to as I-894 eastbound (westbound), as I-43 was not added until the late 1980s. Westbound I-894 has exits to WIS 24 (Forest Home Avenue) after the junction, though the eastbound highway only exits to a nearby local street. I-894 has two more exits after this and meets WIS 36 (Loomis Road) before reentering Milwaukee. It meets WIS 241 (South 27th Street) at exit 9 before terminating at the Mitchell Interchange with I-94, I-43 and US 41; I-43 continues northbound concurrently with I-94. I-894 passes generally through residential areas for its entire length with the exception of a few commercial districts right next to the freeway such as the Southridge Mall district, along with South 27th Street north to Oklahoma Avenue, which contains multiple car dealerships. The highway serves as a bypass of downtown Milwaukee. With the approximate distance traveled through downtown via I-94 at , I-894 provides a shorter distance for travelers heading to Chicago or Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport. The Zoo Freeway portion as of 2007 carries at most 170,000 vehicles per day—with the highest values closer to the Zoo Interchange. The Airport Freeway carries up to 134,000 vehicles per day. History The freeways that exist today are only a part of what the Milwaukee County Expressway Commission had hoped would be built by 1972. The Zoo Freeway between Beloit Road and North Avenue was completed in 1963. At that time, the portion between Beloit Road and the Zoo Interchange was signed as I-894. The remainder of the Zoo Freeway to the Hale Interchange was completed in 1966 when the Airport Freeway was constructed. US 45 was rerouted to the freeway, as was WIS 15 south of National Avenue. (The Rock Freeway had also been constructed west to 108th Street at the time.) The Airport Freeway was proposed to be routed to the also-proposed Stadium Freeway South along Howard Avenue which is about north of the current alignment and named the Howard Avenue Expressway. The Airport Freeway construction was completed in 1966 to fully open I-894. Both freeways were slated to become part of the Interstate Highway System in 1957, prior to their construction. I-43 was signed along the Airport Freeway concurrently with I-894 in 1988 after being officially designated in 1987. A remnant of the proposed Stadium Freeway remains connected to I-894 near WIS 36 as an unbuilt interchange. Its three completed ramps are closed to all traffic,