U.S. Route 212 in Minnesota

U.S. Highway 212
Minnesota Veterans Memorial Highway Yellowstone Trail
US 212 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by MnDOT
Length	161.787 mi[1] (260.371 km)
Existed	1926–present
Tourist routes	Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway
Major junctions
West end	US 212 at South Dakota state line
Major intersections	US 59 at Montevideo MN 23 / MN 67 at Granite Falls US 71 at Olivia MN 22 at Glencoe MN 5 at Norwood Young America MN 41 at Chaska I-494 / MN 5 at Eden Prairie
East end	US 169 / MN 62 at Edina
Location
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Counties	Lac qui Parle, Chippewa, Yellow Medicine, Renville, McLeod, Carver, Hennepin
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided Minnesota Trunk Highway System Interstate US State Legislative Scenic
← MN 210 → MN 217

U.S. Highway 212 (US 212) within the state of Minnesota travels from the South Dakota state line in the west, crosses the southwestern part of the state, to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in the east and end at its interchange with US 169 and State Highway 62 (MN 62) in the Minneapolis suburb of Edina. US 212 in Minnesota has an official length of 161.8 miles (260.4 km). It is an urban freeway within the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area and is mostly a two-lane rural road elsewhere in the state.

Prior to the establishment of the United States Numbered Highway System, most of the US 212 corridor in Minnesota was part the transcontinental auto trail known as the Yellowstone Trail, which was established in 1917. US 212 was established in 1926 but originally terminated at US 12 in the city of Willmar from 1926 to 1934. US 212 was shifted to its current alignment around 1934, continuing slightly east of its current terminus to end at then US 12 in Saint Paul until 1982, when US 212 was truncated to Edina. In 2008, the Twin Cities portion of US 212 was relocated to a new freeway (formerly designated as State Highway 312 from 2003 to 2008).

US 212 in Minnesota did not terminate at its eastern point at MN 62 in Edina. It continued easterly through St. Paul, through Lake Elmo and terminated in Stillwater near the Wisconsin state line.