U.S. Bicycle Route System

Mn/DOT is in the conceptual stage of developing routes through Minnesota to be a part of the U.S. Bicycle Route System.

• The U.S. Bicycle Route System is a proposed national network of bicycle routes. For a route to be officially designated a U.S. Bicycle Route, it must connect two or more states, a state and an international border, or other U.S. Bicycle Routes. U.S. Bicycle Routes are intended to link urban, suburban, and rural areas using a variety of appropriate facilities. These routes are nominated for numbered designation by State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) and are catalogued by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) through the Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (the same committee that assigns numbers to U.S. highways and interstates).
• Mn/DOT is still in the conceptual phase for how to designate routes through Minnesota as U.S. Bicycle Routes, but staff has been meeting with Ginny Sullivan, the U.S. Bicycle Routes Coordinator from Adventure Cycling. She wrote about her recent visit to Minnesota on the U.S. Bicycle Route System Blog.
• Once the Mississippi River Trail is fully developed, it will be the first candidate for a U.S. Bicycle Route to be designated in Minnesota.