State Trunk Highway 15 (STH-15, commonly known as Highway 15 or WIS 15) is a 14.8-mile (23.8 km)state highway in Outagamie County in the US state of Wisconsin that runs east–west and provides a shortcut to Appleton from U.S. Highway 45 (US 45) for travelers inbound from points north and west. Most of WIS 15 was once part of US 45, which was redirected south of New London to bypass Appleton and provide direct access to Oshkosh and points south.
 State Trunk Highway 15 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 WIS-15 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by WisDOT | ||||
| Length | 14.8 mi[1] (23.8 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  US 45 southeast of New London | |||
 WIS 76 in Greenville | ||||
| East end |    I-41 / US 41 / CTH-OO northwest of Appleton | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Wisconsin | |||
| Counties | Outagamie | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Route description
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WIS 15 begins at the junction of US 45 and County Trunk Highway T (CTH-T) in the Town of Hortonia (just southeast of New London) as a two-lane road and heads southeast to Hortonville. The route then continues southeast into Greenville where it becomes a multilane expressway just northwest of the unincorporated community. The highway intersects WIS 76 in Greenville then continues southeast for one mile (one point six kilometres) before turning east at the junction with CTH-CB. WIS 15 then junctions with US 41 where it ends and Northland Avenue and CTH-OO begins in the Town of Grand Chute, just northwest of Appleton. The route between US 45 and Industrial Park Avenue west of Hortonville and from Greendale Road east of Hortonville to Julius Drive west of Greenville now has centerline rumble strips.[2] WIS 15 provides access to Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium.[3]
History
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This is the third iteration of the route number. The first iteration followed present day US 41 from the Illinois border to Marinette via Milwaukee, Fond du Lac, Appleton and Green Bay. The second is the more well-known alignment following the present day Interstate 43 (I-43) from the Hale Interchange in Milwaukee to I-90 in Beloit as the Rock Freeway. From the Hale Interchange, this iteration followed I-894 northward then turned east onto National Avenue and ending in downtown Milwaukee.[1]
Previously, the current WIS 15 route was US 45, which turned south at its intersection with WIS 76. The later highway continued straight on to intersect with Wisconsin Avenue (then US 10) at the north entrance road to the Fox River Mall in Appleton. The road was realigned as part of a large project that realigned US 10 and US 45. Essentially, the road south of Greenville became an extension of WIS 76 and WIS 15 is now the sole route number on the current stretch.[1]
Future
editSince 2022, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) has been working on an expansion and reconstruction project between US 45 in New London to WIS 76 in Greenville. The entire length of WIS 15 will be converted into a four-lane divided expressway as part of the project.[4] Also included was the construction of a bypass section of Hortonville which completed in 2023.[5]
Between 2024 and 2025, the highway's interchange with I-41 in Grand Chute will also be reconstructed as part of the wider Appleton area I-41/US 41 expansion project.[6]
Major intersections
editThe entire route is in Outagamie County.
| Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Hortonia | 0.00 | 0.00 | US 45 – Appleton, Clintonville, Marion, Antigo, Oshkosh  Bus. US 45 / CTH-T – Appleton | Western end of CTH-T concurrency; roadway continues as Bus. US 45/CTH-T | |
| 3.18 | 5.12 |  CTH-T south (Givens Road) – Dale  CTH-JJ east (West Main Street) – Hortonville | Eastern end of CTH-T concurrency | ||
| Hortonville | 5.16 | 8.30 |  CTH-M (Dash Street) – Medina, Winchester | Converted to overpass | |
| Town of Greenville | 7.23 | 11.64 | CTH-JJ (West Broadway Drive) | ||
| Community of Greenville | 10.98 | 17.67 | WIS 76 (Municipal Drive) – Oshkosh, Shiocton | ||
| Town of Greenville | 12.75 | 20.52 |  CTH-CB (Greenville Drive) – Appleton International Airport | ||
| Town of Grand Chute | 14.8 | 23.8 | I-41 / US 41 – Milwaukee, Green Bay CTH-OO east (West Northland Avenue) – Appleton, Little Chute | Roadway continues as CTH-OO | |
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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See also
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References
edit- ^ a b c Bessert, Chris (January 20, 2007). "Highways 10–19". Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved March 20, 2007.[self-published source]
- ^ Wisconsin Department of Transportation (January 2006). Outagamie Co. (PDF) (Map). 1:100,000. Madison: Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 13, 2007. Retrieved December 29, 2007.
- ^ "Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium, Appleton" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved December 29, 2007.
- ^ "WIS 15: Outagamie County". Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
- ^ "WIS 15 Expansion Study". Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
- ^ "I-41 Project Summary". Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
External links
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Media related to Wisconsin Highway 15 at Wikimedia Commons
