific Street," BL 94 is the main road through Medora.
BL 94 begins at a quarter-cloverleaf interchange with I-94 on the southwest banks of the Little Missouri River. After crossing a bridge over a tributary of that river named Andrew's Creek, it runs southeast as it follows the northeastern edge of a former Northern Pacific Railway line. Simultaneously the "Maah Daah Hey Trail" runs along the opposite side of the road. After the entrance to the Medora Camp Grounds, and the Chateau De Mores Visitor Center, BL 94 crosses its own bridge over the Little Missouri River and enters "downtown" Medora. Various Western-themed structures and tourist attractions can be found within the community. East of 6th Street BL 94/Pacific Street begins to curve away from the railroad line towards the northeast. BL 94 ends at a flyover ramp on I-94 (Exit 27), but only for eastbound traffic re-entering the interstate and westbound traffic leaving the interstate.
Dickinson business loop
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| Location | Dickinson |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Dickinson runs from Exits 59 to 64 on I-94. It consists of 30th Avenue West, Villard Street, and 36th Street Southwest.
BL 94 begins at a diamond interchange with 30th Avenue West and runs south-southeast then passes by housing developments built only within the 2010s as it curves toward the east approaching Villard Street (Old Highway 10, now Stark CR 10). Almost immediately after the route moves onto Villard Street it approaches a signalized intersection with State Avenue, the southern end of which is North Dakota Truck Route 22. BL 94 and ND 22 Truck overlap until reaching the next signalized intersection, North Dakota Highway 22 (Third Avenue) itself. At 10th Avenue East, BL 94 leaves Villard Street and shifts onto 36th Street Southwest, which is signed as "I-94 Business" along street name signs. This segment runs northeast mainly passing car dealerships, truck dealerships, RV dealerships, farm equipment dealerships, trailer dealerships and other local industries. BL 94 ends at another diamond interchange, specifically Exit 64 on I-94, but 36th Street Southwest continues to run along the far north side of I-94.
Mandan–Bismarck business loop
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| Location | Mandan–Bismarck |
| Length | 17.4 mi (28.0 km) |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for both Mandan and Bismarck runs from exit 147 west of Mandan to exit 161 in Bismarck.
The route begins at exit 147, a diamond interchange with North Dakota Highway 25 (ND 25) in Mandan and runs south from that interchange to an intersection with Morton County Road 139 (CR 139, formerly US 10), where it turns southeast.[1] Continuing over the hills of North Dakota, it approaches the north side of a former Northern Pacific Railway line now owned by Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway and both the road and railway cross bridges over the Heart River, as the eventually enter the unincorporated community of Sunny.[2] The route crosses a second bridge over the Heart River, where it officially enters Mandan and becomes West Main Street. The first signalized intersection in the city is with the northern terminus of ND 6 at the intersection with 10th Avenue Northwest. West Main Street becomes East Main Street at Collins Avenue, where BL 94 merges to run concurrently with ND 1806, which ends at Sixth Avenue Southeast, and is also replaced by an overlap with the Lewis and Clark Trail. At Mandan Avenue, the Lewis and Clark Trail turns north, and East Main Street heads to exit 155 on I-94, but BL 94 turns southeast again onto Memorial Highway, crossing under and then running along the south side of that same former NP Railway Line. The line curves east away from the road just before the intersection with 32nd Avenue Southeast across from that, then BL 94 curves to the east as it approaches an unorthodox interchange with I-194 before it crosses the new Liberty Memorial Bridge over the Missouri River to enter Bismarck.[3]
On the east side of this bridge, Memorial Highway turns south across from the intersection with Frannie Barracks Road, and BL 94 smoothly moves onto West Main Avenue. After a pedestrian bridge, the route encounter a bridge for the same former NP Line just before an at-grade interchange with West Rosser Avenue, and turns southeast as it runs along the north side of those tracks once again. The road and the tracks turn east again at Washington Street. At North First Street, West First Avenue becomes East First Avenue across from Camp Hancock State Historic Site Further in town, the road continues not only to run along that old NP line but even the beginning of a former Soo Line Railroad line,[4] now owned by Canadian Pacific Railway.[5] That line has a spur leading to a grade crossing between East 24th and 26th Streets. The road curves slightly to the southeast then the northeast as it encounters another Soo Line spur west of Eastdale Avenue. The northeastward curve of the road almost ends just before BL 94 turns north onto the "East Bismarck Expressway." BL 94 ends at exit 161, another diamond interchange on I-94/US 83, then turns into a local street named Centennial Road.
Jamestown business loop
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| Location | Jamestown |
Until April 7, 2004, Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) existed within Jamestown between Exits 257 and 260. It consisted of 17th Street Southwest, U.S. Route 281, U.S. Route 52, 10th Street Southeast, 12th Avenue Southeast and Business Loop East.
Valley City business loop
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| Location | Valley City |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Valley City runs from Exits 290 to 294 on I-94/US 52. It is also concurrent with US 10 and 52 Business. The route begins at exit 290, a half-diamond/quarter-cloverleaf interchange. More specifically it the eastbound lanes have half the diamond interchange onto CR 19 (24th Avenue Southwest), while the westbound lanes contain an elongated right-in/right-out ramps onto Main Street west of the bridge over CR 19. The two segments of BL 94 intersect with one another and run eastbound along Main Street, which contains a flanking frontage road along the south side. It curves to the northeast almost immediately after the intersection with CR 18 and the frontage road becomes a dead end just south of 4th Street West. From Ninth Avenue West to Seventh Avenue West, Main Street curves back to straight east again, but in between at Eighth Avenue, the routes are joined by another overlap, specifically with CR 21. East of Fifth Avenue West, BL 94/US 10 BUS/US 52 BUS/CR 21 curves around the edge of the Sheyenne River, just south of the former Northern Pacific Railway station (now the "Rosebud Visitors Center"), then resumes its previous trajectory.
The overlap with CR 21 ends at Central Avenue, where that route turns north, and downtown Valley City begins to fade away at the intersection with Sixth Avenue Northeast, where it passes a trailer park just before encountering the Sheyenne River again at the Rainbow Arch Bridge. East of the bridge, the surroundings are less urban, but not entirely undeveloped, until the road curves to the southeast. Just after the intersection with Seventh Street Southeast and "Old 10," BL 94/US BUS 10/US BUS 52 ends at exit 294, a diamond interchange that replaced a former wye interchange located east of the former Northern Pacific Railway and Soo Line bridges on I-94 east of the current interchange.[6]
Fargo–Moorhead business loop
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| Location | Fargo–Moorhead |
The Interstate 94 Business Loop (BL 94) for Fargo, North Dakota and Moorhead, Minnesota is the only I-94 Business Route that runs between two states. It actually begins at Exit 343 on Interstate 94 in North Dakota/U.S. Route 52 in North Dakota in Mapleton Township, and runs on Main Avenue through West Fargo and Fargo. Upon crossing the Red River of the North into Moorhead, Minnesota, BL 94 continues on Main Avenue until reaching 24th Avenue South, at which point it turns east over to 34th Street South. The route then turns south and ends at Exit 2B on Interstate 94 in Minnesota/U.S. Route 52 in Minnesota in Moorhead, Minnesota. The route is concurrent with U.S. Route 10 in both states, but in Moorhead, US 10 makes a left turn at U.S. Route 75 in Minnesota for one block north.
Michigan
There are eight business loops in Michigan. They connect Benton Harbor–St. Joseph, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Marshall, Albion, Jackson, Ann Arbor and Port Huron to the freeway mainline.[7]
See also
References
- Morton County Road and Street Map Number 1 (NDDOT)
- Sunny and Mandan, North Dakota, 1964 (Historic Aerials Online)
- Destruction of the Memorial Bridge Bismarck-Mandan, N.D. (YouTube; shlockmuh9)
- Bismarck, North Dakota, 1964 (Historic Aerials Online)
- Bismarck City Road Map (NDDOT)
- East Valley City Interchange (Topozone)
- Michigan Department of Transportation (2015). Pure Michigan: State Transportation Map (Map). c. 1:975,000. Lansing: Michigan Department of Transportation. §§ N7–K14. OCLC 42778335, 900162490.