Crossroads of your state

[JMoses24]

I'd say Columbus is a pretty obvious choice for Ohio

My argument would be for Dayton being the intersection of two major trans-continental interstates (I-75/70) as well as US 35 and US 40.

[hotdogPi]

I know it says "your state", but since nobody here lives in New Hampshire, I'll do it.

Places that both Concord and Manchester can reach: Boston MA (I-93), Lawrence MA (I-93), Nashua (Everett Turnpike), Lowell MA (Everett Turnpike), White Mountains (I-93), I-89 corridor (I-89 doesn't quite go through Manchester, but it doesn't involve going out of the way), Keene (NH 9 for Concord, NH 101 for Manchester). Leominster MA and Worcester MA (NH 101 to NH/MA 13, then to I-190 if going to Worcester) are direct for Manchester, but not far out of the way for Concord.

More easily accessed from Concord: Rochester, Dover, Portsmouth (US 4 for most of the way for all three), Henniker, Hillsborough (NH 9 for both).

More easily accessed from Manchester: Hampton, Exeter (for both: NH 101; freeway).

Haverhill MA, Newburyport MA, and Conway NH are not direct from either.

Manchester has more population.

The center of population in New Hampshire is in Pembroke, one town southeast of Concord.

I will say that Concord is the crossroads of New Hampshire, but just barely.

[HazMatt]

I'd say Columbus is a pretty obvious choice for Ohio

My argument would be for Dayton being the intersection of two major trans-continental interstates (I-75/70) as well as US 35 and US 40.

You could argue Strongsville as it's nickname is the "Crossroads of the Nation".

[corco]

Idaho gets tricky, but I'd say the crossroads is probably I-84 and Idaho 55 in Eagle. It's the busiest interchange in the state and connects Idaho's main east-west corridor with its main north-south corridor.

[Sctvhound]

In South Carolina, it would have to be Columbia. In the middle of the state, and there are highways connecting to all corners of the state and major cities in NC and GA.

You have I-26 connecting to Spartanburg and also Greenville via I-385, also to Charleston, I-20 connecting to Aiken/Augusta to the west and Florence to the east, I-77 connecting to Rock Hill and Charlotte to the north, US 378 connecting to Sumter, and I-95 is only about 55-60 miles out from downtown Columbia.

Pretty much any point in SC is within 3 hours of downtown Columbia. The only parts more than 2 1/2 hours out is the Grand Strand, because there is no direct highway between Columbia and Myrtle Beach.

[jp the roadgeek]

Right. Being a crossroads isn't just a matter of being the intersection of two busy routes. It isn't the sheer number of trips that passes through the point, but rather the number of different unique trips that would pass through it. Of every possible trip between two points in the state, where do most of them converge?

That's a good way of putting it. And explains why Syracuse has an advantage over, say Binghamton or Albany.

I still have to go with Albany over Syracuse.  You have I-87 coming from NYC and the North Country/Montreal, then I-90 coming from Central and Western New York, as well as from MA.  Then you have I-88 in the general area coming from Binghamton and the Southern Tier. 

[vdeane]

Right. Being a crossroads isn't just a matter of being the intersection of two busy routes. It isn't the sheer number of trips that passes through the point, but rather the number of different unique trips that would pass through it. Of every possible trip between two points in the state, where do most of them converge?

That's a good way of putting it. And explains why Syracuse has an advantage over, say Binghamton or Albany.

I still have to go with Albany over Syracuse.  You have I-87 coming from NYC and the North Country/Montreal, then I-90 coming from Central and Western New York, as well as from MA.  Then you have I-88 in the general area coming from Binghamton and the Southern Tier. 

Montréal and Massachusetts are not in New York!  They don't count towards Albany's benefit (for this thread) any more than Scranton and Hartford come to Newburgh's.

Plus Watertown is bigger than Plattsburg.

[thenetwork]

Colorado: Denver. All three Interstates meet within a few miles. Most significant population centers are along those routes, mostly along I-70 and 25, or not very far off them

If I had to pick a specific intersection in Denver, it would actually be where I-25/I-76/I-270/US-36 all meet and not the I-25/I-70 Mousetrap.

[empirestate]

Right. Being a crossroads isn't just a matter of being the intersection of two busy routes. It isn't the sheer number of trips that passes through the point, but rather the number of different unique trips that would pass through it. Of every possible trip between two points in the state, where do most of them converge?

That's a good way of putting it. And explains why Syracuse has an advantage over, say Binghamton or Albany.

I still have to go with Albany over Syracuse.  You have I-87 coming from NYC and the North Country/Montreal, then I-90 coming from Central and Western New York, as well as from MA.  Then you have I-88 in the general area coming from Binghamton and the Southern Tier. 

Montréal and Massachusetts are not in New York!  They don't count towards Albany's benefit (for this thread) any more than Scranton and Hartford come to Newburgh's.

Plus Watertown is bigger than Plattsburg.

Yeah, that's why I say that Albany is indeed a crossroads, but not of New York per se–it's the crossroads of a region that doesn't perfectly overlap with the boundaries of the state.

At the very least, Albany is equally as much a crossroads as Syracuse, as they both reach all the same parts of the state, with Syracuse being appreciably better connected to Western NY, in particular. Plus, if we do give weight to out-of-state connections as well, Syracuse has a bit of an edge anyhow: not only does it include New England (via I-90 and US 20), but also Pennsylvania (via both I-81/US 11 and I-90/US 20), and Canada via either end of Lake Ontario.

[JJBers]

For East CT, it's gotta be I-395 and I-95 for the south, and I-395 and US 6 for the north

[empirestate]

For East CT, it's gotta be I-395 and I-95 for the south, and I-395 and US 6 for the north

East Connecticut? When did they secede? (And why are they now experiencing a further, Civil War-style division?)

[JJBers]

For East CT, it's gotta be I-395 and I-95 for the south, and I-395 and US 6 for the north

East Connecticut? When did they secede? (And why are they now experiencing a further, Civil War-style division?)

In 1865

[7/8]

Right. Being a crossroads isn't just a matter of being the intersection of two busy routes. It isn't the sheer number of trips that passes through the point, but rather the number of different unique trips that would pass through it. Of every possible trip between two points in the state, where do most of them converge?

That's a good way of putting it. And explains why Syracuse has an advantage over, say Binghamton or Albany.

I still have to go with Albany over Syracuse.  You have I-87 coming from NYC and the North Country/Montreal, then I-90 coming from Central and Western New York, as well as from MA.  Then you have I-88 in the general area coming from Binghamton and the Southern Tier. 

Montréal and Massachusetts are not in New York!  They don't count towards Albany's benefit (for this thread) any more than Scranton and Hartford come to Newburgh's.

Plus Watertown is bigger than Plattsburg.

Yeah, that's why I say that Albany is indeed a crossroads, but not of New York per se–it's the crossroads of a region that doesn't perfectly overlap with the boundaries of the state.

At the very least, Albany is equally as much a crossroads as Syracuse, as they both reach all the same parts of the state, with Syracuse being appreciably better connected to Western NY, in particular. Plus, if we do give weight to out-of-state connections as well, Syracuse has a bit of an edge anyhow: not only does it include New England (via I-90 and US 20), but also Pennsylvania (via both I-81/US 11 and I-90/US 20), and Canada via either end of Lake Ontario.

I'm going to side with JP on this one. Both cities are quite well connected to the rest of the state, but Syracuse is better connected to the North Country, while Albany is better connected to NYC and downstate. In my mind, NYC should be given more weight, therefore giving Albany the edge. Not to mention, I feel like I-87 is more important than I-81 for NY, since it connects downstate and upstate.

[jp the roadgeek]

For East CT, it's gotta be I-395 and I-95 for the south, and I-395 and US 6 for the north

East Connecticut? When did they secede? (And why are they now experiencing a further, Civil War-style division?)

In 1865

Then I declare Waterbury the crossroads of West Connecticut (and considering the political atmosphere in the state, I wouldn't be surprised to see certain parts of CT want to secede from the powers that control it)

[empirestate]

I'm going to side with JP on this one. Both cities are quite well connected to the rest of the state, but Syracuse is better connected to the North Country, while Albany is better connected to NYC and downstate. In my mind, NYC should be given more weight, therefore giving Albany the edge. Not to mention, I feel like I-87 is more important than I-81 for NY, since it connects downstate and upstate.

It's not the strength of the connection. It's the amount of unique situations in which the connection needs to be utilized.

And with that said, more people would travel through Syracuse on their way to NYC, than Albany.

Yes, don't forget that Syracuse is well connected to NYC and downstate via I-81, and most trips between there and Western NY will use that route rather than I-87.

And yeah, I'd actually weight NYC less because it's a choke point, and thus accounts for fewer possible unique trips.

[Revive 755]

Wisconsin is a tough one probably the closest we have is I-39 and WI-29 in Wausau the most major junction in the central part of the state.

I would think Madison would be a better candidate than Wausau with I-39, I-90, I-94, US 151 as an expressway on both sides of town, US 12, US 14, US 18, and US 51.

[mrsman]

While some have mentioned Baltimore as being the crossroads for MD for obvious reasons - I've been particularly fond of using I-95/MD 32 as a crossroads.  Direct connections to the three main pop centers of MD (DC suburbs, Balt, Annapolis) and more or less equidistant to all three locations as well.

[The Nature Boy]

Right. Being a crossroads isn't just a matter of being the intersection of two busy routes. It isn't the sheer number of trips that passes through the point, but rather the number of different unique trips that would pass through it. Of every possible trip between two points in the state, where do most of them converge?

That's a good way of putting it. And explains why Syracuse has an advantage over, say Binghamton or Albany.

I still have to go with Albany over Syracuse.  You have I-87 coming from NYC and the North Country/Montreal, then I-90 coming from Central and Western New York, as well as from MA.  Then you have I-88 in the general area coming from Binghamton and the Southern Tier. 

Montréal and Massachusetts are not in New York!  They don't count towards Albany's benefit (for this thread) any more than Scranton and Hartford come to Newburgh's.

Plus Watertown is bigger than Plattsburg.

Yeah, that's why I say that Albany is indeed a crossroads, but not of New York per se–it's the crossroads of a region that doesn't perfectly overlap with the boundaries of the state.

At the very least, Albany is equally as much a crossroads as Syracuse, as they both reach all the same parts of the state, with Syracuse being appreciably better connected to Western NY, in particular. Plus, if we do give weight to out-of-state connections as well, Syracuse has a bit of an edge anyhow: not only does it include New England (via I-90 and US 20), but also Pennsylvania (via both I-81/US 11 and I-90/US 20), and Canada via either end of Lake Ontario.

I'm going to side with JP on this one. Both cities are quite well connected to the rest of the state, but Syracuse is better connected to the North Country, while Albany is better connected to NYC and downstate. In my mind, NYC should be given more weight, therefore giving Albany the edge. Not to mention, I feel like I-87 is more important than I-81 for NY, since it connects downstate and upstate.

With the Northway, Albany has pretty good access to the North Country. Via I-87, Albany is directed connected to Plattsburgh, which I've always thought of as the quintessential North Country city.

[Sam]

I guess it must be La Fayette, NY. It says it right on the sign.
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.8902677,-76.096372,3a,41.2y,24.23h,83.39t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sFep3xY1tVoSmpiW_DdtwVw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[empirestate]

I guess it must be La Fayette, NY. It says it right on the sign.
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.8902677,-76.096372,3a,41.2y,24.23h,83.39t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sFep3xY1tVoSmpiW_DdtwVw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Huh. Called it!

[SkyPesos]

Since this was referenced to in a recent thread and no one done Missouri yet...

Missouri is one of the more difficult states to do as there isn't a N-S interstate through the center of the state, and the two largest cities (KC and StL) are on the edges. With KC, you have I-29 to the NW, I-35 to the NE, I-70 to the East and I-49/US 71 to the South. StL have I-55 to the South, US 67 to the South, I-44 to the SW, I-70 to the West and US 61 to the NW. Both cities lack a continuous 4 lane connection to the state capital (Jefferson City) under a single route number, but I-70/US 63 and I-70/US 54 works well. As for the largest cities, Kansas City lacks a direct freeway connection to Springfield (I-49/MO 7/MO 13 is the current 4 lane routing) and the southeastern portion of the state, and St Louis lacks a freeway connection to the northern portion of the state, as US 61 is only an expressway.

I'll give the win to St Louis for this one, as the missing KC-Springfield freeway is placed against them.

[CoreySamson]

My personal pick for Texas would likely be Dallas, since so many routes from the north and east converge there. San Antonio would be 2nd pick, and I'd say Victoria for 3rd (heck, that region is actually called the Crossroads!).

[JayhawkCO]

No one did Wyoming either, but I'd say it has to be Casper.  Relatively straight forward access to all the other population centers and the second most populous city.

Chris

[thspfc]

Wisconsin is weird because of how most of the major metro areas are bunched in the corners, and how the only major long-distance movement through the state (I-90/94) is far away from a lot of the major areas. But my choice is Madison, with I-39/90, I-94, US-12, US-14, US-18, and US-151.

[sparker]

These days -- in reference to CA -- a case could be made for the "Tracy Triangle"* and its CA 120 extension east to CA 99.  West to the Bay Area, north to Stockton/Sacramento and Oregon or then east on I-80 to NV and beyond, and south via two major commercial arteries (I-5, CA 99) toward the Valley agricultural center, L.A. of course, and even CA 58 east to I-40 & I-15.  I'd say the establishment of major distributors there (Amazon being one) speaks volumes to the centrality of the location. 

*I-5, I-580, I-205 for those who've never been in the area!