Minimum maintenance road.

Flooding causes standing water. Standing water causes mosquitoes and other insects. A fresh source of food means the dragonflies grow fat and happy. This one was about three inches long, with a five inch wingspan.

We’ve got ourselves a good old fashioned lightning storm. Western Kansas.

We start with another train – no airplane fuselages this time, though.

The gantry tells the tale. At one point, this road was US-75, and the rightmost (missing) set of signs indicated that. Then, US-75 was moved onto the I-29 freeway, so they changed the gantry to indicate that – and added the new county route designation.

when they moved US-75 well into Nebraska, they took off the trailblazer, but oddly did not move the county signs to the main gantry. too much effort, apparently.

Green grass and high tides.

This old yellow stop sign might actually still be in service… it all depends on whether the dirt path it serves is a public road, or just someone’s driveway.

Old 75 intersects current 30. The sign dates to 1994, as evidenced by the sticker on the back, which implies that 75 was moved across the river after that time.

Iowa is the only state I know which uses outline shields for interstates so regularly.

One in infrared, for variety’s sake. Old US-30/75; the Lincoln Highway approaching Omaha.

Nebraska City is about the last place in the state where you will find these “BUSINESS”-tagged state route shields. The US routes are in a lot of places. The earliest ones date back to 1984, when the bypass was built.

The newer sign assemblies are divided into multiple pieces, like this one.

The view from the highway 2 bridge across the Missouri river between Iowa and Nebraska. Why is the water brown? A sewage treatment plant upstream was flooded. Ick.

The levee is holding … for now.

There’s an on-ramp in here somewhere.

You can see the first Iowa state highway 2 marker in the distance … not long before the road sinks.

The water isn’t usually this high. Or, this brown.

Instant business route marker… just add stencil.

Somewhere in Nebraska, this flower blooms.

We’re not just looking for pretty flowers. We are driving this road because it is an old alignment of Nebraska state highway 4. It got renumbered to US-136 sometime in 1951. The green post may very well have once held a NE-4 shield.

This might be the oldest sign we see in Nebraska. The black going all the way to the outside border, the yellow faded to white – this identifies the sign as mid-1950s. It’s on the same old alignment of NE-4/US-136.

Indeed, this sign was once yellow.

We are now in Kansas, where we find this white guide sign on an old US-24 alignment.

Cloud County indeed.

This storm cloud is centered over Salina, Kansas, over 75 miles away.

A railroad runs parallel to US-24. We catch this train just around sunset.

Blue skies and storm clouds.

The storm approaches. This is about a one-minute exposure, with the clouds being illuminated by successive lightning strikes.

We interrupt this meteorological quest to bring you a picture of an old brown 16″ county route marker. They’re getting quite hard to find in Kansas.

It’s electric.

Strike after strike after strike. I combined about seven consecutive exposures here.

The ranch fence gets one in the teeth.

One last lightning strike.

And now for something completely different. This might be the last cutout US route marker in Kansas. Apparently, the US-36 shields in St. Francis are gone, so this is it.

Next morning. As dawn breaks, we are in Colorado. Along the side of US-160 is this abandoned house.

Our first photo from New Mexico. It appears to be a large beast of some kind, possibly carnivorous.

Can a Prius go 100mph? Well, down a road I’ve driven far too many times… yes!

Oh dear, US-64 got demoted.

and that’s where we leave off for now!

Endless fields of yellow flowers are the most prominent feature of the eastern Montana landscape. All the way across the state on US-212, from I-90 eastward, featured miles upon miles of bright colors.

The Milky Way. A 90 second exposure.

Very early dawn in Nebraska. Above this house: a noctilucent cloud – one of the rarest kinds to see!

Slightly later dawn.

Nothing to see here, just a train carrying airplane fuselages.

A state-named I-90 sign which I managed to miss during my previous trip through here, in December, 2007. It’s in Laurel, about two blocks off the main drag.

Not particularly old signs, but definitely an old gantry. At one point, this mentioned US-10 for sure.

I do not know why this Montana 3 sign has an extra thick border. Also, why it does not point to 3 in any reasonably direct manner. It instead points to US-87. Since US-87 and MT-3 both connect Billings to Great Falls, it may very well be the cast that what is currently 87 was once 3.

Typical eastern Montana grasslands scene.

Close-up of the typical eastern Montana grasslands scene.

A different style of flower.

A strangely compelling era of Montana history comes to an end. I remember seeing, in 2005, an older-style US-47 shield here, and then was quite shocked when, in December 2007, I noted that they had replaced it with a shiny new … US-47 marker.

now, finally, state route 47 is correctly marked heading out of Hardin. a small part of us has died.

Infinite regression of purple flowers.

absurdly large dandelion. Seriously, it was about 4 inches in diameter.

This is the only example we found of a signed Indian Route. It uses the same route marker as the Montana state secondary highways – but a completely different range of numbers. The secondaries start around 270 or so.

US-212 in eastern Montana is the Warrior Trail.

This sign is neither embossed steel, nor cast iron. It is wood – and the parts not protected by black paint have weathered away over the last, oh let’s say 40 years.

in any case, the state of Montana wants you to know that if you want some heaps of dirt, you’ll just have to get your own.

We are now in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. And no – despite being 16×16 inches – these are not direct replacements for 16″ cutout US route markers. They’re just … oddly lame.

An original 1958-specification Business Loop 90 marker. It may very well be the only one in South Dakota.

An abysmally bad photo of the sunset. I took this one while discovering that a particular set of ramps on I-90 didn’t have anything to the north but the on- and off-ramps – so I was hastily beating a U-turn (probably quite illegally) before the cavalry came.

Lots of old signs to be found in the Black Hills. I need to return here sometime during the day. Perhaps in early October, to take photos of the leaves changing, and various other general-interest topics.

An oddly shaped 385.

A classic one, unfortunately hidden behind a pair of street blades. I’ll bet that, if I told you that it was in the town of Lead, that you could find exactly where.

Whoops, that’s supposed to be state route 87.

Nebraska. We drove through the night and we’re in about the middle of the state by dawn.

Foggy morning.

Another sunrise photo, through the fog and the trees.

Alas, not the original white town boundary sign.

An older Junction assembly. One can tell its age by the smaller numbers in the route markers – and, oh yeah, the general decrepitude.

What strange installations lurk in the fog?

Agricultural vehicle is agricultural.

An older faded sign.

There isn’t much button copy left in Nebraska. Most of it is here on the 129 freeway.

US-75 was moved from Iowa into Nebraska in the mid-1990s. Therefore, some signs needed to get patched.

One last set of flowers. This is in Iowa – where we will leave off for now. Next up: Missouri River flooding in Iowa, lightning storms in Kansas!

First thing in the morning. US highway 30 eastbound in western Nebraska. We follow 30 for a while because it’s a mile or two away from I-80 and more likely to have old signs. It may or may not be rather cold.

Catch of the day! Over and over again, I scoured downtown Omaha for old interstate highway markers, and by the third time, I finally found one. This one was installed in 1963 or so, whenever I-480 was built through here along old US-75.

The shield was in an industrial area just south of US-275, and it was replaced in April, 2009. There is one 1957-spec interstate shield left in Nebraska that anyone knows about. It is an I-80.

The blue US-77 bridge in Sioux City. South Dakota is the far side, and Nebraska is where I’m taking the picture from.

Several of these survive in Gothenburg. Also: ice does very interesting things under flash!

Nice pair of embossed signs, showing the difference between old and new fonts.

Rain or shine, the trains will run on time. (This principle apparently extends to snow and ice, too.)

A switch engine.

Red barns and white frosted trees.

This can’t possibly be a standard sign – but it’s definitely old. Somewhere in Omaha.

What’s missing here? Yep, just a block down from that I-480 shield. The odd thing is, that one is at eye level and this one was about 20 feet in the air – and this one is the one that got yanked first?

The I-129 freeway. It’s about a two mile long spur of I-29 coming from Iowa… and it contains about half of the button copy left in the entire state of Nebraska.

The one state-named I-129 shield. Yep, it’s in Iowa. Because Iowa is good about that sort of thing. The ones in Nebraska are all gone … there’s one sitting on my floor at this very moment, in fact!

The Sioux City airport beacon in the fog.

Delivery van of the damned. The strange, strange skies are the result of fog and smoke from an industrial area, all under municipal lightning.

Not a particularly old sign, but gotta love the bizarro lighting.

The best part of this scene is that the little banner on the more distant light post says “right at home”.

A tall light fixture in swirling fog.

And a yellow stop sign! The “seat belt fastened?” variety is popular in the parking lots of a certain midwest and mountain state telecommunications company. I know of some still extant in Wyoming, Colorado, and this one in Iowa.

Another view of the blue bridge.

And one with some trees.

South Dakota likes its metric speed limit signs.

Residential neighborhood of the damned? I was just going for the embossed speed limit sign and upon review, the houses behind it look perfect for Halloween.

Somewhere on South Dakota state highway 46. I don’t remember which town’s main drag we are approaching.

Entering Sioux Falls, South Dakota on I-29.

Specialization is for insects.

South Dakota interstate shields get more and more common as one heads westward in the state. This is about as far east as you can get – there’s some 229s in Sioux City at one intersection.

The end of interstate 229. No, really – it turns into a dirt road north of I-90.

Haunted house at the end of I-229.

Where I-229 starts being paved and splits into four lanes, intersecting I-90. Also: spot the sign that has been installed upside-down.

Next up … more old signs in South Dakota, and some more traditional scenery, courtesy of the Badlands and the Black Hills before we head back into Wyoming and Colorado and attempt to cross the Rockies again.

Started out the day being greeted by this VMS with the message "I-80 EB Closed at Mississippi River". Had to turn around and trudge southward along the real I-74 eastbound, which was equally under construction for an ARRA based resurfacing project. A routine inspection revealed damage to a faulty floor beam and currently only one lane of westbound traffic is permitted to use the bridge due to repairs. Work began on April 5, 2010 on a $10.3-million project. Construction on the October 27, 1966-opened span will shift to the westbound lanes by early July, with on eastbound lane restored at that time.

A new set of Clearview signs were added to the 2008-replaced Lincoln Road overpass. Signs over the westbound lanes were added during the evening of May 5 as we drove under.

Clearview signs were also added to Interstate 180 north at Interstate 80. The freeway spur remains vastly devoid of traffic.

Interstate 80 traffic is squeezed down to one lane per direction as crews completely replace the westbound spans over East Bureau and Brush Creeks (between Exits 61 and the La Salle County line).

Turned north onto Interstate 39 & U.S. 51, which surprisingly had more traffic then we anticipated.

Joining U.S. 20 eastbound on Interstate 39 & U.S. 51 north. U.S. 51 utilizes the Northwest Tollway with Interstates 39 & 90 east of the split with U.S. 20.

Virtually all signage along the Interstate 39-90 & U.S. 51 triplex in Rockford was replaced. Guide signs utilize Clearview font, and a few U.S. 51 shields do as well.

Hart Road eastbound sees a diamond interchange with Interstate 43 (Exit 2). The at-grade intersections of both off-ramps are in the process of being converted to roundabouts.

Wisconsin typically uses uni-signs on a black panel for shield assemblies of various types. Junction shields for Interstate 39 and Wisconsin 81 join the end sign for Interstate 43 in this particular group. Even after the many years since Interstate 39 was extended north into Wisconsin, there is still no mention of it on the Exit 1A/B guide signs for Interstate 90.

Southbound at the eastbound split of Interstate 90 from Interstate 39 at Rockford. A two-lane flyover was added to replace a loop ramp that brings Interstate 39 & U.S. 51 north onto the Northwest Tollway.

Interstate 90 (Northwest Tollway) retains some button copy signage leading east from Rockford toward Chicago. A state-named Interstate 290 shield resides on this mileage sign found just east of the split with Interstate 39.

A 17 mile exit less stretch culminates at the U.S. 20 trumpet interchange north of Hampshire. Exits along the Illinois Tollway system remain number less at this time.

Older button copy signs posted along the Northwest Tollway omit the state name from the route markers and include no control points. A number of suburban exits line the stretch between Elgin and Schaumburg.

The Illinois Tollway system typically uses state-based or suburbs-based control points for its Interstate highways. Occassionally though, Interstate 294 north will use Milwaukee as the destination of choice.

Interstate 90 (Kennedy Expressway) splits with a set of express lanes ahead of the merge with Interstate 94 (Edens Expressway) east. The express lanes are reversible and line the median of the north-south portion of the Kennedy.

The Interstates 90 & 94 (Kennedy Expressway) express lanes periodically see slip ramps to and from the general travel lanes. The express lanes feature less entry and exit points, and thus few slowdowns due to merging traffic.

Continuing along the Interstates 90 & 94 express lanes leads drivers to the Kennedy Expressway inbound at Ohio Street. The express lanes default onto the Ohio Street freeway spur east while returning traffic to the mainline joins ahead of junction Interstate 290 (Eisenhower Expressway).

Trudging through the Congress interchange along Interstates 90 & 94 east. The ramp to Congress Parkway eastbound is presently closed as IlDOT reconstructs the Congress Parkway bridge over the South Branch of the Chicago River. This work coincides with work to rebuild the Congress Parkway interchange with Lower Wacker Drive.

Information overload on this set of signs along Interstate 55 (Stevenson Expressway) northbound for McCormick Place.

A pair of begin shields usher in the start of Interstate 55 south from U.S. 41 (Lake Shore Drive) in Chicago. We head south to Lincoln.

Interstate 55 is fairly industrial in nature, angling southwest to a partial interchange with Interstate 294 (Tri-State Tollway). Access to Interstate 294 south requires one to take U.S. 12-20-45 south.

Interstate 55 reduces from six to four overall lanes between Interstate 80 and U.S. 6 (Exit 248).

Illinois 129 departs from the left-hand side of Interstate 55 south via Exit 238. The state route follows historic U.S. 66 through Braidwood.

Business Loop Interstate 55 follows a 1950s-built alignment of Historic U.S. 66 around the city of Bloomington. Motorists can find pretty much any business they desire along the north-south stretch of the commercial arterial.

We arrive at the south end of Interstate 155 outside Lincoln, where we drove last December, and thus clinch the entire 964.25-mile route.

Driving along Business Loop I-55 (Historic U.S. 66) in Lincoln, we spotted this wooden cutout along southbound. It appears to be a custom hand-painted replica.

Two-digit width Interstate 155 trailblazer posted along Illinoi 10 west & 121 north. Interstate 155 replaced IL-121 leading north to Morton.

Oddly shaped cirrus clouds north of Illinois 10 near Burton View. A frontal system moved in later this day and dropped 1″ of rain in many areas.

Approaching the Scott W. Lucas Memorial Bridge of U.S. 136 west across the Illinois River.

Westbound U.S. 136 after its split with U.S. 24 at Duncan Mills.

Spurred southward through the dilipated town of Vermont and discovered two old gas station signs at the town square. The stations are long gone, but both signs remain in good condition.

U.S. 67 follows a 65-mph expressway north from Good Hope to a brief merge with U.S. 34 around Monmouth.

Sources:

• "Eastbound lane of-80 bridge closed to traffic." Quad-City Times, May 12, 2009.
• "I-80 eastbound closes today at Mississippi River." Quad-City Times, April 5, 2010.

Almost devoid of snow, U.S. 61 northbound after its split with U.S. 67 in downtown Davenport, Iowa. A full day of rain washed most of the snow away, but it would return with a vengeance later Christmas day.

More snow fell then forecast, with the Quad Cities area receiving 3 to 4 inches. This photo, taken at 7:47 am, shows the condition of Interstate 74 near Exit 4 to U.S. 67. The overpass above was replaced in 2009, and the Clearview-fonted signage below was added in place of an overhead assembly.

Snow covered Illinois-Iowa Memorial Bridge across the Mississippi River.

The roads were no better in Illinois this morning.

Not many other drivers were out this early, but the first of 13 accidents we witnessed occurred at the east end of Interstate 280.

Wintry scene along Interstate 80 east between Interstates 74-280 and Exit 19.

The degree of plowing varied from county to county. Bureau County’s stretch of Interstate 80 was somewhat better than Rock Island’s.

Interstate 80 east at Interstate 180′s southbound beginning, now in Clearview.

Eastbound Interstate 80 at Illinois 251 (Exit 75), the old alignment for U.S. 51. Signs for Interstate 39 & U.S. 51 are posted at 3.50 miles ahead of their cloverleaf interchange with I-80…

Equally snowy Abraham Lincoln Memorial Bridge across the Illinois River on Interstate 39 & U.S. 51 south.

Interstate 39 & U.S. 51 carried a lot more traffic than Interstate 80 by mid-morning. Drivers tended to clump together too, and several accidents were noted on the 59-mile drive to Bloomington-Normal.

Road conditions worsened along Interstate 55 south between Interstate 39 and Interstate 74.

Interstate 55 south & 74 east split on the southwest side of Bloomington. Interstate 74 carries U.S. 51 back to its original alignment south of town. Business Loop I-55 ties into the split from Veterans Parkway to the northeast.

Winds shifted from the south around the low pressure system over Illinois, resulting in blowing snow over Interstate 74 between Bloomington and Champaign.

Shocked shield posted for Interstate 57 between Exits 232 and 229. The pavement condition was markedly better through Champaign.

Moderate snow squall along Interstate 57 south on the south side of Mattoon near junction U.S. 45 & Illinois 121 (Exit 184).

Merging with Interstate 70 west along Interstate 57 south.

The first sunlight we saw in eight days, Interstate 57 south near the Fayette and Clay County line.

Interstate 64 west joins Interstate 57 south through the Mt. vernon area. A new interchange (Exit 94) opened between the freeway and Veterans Memorial Drive in 2009. Veterans Memorial Drive was extended west from 42nd Street to the adjacent Wells Bypass. A stub exists at their intersection for further lengthening.

Now out of the snow finally, Interstate 57 splits with the eastbound beginning of Interstate 24. Plenty of snow birds and other holiday travelers using each freeway.

Descending toward Exit 14 with U.S. 45 near Vienna, Illinois on Interstate 24 east.

The day’s snowfall slowed our southward progress and gobbled up most of our daylight. We spanned the Ohio River southward along Interstate 24 toward Paducah by 4:12 pm.

A rare business loop exists in western Kentucky for Interstate 24 through Paducah. The route is signed at both ends and with some consistency on its surface alignment through the city.

U.S. 30 joins U.S. 61′s freeway briefly at DeWitt, Iowa. The exit numbering of the U.S. 61 interchanges shifts to U.S. 30′s mileage along their shared alignment.

U.S. 61 varies between a four-lane freeway and four-lane expressway between Interstate 80 and its merge with U.S. 151 near Dubuque Regional Airport. U.S. 151 merges with the divided highway at a trumpet interchange.

U.S. 52 enters Dubuque from the southeast and joins U.S. 61 & 151 from Bellevue Road.

U.S. 52, 61 & 151 upgrade to a brief freeway on the approach to downtown Dubuque. Interchanges connect the trio with Grandview Avenue and Locust Street. Locust Street provides a connection to U.S. 20, which passes over U.S. 52-61-151 along the Julien Dubuque Bridge.

U.S. 52-61-151 see traffic lights with Jones Street and the Locust Street/U.S. 20 connector before upgrading to another freeway leading northeast from downtown Dubuque to Wisconsin. The freeway elevates onto a viaduct from 4th Street and splits with U.S. 52 at 11th Street west before spanning the Mississippi on the arched Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge.

Spanning the Mississippi River along U.S. 61 & 151 north. The Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge opened to traffic in 1982 and is the second longest arch bridge across the Mississippi (the first is the Interstate 255 Jefferson Barracks Bridge).

Looking south at the frozen Mississippi River from the Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge. The Mississippi River was frozen southward toward Clinton.

Wisconsin typically uses a uni-sign type configuration when signing overlapped routes. This particular assembly lies along the northbound freeway of U.S. 61-151 & Wisconsin 35.

U.S. 20 briefly sees its own freeway through parts of Dubuque. The freeway sinks toward the Mississippi River, intersecting Locust Street at-grade, before crossing the Mississippi River.

Crossing the Mississippi River on the narrow Julien Dubuque Bridge of U.S. 20. The steel-arch truss bridge opened in 1943.

A rock cut along Wisconsin 11 after its intersection with Rock Cut Road.

Snow covered trees shroud the landscape of U.S. 20 east on its ascent from the historic town of Galena.

A scenic lookout area resides along the westbound side of U.S. 20 east of Galena.

Descending along Illinois 84 south after its split with U.S. 20.

Straddling the Mississippi River along Illinois 84 south near the Savanna-Sabula Bridge of U.S. 52. Illinois 84 travels between a railroad line and Mississippi Palisades State Park.

Traveling west across the Mississippi on U.S. 52 over the Savanna-Sabula Bridge. A bridge plate attached to the beginning of the span installed in 1932 reads "Short Route Cedar Rapids – Chicago".

A short truss bridge carries U.S. 52 drivers over the waterway linking the Mississippi River with adjacent Town Lake. Sabula constitutes a small town on an island bound by the river, Town Lake, Israel Day Lake, and Sabula Lakes. U.S. 52 turns west from Broad Street onto Sycamore Street from a causeway over Sabula Slough onto a second causeway between North and Middle Lakes of the Sabula Lakes system.

U.S. 67′s north end shield posted at the U.S. 52 merge/split with Iowa 64 west of Sabula. U.S. 67 continued northwest with U.S. 52 to Dubuque between 1934 and 1967.

Iowa 136 becomes Illinois 136 as it crosses the Mississippi River via the Lyons-Fulton Bridge between Lyons, Iowa and Fulton, Illinois. This steel truss bridge opened to traffic in 1975.

U.S. 30 enters Clinton, Iowa from East Clinton, Illinois along the Gateway Bridge. This suspension bridge opened to traffic in 1956 and was rebuilt in 1999.

U.S. 30 and 67 combine for a short distance between downtown Clinton and north of Camanche. The intersection where the two split doubles as an entrance to a big box retail center. U.S. 67 utilizes a two-lane controlled-access type bypass of Camanche west of town.

U.S. 67 enters the riverside town of Princeton. The US route parallels the Davenport, Rock Island & North Western Railroad. through both Princeton and nearby Le Claire.

Picture of the Illinois-Indiana Memorial Bridge from the north banks of the Mississippi River at Bettendorf. A levee system protects the downtown area of Bettendorf from the river. Along the barrier is a walk/bike path, boat ramp, park area, and the Isle of Capri Casino.

Forward to May 23, 2006, the Iowa and Illinois Departments of Transportation held a joint public meeting to select the recommended bridge type for the Interstate 74 replacement. Four designs were considered until the end, the first consisted of a basket handle true arch twin bridge, essentially spans side by side with arches that converge at the top. Second on the list was a modified basket handle tied arch bridge design, with vertical pier and hangers. This configuration is similar in design to what is used for Interstate 280′s crossing of the Mississippi River west of Rock Island, with cross members joining two sets of arches on each span. Design three was similar to the basket handle design but with tied arches. The final design consisted of a cable stayed sing bridge with a semi-fan stay arrangement, essentially a cable-stayed bridge with three support towers. View the designs for yourself here.

The Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge travels 66 feet above the Mississippi and is 5,148 feet in overall length. Its name honored the veterans of World War I during its dedication (northbound span) on November 18, 1935. The southbound bridge was built for $8.1 million in 1958, with both open for traffic after a 1959 closure of the original for repairs on January 20, 1960.

After the public meeting held jointly by Iowa and Illinois DOTs, the new bridge was chosen as officials announced the basket handle true arch twin bridge design. The new bridge will accommodate a bike path and observation platform, similar in scope to the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina. Additionally each span will carry four overall lanes with full inside and outside shoulders.

Approaching the south tower of Interstate 74 & U.S. 6 east as travelers enter Moline, Illinois. The bridge originally carried just U.S. 6 until the 1974 addition of Interstate 74. Work connecting the Illinois-Iowa Memorial Bridge to new Interstate 74 began in 1971 and was completed on November 26, 1974. Interstate 74 was finished in Quad Cities on December 10, 1975.

Due to the importance of the existing Interstate 74 & U.S. 6 bridge to the daily traffic movements of the Quad Cities, the span will remain open during construction of its replacement. The new span will be built just east of the existing, which works because the present freeway takes a bend in Moline before spanning the Mississippi to Bettendorf and Davenport. Work will also entail building a new south approach and reworking the north approach into the new bridge. That scope of the work does not end there however, as adjacent interchanges will also be reworked in conjunction with a widening to six-lanes of the overall freeway (with several eight lane sections due to new auxiliary lanes). See schematics of the new alignment and ramps changes here.

A platform joins both spans of the Interstate 74 & U.S. 6 Bridge over the south banks of the Mississippi River. The platform used to support toll collection facilities (15 cents per direction), which were removed on January 1, 1970.

As time passes, costs of the new span continue to escalate. Originally estimated to cost $600-million in 2002, prices increased to $650 million in 2006 and now have increased to $791 million. With all of the push backs during the study phase, filing of an Environmental Impact Statement, finalizing a bridge alternative, the construction timetable shifted from a potential completion date of 2011 early on to a construction start date no sooner than 2012. If you factor in the overall corridor expansion project from 53rd Street in Davenport to Avenue of the Cities in Moline, the completion day may await until December 2022.

For an in depth look at route numbering changes and a construction time line of the Quad Cities Interstate system and proposed Interstate renumbering, please see Jason Hancock’s Highways of Davenport and Bettendorf.

Sources:

• “Bridges to the Future.” River Cities’ Reader, August 13, 2002.
• i-74corridorstudy.org – Iowa Department of Transportation / Illinois Department of Transportation.
• “New estimate puts cost of I-74 bridge at $791 million.” QC Times, February 26, 2008.
• “New I-74 Bridge Plan Chosen.” WBHF 4, Quad Cities, August 30, 2006.
• I-74 Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge, John Weeks.
• Mississippi Bridge Timeline (QCQ&A), Quad Cities Online.

Some additional photos and commentary about Twin Cities area roads:

Interstate 335 was conceptualized as a connector between Interstates 94 and 35W north of downtown Minneapolis. The short freeway would complete a central loop system in conjunction with Interstates 35W and 94 along an alignment roughly parallel to Broadway Street. Early proposals involved an at-grade expressway in the 1940s and a full freeway by the 1960s. Right-of-way purchasing commenced in the 1970s with initial ramp construction of the eastern terminus. Rising opposition mounted from local residents, ultimately curtailing the freeway officially in 1978.¹

Interstate 35W northbound on its departure from downtown Minneapolis. Pictured here is the Johnson Street off-ramp of Exit 21B. Slightly visible beyond the gore point, Exit 21B converges with the Exit 21A off-ramp to Broadway Street. A small area of pavement, a ramp stub, exists between the two ramps as a remnant of the unconstructed Interstate 335 eastbound on-ramp to Interstate 35W north.

Southbound at the Interstate 35 split into Interstate 35W to Minneapolis and Interstate 35E into St. Paul. A partial “Y” interchange joins facilities the movement at the split, similar to the south merge/partition.

Interstate 35E southbound sees a brief confluence with Interstate 94 in downtown St. Paul. U.S. 10 joins Interstate 35E between Interstate 694 and Interstate 94. U.S. 52 emerges from its cover here, as it leaves Interstate 94 at the adjacent interchange to the east for a freeway of its own. Interstate 35E transitions into a parkway south of Interstate 94, therefore trucks over 9,000 lbs. must find an alternate route to the south suburbs from downtown St. Paul.

U.S. 12 joins Interstate 94 four miles from the Minnesota state line in western Wisconsin. Wisconsin cosigns it consistently for its short overlap with Interstate 94 but as soon as the freeway spans the St. Croix River, U.S. 12 disappears. A small reassurance sign, similar to those used for U.S. highway overlaps with freeways in Indiana, directs motorists to remain on Interstate 94 west. U.S. 12 emerges from obscurity briefly at Interstate 394′s east end, but not wholly until west of the Interstate 394 and 494 junction.

Interstate 94 westbound at the south end of the Minnesota 280 (University Avenue) freeway. Minnesota 280 exists partially as a freeway and partially as a surface boulevard. Initially Minnesota 280 was a 1960s planned freeway in conjunction with the unconstructed 28th Street Expressway through south Minneapolis. Curving southwest from the Interstate 94 interchange, Minnesota 280 was to span the Mississippi River and travel along the railroad corridor parallel to 28th Street, ending at Minnesota 100 outside of the Minneapolis city limits.¹ Most of that railroad line is now part of Midtown Greenway line of the Twin Cities trail system.

Interstate 94′s Lowry Hill Tunnel opened to traffic in December of 1971.² The cut and cover tunnel passes underneath the intersection of Lyndale and Hennepin Avenues southwest of the Minneapolis central business district. Hennepin Avenue joins downtown with the Uptown district and acts as a gateway between the two areas.

A major construction project presently underway in the Twin Cities are is the rebuilding of the Interstate 35E and 694 confluence at Little Canada. Entitled “Unweave the Weave“, work involves rebuilding Interstate 35E and 694 so that the two freeways no longer share a stretch of common pavement. At present a pair of interchanges join the two highways, requiring a mile long cosigned section with three lanes in each direction. This stretch results in numerous weaving traffic movements by motorists remaining both on the respective freeway mainlines and those making exchanges between Interstate 35E and 694. Project work will eliminate the shared freeway by separating both freeways onto their own carriageways and connecting the four roadways with in dependant ramps, similar to what will be done at the Interstate 35W and Crosstown interchange in Minneapolis. Work commenced in early 2005 and should be completed by late 2008.

Approaching the Interstate 35E merge on Interstate 694 eastbound at the Long Lake Road diamond interchange. Work surrounding the “Unweave the Weave” project also involves rebuilding of aging bridges and the overall Interstate 694 freeway between Rice Street (Exit 45) and Minnesota 61 (Exit 48) and Interstate 35E freeway between Minnesota 36 (Exit 111) and County Road E (Exit 115).

Crosstown westbound at the split with U.S. 212′s westbound beginning, ahead of the full-cloverleaf interchange with U.S. 169. U.S. 169 constitutes a north-south freeway between Interstate 494 and Interstates 94 & 694, serving the western suburbs of Eden Prairie, Edina, St. Louis Park, Golden Valley, Plymouth, New Hope, Maple Grove, and Brooklyn Park in the process. U.S. 212 follows a freeway of its own initially from the Crosstown southwest through Eden Prairie.

Work continues on extending the U.S. 212 freeway southwest to an overall length of 11.8 miles through Chanhassen, Chaska, and Carver. The route provides a suburban commuter freeway for far reaching suburbs of the Twin Cities metropolitan area and the U.S. 212 corridor westward to South Dakota. The MnDot project is known as “The New 212″, a $232 million endeavor whose planning began in the 1960s.

Current segments of the new freeway carry the temporary designation of Minnesota 312. Freeway construction began in August 2005 and by late 2006 Minnesota 312 extended west to Eden Prairie Road (Hennepin County 4). By next month Minnesota 312 expands westward another mile to the Dell Road partial cloverleaf interchange. Opening of the freeway westward to Powers Boulevard (Carver County 17) follows by Fall 2007.

Final completion of the project is scheduled for Fall 2008, bringing U.S. 212 onto a full freeway between Carver County 147 west of Chaska and the Crosstown at Edina. Further west, other projects follow that include upgrades of U.S. 212 to expressway standards and other enhancements are planned as part of the 212 Interregional Corridor.

Minnesota 77 (Cedar Avenue) south at the tied-arch bridge over the Minnesota River. Cedar Avenue exists as a surface street in Minneapolis and a freeway through Richfield, Bloomington, and Eagan. The commuter route serves the Mall of America complex at Interstate 494 and suburbs southward to Apple Valley. Initially open between the Crosstown and Interstate 494 in the 1960s, Minnesota 77 continued south across the Mississippi via this tied-arch bridge by 1980.³

Business Loop Interstate 35 south at junction Minnesota 60 in Faribault. This business loop was only signed in 2006 and follows Minnesota 21 (Lyndale Avenue) south from Exit 59 to junction Minnesota 60 (4th Street) and Lyndale Avenue (without Minnesota 21) south to Exit 55. The alignment follows old U.S. 65.

Interstate 35 south at the Clear Lake, Iowa Business Loop I-35. Clear Lake’s Business Loop travels west with U.S. 18 from Exit 194 to Iowa 107 (8th Street) south and 4th Avenue South eastbound back to Interstate 35 (Exit 193). Iowa 27 overlaps with Interstate 35 southward from the Minnesota state line to the U.S. 18 freeway at Exit 190. Iowa 27 represents the Avenue of the Saints, High Priority Corridor 2.

Sources:

1. Cancelled Highways – I-335 Minneapolis North Loop, Froehlig, Adam.
2. A History of Minneapolis: Intercity Transit and Highways (Part II), Minneapolis Public Library.
3. MN 77/CSAH 23  Cedar Ave, Froehlig, Adam.

For those who wonder, including ourselves, as to why signs along Interstate 29 northbound at Interstate 129 reflect the spur in text, I have an answer. At first, I speculated that Iowa wanted nothing to do with Nebraska’s Interstate 129. The fact of the matter is that there are signs for Interstate 129 on Interstate 29, half of which do not use the shield, but only an end sign along Interstate 129 east in Iowa and no signs at all along westbound.

So what’s the deal? On a whim I wrote IowaDOT about it the other night and received a response:

We received your comment concerning the use of the interstate shield for I-129 for southbound traffic and the use of letter text for I-129 for northbound traffic on I-29. Approximately 10+ years ago some motorists were getting confused with I-129 signing, thinking it was I-29 and taking the off ramp to US75 to Nebraska when they really wanted to stay on I-29. We thought we would try using the letter text I-129 to make it stand out different from the interstate shield of I-29.

That’s a fair enough reason as any, and its only less road mystery to be solved.

Perhaps this was the same reasoning for Interstate 126′s text signs in Columbia, South Carolina…