Interstate 90 travels across southwestern reaches of Wisconsin from La Crosse to Beloit. The freeway spans the Mississippi River across the Dresbach Bridge. Built in 1967, the 2,497-foot long steel girder bridge was replaced with a new pair of 2,593 foot long concrete box girder bridges as part of a $187.5 million project. The new eastbound bridge opened to traffic in November 2015 and the westbound span was completed in mid Summer 2016.1
East from the Dresbach Bridge, I-90 crosses the urban area of La Cross and Onalaska to Exit 5 before transitioning into a rural freeway along the hills south of the La Cross River. The 45 mile long stretch east from Minnesota culminates at a directional T interchange with Interstate 94 outside Tomah.
I-90/94 overlap from Tomah to Madison along a rural corridor southeast to New Lisbon, Mauston, Wisconsin Dells and Columbia County. Exit numbers along this stretch reference the I-90 mileage from Minnesota. Interstate 39 ties into the pair at Exit 108 with Wis 78 from Portage. The three routes overlap southward from there to Madison, where I-94 turns east to Milwaukee. I-39/90 continues south from the capital city area to Janesville, Beloit and the Jane Addams Memorial (Northwest) Tollway south to Rockford, Illinois.
Interstate 90 Wisconsin Guides
The 45 mile long section of I-39/90 between the Illinois state line and U.S. 12/18 at Madison was constructed in the early 1960s. The I-39/90 Expansion Project underway through 2021 reconstructs the freeway and expands it to six or eight overall lanes while redesigning 11 interchanges. Design work on the project started in November 2011, with public information meetings held throughout 2012. Work commenced in 2013 at the interchange with Wis 11 and Racine Street, while additional public information meetings were held for both the system interchange at I-43 / Wis 81 and the U.S. 12/18 Freeway Conversion Study. Work ramped up in 2015 with construction underway at interchanges with County S (Shopiere Road), Wis 59 near Newville and U.S. 51/Wis 73 near Edgerton. 2016 work included reconfiguring the interchanges with Wis 11 at Exit 177 and U.S. 51 at Exit 156.
http://www.dot.state.mn.us/dresbachbridge/Minnesota Department of Transportation, project web page.
Connect with:
Interstate 39
Interstate 43
Interstate 94
U.S. 18
U.S. 151
Page Updated 04-27-2016.