United States Highway 52 is an unusual United States highway. While one might expect the route to be east-west as most even-numbered US Highways are, US 52 takes a northwest-southeast route.
Because of its unusual nature US 52 is signed east and west on some sections and north and south on others.
Along U.S. 52's route, there are many places where the route crosses an Interstate (intersection), and many places where U.S. 52 shares its route with an Interstate (multiplex).
Historically, U.S. 52 was routed along University Avenue between Minneapolis and St. Paul in Minnesota. In the 1980s and 1990s, the highway was gradually shifted onto its present route along Interstate 94, although for a few years up until about 1995, there was effectively a gap in the roadway as the precise route wasn't defined. Since then, it has been routed along the interstate between the Twin Cities.
