Large-enough cities passed over for control-city status

[Rothman]

I-84 East: Sturbridge (and Worcester) passed over for Boston (although it ends 55 miles short of Boston)

Sturbridge's a small town (less than 10,000 people) and nobody's headed to that crap hole that is Worcester.  Boston makes sense to me.

[kkt]

I-5 north of Los Angeles skips over Bakersfield, opting for Sacramento. It was formerly Bakersfield (many signs on the Arroyo Seco Parkway formerly had the control city of I-5 for Bakersfield).

I-5 doesn't go through Bakersfield.  US 99 did.  Caltrans believed it was confusing to sign control cities that weren't actually on the route, and eliminated most of them.

[DeaconG]

West Palm Beach and Melbourne (or Palm Bay) on I-95.

[DTComposer]

I-5 north of Los Angeles skips over Bakersfield, opting for Sacramento. It was formerly Bakersfield (many signs on the Arroyo Seco Parkway formerly had the control city of I-5 for Bakersfield).

I-5 doesn't go through Bakersfield.  US 99 did.  Caltrans believed it was confusing to sign control cities that weren't actually on the route, and eliminated most of them.

Excepting that they then signed San Francisco (along with Sacramento) on I-5...

[swbrotha100]

Is Yuma on I-8 large enough?  Flagstaff is a control city on I-17, so why not Yuma on I-8?  I do believe that on I-8 east of Gila Bend, the secondary city used to alternate between Gila Bend and Yuma, however, I think there may have been a signing replacement that removed all mentions of Yuma east of Gila Bend.

I want to say Yuma is the control city starting in El Centro, CA.

Arizona does not mention Yuma (pop. over 93,000) as a control city going WB on I-8. San Diego is the control city.

[Eth]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Miami the control city on I-95 in Virginia or North Carolina, despite passing through Savannah and Jacksonville? I also seem to recall southbound I-85 signed as Durham/Atlanta despite passing through Charlotte.

Both of these are true, I believe, only at the I-95/I-85 interchange itself.

[kkt]

I-5 north of Los Angeles skips over Bakersfield, opting for Sacramento. It was formerly Bakersfield (many signs on the Arroyo Seco Parkway formerly had the control city of I-5 for Bakersfield).

I-5 doesn't go through Bakersfield.  US 99 did.  Caltrans believed it was confusing to sign control cities that weren't actually on the route, and eliminated most of them.

Excepting that they then signed San Francisco (along with Sacramento) on I-5...

Like I say, most of them.  They kept a few of the biggest traffic generators.

[briantroutman]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Miami the control city on I-95 in Virginia or North Carolina, despite passing through Savannah and Jacksonville? I also seem to recall southbound I-85 signed as Durham/Atlanta despite passing through Charlotte.

Both of these are true, I believe, only at the I-95/I-85 interchange itself.

That sign was apparently replaced between 2014 and 2015.

[formulanone]

West Palm Beach and Melbourne (or Palm Bay) on I-95.

West Palm Beach exists on many BGSs north of Miami-Dade County to about FL 706 for northbound traffic. Around Melbourne, sometimes "Miami" is used for I-95 South.







Fort Lauderdale gets few mentions here and there, but Melbourne, Palm Bay, and Stuart get the shaft.

I guess there's more tourism for Daytona Beach than the other three, but I think Palm Beach is just spaced a bit further apart from Miami to justify its inclusion over Fort Lauderdale (the latter of which is a larger city in a more populous county).

[hbelkins]

That middle sign needs to go in the "Poor Sign Placement" thread.

And button copy from the "larger initial cap" era? Must be one of the newest installs around.

[WNYroadgeek]

I-90/Thruway almost never uses Rochester and Syracuse as control cities (it's always Albany and Buffalo (and Erie west of the latter)).

These are the only signs I know of that have Rochester as a control city, and I don't know of any that have Syracuse.

[paulthemapguy]

I don't know what defines "large enough" but South Bend is passed over as a control city on the eastbound Indiana Toll Road in favor of "Ohio"

I hate state names for control cities  .

With I-294 in Chicago it's helpful to know if the Tri-State is gonna take you toward Indiana* or Wisconsin.  I'm willing to accept it if the states are nearby (like in a 'tri-state' metro area), or if the state doesn't really have any major cities in it.  These conditions don't happen often though.

Regarding I-57 in Illinois, signs on Interstates will point you toward Chicago or Memphis, but signs at interchanges with local roads will point you toward Champaign, Effingham, Mt Vernon, or even Kankakee. https://goo.gl/maps/TgG3rDhXEP12

[cl94]

I-90/Thruway almost never uses Rochester and Syracuse as control cities (it's always Albany and Buffalo (and Erie west of the latter)).

These are the only signs I know of that have Rochester as a control city, and I don't know of any that have Syracuse.

What's interesting is that Rochester is the control city for I-290 at I-190. Rochester can be passed up because it is bypassed enough to the south and Utica is too small for control city status. Syracuse, on the other hand, should be a control city. The Thruway passes through the heart of the metro area and actually comes closer to the Syracuse city limits than it comes to Buffalo's, albeit only a couple hundred feet closer.

I have wondered why I-87 doesn't use an intermediate control city in the Adirondacks, such as Lake George or Glens Falls, even though they are relatively small given the large tourist draw to the region and that being the departure point for traffic to Vermont. Interestingly, the control city for I-87 NB on NY 7 is Glens Falls.

Agree for New York being a control city in Ohio. There really is nothing in Pennsylvania and, once you get into Jersey, nobody cares about the suburbs you pass through.

[shadyjay]

Original Connecticut Turnpike ramp signs said "NEW YORK AND WEST" and "RHODE ISLAND AND EAST", completely bypassing all CT cities.  Today, New Haven is used heading north coming out of NYC, then New London.  No mention whatsoever of Stamford or Bridgeport, the latter being the largest city in CT. 

On I-89 NB in Vermont, Burlington, the largest city in the state, isn't even mentioned until you get to Montpelier.  South of there, 89NB uses two control cities, Barre and Montpelier, even from I-91.  I'd like to see "Montpelier/Burlington" used at least coming from 91NB.

[noelbotevera]

Yup. This sign ignores the rest of New York and almost all of New Jersey.

Gonna ignore Amish Country and West Philadelphia?

[PHLBOS]

Yup. This sign ignores the rest of New York and almost all of New Jersey.

No offense, but are you even looking at a map of this area prior to typing your post?  At this location, the G.W. Bridge (and the NJ State Line) is only about 2 miles from this interchange.  While one could argue whether or not to use Newark over Trenton for the more distant city; given that Newark's not that far from the G.W. Bridge, the use of Trenton makes more sense.

Gonna ignore Amish Country and West Philadelphia?

In all honesty, I don't believe that I've ever seen a PennDOT sign (especially a recent one) that lists West Philadelphia as a control city/destination. 

While one could argue why closer destinations like Gap, Coatesville, or Downingtown weren't used (especially since there will be frosting in hell before US 30 between Lancaster and Parkesburg becomes a freeway); the use of Philadelphia seems appropriate.

[kphoger]

I don't consider suburbs or major cities to be appropriate, no matter how many people live there.  Use the major city's name.

[Brandon]

I don't consider suburbs or major cities to be appropriate, no matter how many people live there.  Use the major city's name.

I would add a corollary to that.  A large, important suburb is highly appropriate for a 3di or a freeway (state or US) that doesn't lead toward any major city.  Example: I-355 should be "Schaumburg", not "Rockford".

[Pete from Boston]

Worcester gets no love on 84 East because Boston is 40 miles beyond, but is bigger than Springfield, which being off on its own up 91 gets used as a control city.  Not an unreasonable snub, and really a big part of the story of Worcester's existence.

[The High Plains Traveler]

On I-10 eastbound from Tucson, the control city - at least in Arizona - is El Paso. Las Cruces has a population of about 100,000 in the core city, and probably 215,000 plus in Doña Ana County. It's also the junction with I-25. Coming south on I-25 from Albuquerque and north on I-10 from El Paso, Las Cruces is the control city.

But then, this is consistent with Arizona ignoring smaller, closer cities in favor of larger, more distant ones, kind of like the Yuma example.

[paulthemapguy]

I don't consider suburbs or major cities to be appropriate, no matter how many people live there.  Use the major city's name.

I would add a corollary to that.  A large, important suburb is highly appropriate for a 3di or a freeway (state or US) that doesn't lead toward any major city.  Example: I-355 should be "Schaumburg", not "Rockford".

100% agree.  I'd like to see 355 to go the way of a lot of west coast 3di's, where they use whatever city the next interstate junction is at.  Schaumburg, Downers Grove, and Bolingbrook might make good candidates.  Idk why they just skip over all the suburbs when it's pretty much strictly a suburban expressway, in the case of I-355

[briantroutman]

I don't consider suburbs or major cities to be appropriate, no matter how many people live there.  Use the major city's name.

I would add a corollary to that.  A large, important suburb is highly appropriate for a 3di or a freeway (state or US) that doesn't lead toward any major city.  Example: I-355 should be "Schaumburg", not "Rockford".

I can see some logic to "Rockford"  there since, if you look at it a certain way, I-355 almost serves as a partial outer beltway–a further-out alternative to the Tri-State Tollway.

[hbelkins]

I-264 in Kentucky gets Shively, which is a southwestern suburb of Louisville, at I-64 at the foot of the Sherman Minton Bridge. At the other I-64 interchange, the "control city" is the name of the freeway (Watterson Expressway), which I think is also the case at I-65. And I-265 gets Gene Snyder Freeway (instead of Lexington and Cincinnati at I-65, or Nashville at I-71. Once the bridge is complete, it should get Nashville and Indianapolis at I-64.

[The Nature Boy]

Original Connecticut Turnpike ramp signs said "NEW YORK AND WEST" and "RHODE ISLAND AND EAST", completely bypassing all CT cities.  Today, New Haven is used heading north coming out of NYC, then New London.  No mention whatsoever of Stamford or Bridgeport, the latter being the largest city in CT. 

On I-89 NB in Vermont, Burlington, the largest city in the state, isn't even mentioned until you get to Montpelier.  South of there, 89NB uses two control cities, Barre and Montpelier, even from I-91.  I'd like to see "Montpelier/Burlington" used at least coming from 91NB.

I've always thought that the use of Montpelier AND Barre as control cities at the I-89 and 91 interchange in White River Junction was a bit weird. Even weirder is the usage of "New Hampshire/Airport" as the control cities for 89SB at that same junction where "Lebanon/Concord" would fit much better.

Of course, the same is true in New Hampshire. Manchester isn't mentioned on I-93 until you get south of Concord and is never mentioned on I-89.

[formulanone]

That middle sign needs to go in the "Poor Sign Placement" thread.

And button copy from the "larger initial cap" era? Must be one of the newest installs around.

I'm pretty sure I posted the first one before, but I'll double-check when I get a chance. (Edit: Fixed)

The last one dates to 1993-94. There's a rare patch of button copy in that area, compared to the rest of the state, since FDOT stopped using demountable copy for at least a decade before that. Funny you mention the raised-caps, never noticed it before...early adoption or perhaps the sign has been rehabilitated over the years.