Wisconsin Highway 145
This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2024) |
WIS 145 highlighted in red | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by WisDOT | ||||
Length | 24.7 mi[1] (39.8 km) | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | ![]() | |||
North end | ![]() | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | Wisconsin | |||
Counties | Milwaukee, Waukesha, Washington | |||
Highway system | ||||
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State Trunk Highway 145 (STH-145, commonly known as Highway 145 or WIS 145) is a 24.7-mile (39.8 km) state highway in Milwaukee, Waukesha, and Washington counties in Wisconsin, United States, that connects the northwest suburbs of Milwaukee with the city's downtown. For much of its route, the highway is known as Fond du Lac Avenue.
Route description
[edit]Up until the fall of 2009, WIS 145's northern terminus was at the freeway interchange with US Highway 41 (US 41) in Richfield. A project involving the construction of five roundabouts in a less than one mile span has truncated the highway's northern terminus to the freeway interchange with US-45, with the stretch of roundabouts between US-41 and US-45 now designated as County Trunk Highway FD (CTH-FD). WIS 145 travels generally southeast through Germantown as a secondary highway. Upon reaching Menomonee Falls, the road expands into a four-lane boulevard for just over one mile (1.6 km), straddling the Waukesha–Milwaukee county line before intersecting with US 41/US 45 again.
At this point, the road heads into the city limits of Milwaukee and becomes a freeway, officially known as the Fond du Lac Freeway, though this term is rarely used locally. Although it was originally planned to continue into the heart of downtown, the freeway ends after just under five miles (8.0 km) at which point it intersects with 68th Street and Hampton Avenue. WIS 145 continues as Fond du Lac Avenue into downtown. It is a four-lane boulevard until Burleigh Street, at which point it becomes a four-lane urban arterial. It becomes a four-lane boulevard again at 20th Street until its intersection with Sixth Street. A major interchange at Interstate 43 (I-43) is just past the intersection with Walnut Street. WIS 145 turns south onto Sixth Street before terminating at the intersection with US 18 (Wells Street), adjacent to the Wisconsin Center.
History
[edit]WIS 145 was once also a part of the Park East Freeway, a short spur running east from its intersection with I-43, over the Milwaukee River before terminating at Broadway and Milwaukee Street at East Knapp Street. The freeway was demolished between 2002 and 2003, with the replacement surface streets not complete until 2006.[2]
Fond du Lac Freeway extension
[edit]Originally, the freeway portion of WIS 145 was to extend further southeast and there was to be a major interchange located near the intersection of W. Lisbon Road and W. North Avenue, connecting the Fond du Lac with the proposed extension of the Stadium Freeway and the proposed Bay Freeway. This was never built.[citation needed]
In October 1975, Milwaukee County Executive John Doyne proposed connecting this freeway with the Stadium North stub end, existing four miles (6.4 km) to the south. While this gap closure has not been built to date due to public opposition, the current state trunk highway map shows a freeway planned for this corridor.[citation needed]
Major intersections
[edit]County | Location | mi | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Milwaukee | Milwaukee | 0.0 | 0.0 | ![]() | Southern terminus | |
0.9 | 1.4 | ![]() | Exit 72A on I-43 | |||
1.6 | 2.6 | ![]() ![]() | Southeastern end of WIS 57 concurrency | |||
1.8 | 2.9 | ![]() ![]() | Northwestern end of WIS 57 concurrency | |||
4.7 | 7.6 | ![]() | ||||
6.3 | 10.1 | Fond du Lac Avenue | Southeastern end of freeway | |||
6.7 | 10.8 | 7A | Grantosa Avenue, Villard Avenue | Southbound exit and northbound entrance only | ||
7.0 | 11.3 | 7B | ![]() | |||
7.4 | 11.9 | 8 | Silver Spring Drive | Northbound exit to eastbound only; southbound exit to westbound only | ||
8.4 | 13.5 | 9 | 91st Street | |||
9.2 | 14.8 | 10A | Green Tree Road, 102nd Street | Southbound entrance and northbound exit only | ||
9.7 | 15.6 | 10B | 107th Street, Good Hope Road, Fond du Lac Ave | Signed for Good Hope Road northbound only; signed for Fond du Lac Avenue southbound only | ||
10 | 16 | 10C | Park Place | |||
11.3 | 18.2 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Exit 47B on US 41/US 45/WIS 100 | |||
Waukesha | Menomonee Falls | 12.7 | 20.4 | ![]() | ||
Washington | Village of Germantown | 16.5 | 26.6 | ![]() ![]() | Eastern end of WIS 167 concurrency | |
16.8 | 27.0 | ![]() ![]() | Western end of WIS 167 concurrency | |||
Richfield | 23.2 | 37.3 | ![]() | Exit 60 on US 45 | ||
23.7 | 38.1 | ![]() ![]() | Exit 60 on US 41 | |||
24.7 | 39.8 | ![]() | Northern terminus | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Bessert, Christopher J. (October 21, 2016). "Highways 140–149". Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ Bessert, Christopher J. "Milwaukee Freeways: Park Freeway". Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved July 23, 2006.
External links
[edit]![](http://178.128.105.246/cars-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- WIS 145 Terminus Photos
- Wisconsin Highways: Milwaukee Freeways: Fond du Lac Freeway, Christopher Bessert