U.S. Route 12 in Wisconsin
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| U.S. Highway 12 |
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| Maintained by WisDOT | |||||||||||||
| Formed: | 1926 (1917 as WIS 12) | ||||||||||||
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| West end: | Minnesota Border in Hudson | ||||||||||||
| Major junctions: |
 US 53 in Altoona I-90 in Lake Delton US 14 in Middleton US 18 in Madison I-43 in Elkhorn |
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| East end: | Illinois border in Genoa City | ||||||||||||
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In the U.S. state of Wisconsin, U.S. Route 12 (normally called U.S. Highway 12, Highway 12 or US 12) runs east-west across the western to southeast porions of the state. It enters from Minnesota (Concurrently with Interstate 94) at Hudson, and runs southeast to its eastern terminus in at the Illinois border at Genoa City.
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[edit] Hudson to Lake Delton
From Hudson to Lake Delton, U.S. 12 roughly parallels I-94, passing through Menomonie, Eau Claire, Tomah, Mauston, and Wisconsin Dells This stretch is mostly a two-lane road with the exception of the multi-lane sections through metropolitan Eau Claire (as Clairemont Ave) and the city of Wisconsin Dells and its sister city of Lake Delton where it forms the Wisconsin Dells Parkway along with WIS 23. US 12 in this area gives direct access to many of the famed Dells area attractions such as Noah's Ark.
[edit] Lake Delton to Madison
From [Lake Delton, Wisconsin|Lake Delton]] to the Madison area, the route still parallels the I-94 (cosigned with I-90) but further away. It is a two-lane road up to Sauk City which passes by Baraboo, home to the Circus World Museum. Between Baraboo and Sauk City is the Badger Army Ammunition Plant, the largest army ammunition plant of WWII. Sauk City is the home of the Culver's restaurant chain and the site of the annual State Cow Chip Throw. After Sauk City, the route is a 4-lane expressway with at-grade intersections as it passes Middleton and enters the Madison area.
[edit] Madison Beltline Highway
The road in Madison bypasses the downtown area to the west and south and is called the Beltline Highway or the West Beltline The beltline is a freeway from Middleton to I-39/90 near Cambridge. The route collects US 14 at Middleton, and US 18 and US 151 in southwestern Madison. The four routes travel concurrently for 2 miles before US 14 leaves south towards Janesville and US 151 north into downtown Madison. US 18 follows US 12 into Cambridge - where it splits to the east toward Milwaukee US 12 returns to a 2-lane road and travels southeast toward Elkhorn where it intersects with I-94. US 12 then continues to Elkhorn.
The following are a few unique features to the Beltline:
- A railroad crossing across the route near Todd Drive. It is currently abandoned with Jersey barriers isolating the road from the surrounding areas.
- A couple of ramps contain driveways into business parking lots[1]
[edit] Interchanges
| County | Location | Mile | # | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freeway ends becomes expressway with cross traffic north of this point | |||||
| Dane | Middleton | 251 |  US 14 - University Ave |
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| Madison | 252 | Greenway Blvd | |||
| 253 | Old Sauk Rd | ||||
| 254 |   CTH M, CTH S - Mineral Point Rd |
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| 255 | Gammon Rd | ||||
| 257 | Whitney Way | ||||
| 258 |   US 18, US 151 - Midvale Blvd, Verona Rd |
Westbound POV replaces the two street names with Dodgeville and places them on an added reference sign |
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| 258A | Seminole Hwy | Eastbound: entrance only; Westbound: exit only | |||
| 259 | Todd Dr | ||||
| 260A |  CTH D - Fish Hatchery Rd |
From eastbound POV | |||
| 260B |  CTH D - Fish Hatchery Rd |
From eastbound POV | |||
| 260A-B | CTH D - Fish Hatchery Rd |
From westbound POV | |||
| 261A |  US 14 - Oregon |
From eastbound POV | |||
| 261B | US 151 - Park St |
From eastbound POV | |||
| 261A-B | US 14, US 151 - Park St, Oregon |
From westbound POV | |||
| 262 | Rimrock Rd | ||||
| 263 | John Nolen Dr | ||||
| Monona | 264 | South Towne Dr | |||
| 265 | Monona Dr | ||||
| Madison | 266 |  US 51 - Stoughton Rd |
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| 267A |    I-39, I-90 - Janesville, Chicago |
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| 267B |     I-39, I-90, I-94 - Wis Dells, Milwaukee |
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| Door Creek | 272 |  CTH N - Stoughton, Cottage Grove |
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| Freeway ends - return to 2 way traffic | |||||
[edit] Southeastern WI
US 12 passes through or around Cambridge, Fort Atkinson and Whitewater as a two-lane road. It becomes a 4-lane freeway once again at a stub of a diamond interchange with WIS 67 near Elkhorn and continues as such to the Illinois border. The freeway ends at another diamond interchange stub near Genoa City and US 12 follows the crossroad to the southeast into Illinois. The freeway was built as part of a grand plan to build a freeway between Madison and Chicago, but the Illinois DOT never built its portion.[2]
[edit] Elkhorn to Genoa City section interchanges
| County | Location | Mile | # | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Freeway ends -  follows exit ramp and turns right onto  North |
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| Walworth | Elkhorn | 321A-B | US 14 - Beloit, Milwaukee |
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| 321C |  CTH NN - Elkhorn |
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| Lake Geneva | 328 |  WIS 120 - Burlington Lake Geneva |
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| 330B |   WIS 50, WIS 120 - Lake Geneva, Kenosha |
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| Pell Lake | 335 | Pell Lake Rd | |||
| Freeway ends - follows off-ramp and turns left, heading into Illinois |
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[edit] History
Coincidentally, the entire route was originally signed as WIS 12 in 1917 prior to the creation of the US highway system in 1926.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Jensen, David. Unusual Sights in and around Madison. Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved on December 25, 2006.
- ^ a b
| Preceded by Minnesota |
U.S. Route 12 Wisconsin |
Succeeded by Illinois |
