State Trunk Highway 54

Wisconsin State Trunk Highway 54

State Trunk Highway 54 traverses the width of Wisconsin between the Mississippi River, across from Winona, Minnesota, to Algoma on the shore of Lake Michigan. 243 miles in length, STH-54 mostly travels through rural areas. Through western reaches of the state, STH-54 joins the Jackson County seat of Black River Falls with Wisconsin Rapids in Wood County. Within Wisconsin Rapids, STH-54 joins STH-73 and STH-13 to encircle the city while expanding to four lanes.

East from Wood County, STH-54 upgrades to an expressway through the city of Plover. There the state trunk highway turns southeast alongside U.S. 51 Business. Beyond the exchange with I-39, STH-54 leads directly to Green Bay, but along a slow moving route compared to the U.S. 10 expressway to Appleton and Interstate 41 north to Ashwaubenon.

Within Green Bay, STH-54 travels along Mason Street, which includes a mile long freeway segment just south of Downtown. The elevated roadway spans a busy railroad and includes a draw bridge across the Fox River. The movable span is high enough so that it opens only for large ships, while the other two Downtown bridges are lower with more frequent openings. Traffic along the adjacent Walnut and Doushman Street bridges is also slowed by the at-grade railroad crossings.

STH-54 combines with STH-57 along an L-shaped route along Monroe Avenue and University Avenue through the central business district. The two highways overlap east to Interstate 43, where they upgrade into a freeway by the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. STH-57 follows an expressway northeast to Door County while STH-54 resumes an eastward heading along a rural route to Luxemburg and STH-42 at Algoma.

State Trunk Highway 54 Guides

References:

  1. "Gov. Walker approves funding for the Mason Street Bridge in Green Bay" Fox11News, August 24, 2014.

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Page Updated Thursday April 07, 2016.