Nebraska "NEXT EXIT XX MILES"

[tman]

Just got back from driving a good chunk of I-80 through Nebraska (Grand Island to Paxton). I noticed that every exit sign has a "NEXT EXIT XX MILES" plaque. They even posted one on a four mile gap between exits. Now, I think anyone driving in the midwest/west expects a four mile gap between exits. Just thought that this was interesting (most states that I've seen only post this when it's over 10 miles between exits). However, the state didn't post a "NEXT SERVICES 56 MILES" sign on US 83 between Thedford and Valentine (over 50 miles without gas). That was a much farther distance than 4 miles, and possibly critical.

[US 89]

If you're driving in the rural west, expect at least 5 miles between exits, and expect at least 50 miles between services. There are some places where this is taken to an extreme, such as I-80 in the salt flats which has 37 miles between exits (and 68 miles between services), and I-70 in the San Rafael Swell which has 110 miles without any services.

[skluth]

Just got back from driving a good chunk of I-80 through Nebraska (Grand Island to Paxton). I noticed that every exit sign has a "NEXT EXIT XX MILES" plaque. They even posted one on a four mile gap between exits. Now, I think anyone driving in the midwest/west expects a four mile gap between exits. Just thought that this was interesting (most states that I've seen only post this when it's over 10 miles between exits). However, the state didn't post a "NEXT SERVICES 56 MILES" sign on US 83 between Thedford and Valentine (over 50 miles without gas). That was a much farther distance than 4 miles, and possibly critical.

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles. Maybe they exist out west. But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

[J N Winkler]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles.

There are a few out there.  I have personally seen one on US 6-50 at the Nevada/Utah state line, US 77 in far south Texas in a set of signing plans, etc.

But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

My personal rule of thumb is that availability of gasoline is all but guaranteed in a town with more than 1,000 people, and uncertain in smaller towns.  The populated places that have fewer people than that or are unincorporated tend to function as regional centers in some way if they have gas; e.g., Dulce, which is the first refueling opportunity on US 64 east of Bloomfield in northern New Mexico, is also the capital of the Jicarilla Apache reservation.  In some really small towns in the frontier-tier states (e.g. Lamont, Oklahoma or Leon, Kansas), availability of gas at the co-op has to do with having the only grain elevator for many miles.

Part of the problem with providing signing for fuel deserts is that gas availability constantly changes, especially in rural areas undergoing slow decline, and it is hard for agencies to keep up.  Rural Oklahoma east of I-35 is full of shuttered gas stations and in many places it is possible to tell when the gas station closed by the prices still displayed on the sign or at the pump.

[US 89]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles. Maybe they exist out west. But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

US 40 has one of these signs going east from Dinosaur CO.

[Brandon]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles.

There are a few out there.  I have personally seen one on US 6-50 at the Nevada/Utah state line, US 77 in far south Texas in a set of signing plans, etc.

But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

My personal rule of thumb is that availability of gasoline is all but guaranteed in a town with more than 1,000 people, and uncertain in smaller towns.  The populated places that have fewer people than that or are unincorporated tend to function as regional centers in some way if they have gas; e.g., Dulce, which is the first refueling opportunity on US 64 east of Bloomfield in northern New Mexico, is also the capital of the Jicarilla Apache reservation.  In some really small towns in the frontier-tier states (e.g. Lamont, Oklahoma or Leon, Kansas), availability of gas at the co-op has to do with having the only grain elevator for many miles.

Part of the problem with providing signing for fuel deserts is that gas availability constantly changes, especially in rural areas undergoing slow decline, and it is hard for agencies to keep up.  Rural Oklahoma east of I-35 is full of shuttered gas stations and in many places it is possible to tell when the gas station closed by the prices still displayed on the sign or at the pump.

It's not just west of the Mississippi either.  There are a fair number of places in Illinois that are like this once you get away from Chicagoland.  IDOT has been known to mark exits with "NO SERVICES" and "NO FUEL".

Exit 154, Shirley, I-55.
Exit 66, Troy Grove, I-39.
Exit 93, Steward, I-39.

And list the distance to the next fuel.

Exit 261, Paxton, I-57.  Next gas 20 miles.

[jwolfer]

I have seen the "Next Exit xx Miles" on ticketed or previosly ticketed systems like the NJTP or Florida's Turnpike where there are longer distance between exits than on regular freeways.

And Florida turnpike has the longest distace between exits on a freeway.. ~50 miles

LGMS428

[tman]

Interesting. I like the 50 mile/1000 people rule of thumb. I've always liked signs like these.

[mgk920]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles.

There are a few out there.  I have personally seen one on US 6-50 at the Nevada/Utah state line, US 77 in far south Texas in a set of signing plans, etc.

But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

My personal rule of thumb is that availability of gasoline is all but guaranteed in a town with more than 1,000 people, and uncertain in smaller towns.  The populated places that have fewer people than that or are unincorporated tend to function as regional centers in some way if they have gas; e.g., Dulce, which is the first refueling opportunity on US 64 east of Bloomfield in northern New Mexico, is also the capital of the Jicarilla Apache reservation.  In some really small towns in the frontier-tier states (e.g. Lamont, Oklahoma or Leon, Kansas), availability of gas at the co-op has to do with having the only grain elevator for many miles.

Part of the problem with providing signing for fuel deserts is that gas availability constantly changes, especially in rural areas undergoing slow decline, and it is hard for agencies to keep up.  Rural Oklahoma east of I-35 is full of shuttered gas stations and in many places it is possible to tell when the gas station closed by the prices still displayed on the sign or at the pump.

It's not just west of the Mississippi either.  There are a fair number of places in Illinois that are like this once you get away from Chicagoland.  IDOT has been known to mark exits with "NO SERVICES" and "NO FUEL".

Exit 154, Shirley, I-55.
Exit 66, Troy Grove, I-39.
Exit 93, Steward, I-39.

And list the distance to the next fuel.

Exit 261, Paxton, I-57.  Next gas 20 miles.

I don't know if it's still there, but in the early 00s, IDOT had a 'NO SERVICES' warning sign on NWB I-24 just after its Ohio River bridge.

Mike

[Rothman]

NY Thruway uses the Next Exit XX Miles signs as a bottom banner to advance signage, because of NY idiotically resisting changing to mileage-based exit numbers. 

Just got back from a trip and it just looks like NY is run by morons due to the sequential exits.

[theroadwayone]

NY Thruway uses the Next Exit XX Miles signs as a bottom banner to advance signage, because of NY idiotically resisting changing to mileage-based exit numbers. 

Just got back from a trip and it just looks like NY is run by morons due to the sequential exits.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't the PA and NJ turnpikes do something like that also?

[J N Winkler]

It is worth noting that "Next Exit X Miles" is a standard guide sign with MUTCD language specifying its design and function, unlike fuel-desert signing ("Next Services X Miles," "Next Gas X Miles," "No Services Next X Miles," etc.), which is not in the MUTCD or any of the state-level equivalents I am aware of.  I think the only traffic manual I have seen where this is specified is Québec's Signalisation Routière (example sign shows "1 et 101 km" below a gas-pump symbol).

Fuel deserts are a specialized problem, while "Next Exit X Miles" advise of the next opportunity to exit a closed corridor, which may be for reasons other than refueling, such as finding a bathroom, correcting a navigational error, etc.

[roadman65]

Just got back from driving a good chunk of I-80 through Nebraska (Grand Island to Paxton). I noticed that every exit sign has a "NEXT EXIT XX MILES" plaque. They even posted one on a four mile gap between exits. Now, I think anyone driving in the midwest/west expects a four mile gap between exits. Just thought that this was interesting (most states that I've seen only post this when it's over 10 miles between exits). However, the state didn't post a "NEXT SERVICES 56 MILES" sign on US 83 between Thedford and Valentine (over 50 miles without gas). That was a much farther distance than 4 miles, and possibly critical.

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles. Maybe they exist out west. But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

US 77 has them as Kenedy County, Texas has no services at all throughout its run through there.  The US highway is over 50 miles between county lines at either end.

Also there is one entering Padre Island National Seashore as you can travel over 50 miles into the park, but no fuel is available within the preserve.

[Brandon]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles.

There are a few out there.  I have personally seen one on US 6-50 at the Nevada/Utah state line, US 77 in far south Texas in a set of signing plans, etc.

But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

My personal rule of thumb is that availability of gasoline is all but guaranteed in a town with more than 1,000 people, and uncertain in smaller towns.  The populated places that have fewer people than that or are unincorporated tend to function as regional centers in some way if they have gas; e.g., Dulce, which is the first refueling opportunity on US 64 east of Bloomfield in northern New Mexico, is also the capital of the Jicarilla Apache reservation.  In some really small towns in the frontier-tier states (e.g. Lamont, Oklahoma or Leon, Kansas), availability of gas at the co-op has to do with having the only grain elevator for many miles.

Part of the problem with providing signing for fuel deserts is that gas availability constantly changes, especially in rural areas undergoing slow decline, and it is hard for agencies to keep up.  Rural Oklahoma east of I-35 is full of shuttered gas stations and in many places it is possible to tell when the gas station closed by the prices still displayed on the sign or at the pump.

It's not just west of the Mississippi either.  There are a fair number of places in Illinois that are like this once you get away from Chicagoland.  IDOT has been known to mark exits with "NO SERVICES" and "NO FUEL".

Exit 154, Shirley, I-55.
Exit 66, Troy Grove, I-39.
Exit 93, Steward, I-39.

And list the distance to the next fuel.

Exit 261, Paxton, I-57.  Next gas 20 miles.

I don't know if it's still there, but in the early 00s, IDOT had a 'NO SERVICES' warning sign on NWB I-24 just after its Ohio River bridge.

Mike

Like this one: https://goo.gl/maps/Zg8knhWEinB2

[ClarkRB]

My favorite...while it doesn't FULLY apply here, the concept does.
I took a road trip from Fairbanks to Deadhorse on AK-11.  Once you pass Coldfoot, there is a sign that says "Next Services 240 Miles".

I believe that is the largest gap I have seen on signs.

[yakra]

My favorite...while it doesn't FULLY apply here, the concept does.
I took a road trip from Fairbanks to Deadhorse on AK-11.  Once you pass Coldfoot, there is a sign that says "Next Services 240 Miles".

I believe that is the largest gap I have seen on signs.

fixed broken link

[jnewkirk77]

I don't think I've ever seen a US highway with a sign about no services for XX miles.

There are a few out there.  I have personally seen one on US 6-50 at the Nevada/Utah state line, US 77 in far south Texas in a set of signing plans, etc.

But I just assume when I drive back roads (and yes, I'm calling US 83 through nowhere Nebraska a back road) that there will be no services between major towns unless road meets an interstate.

My personal rule of thumb is that availability of gasoline is all but guaranteed in a town with more than 1,000 people, and uncertain in smaller towns.  The populated places that have fewer people than that or are unincorporated tend to function as regional centers in some way if they have gas; e.g., Dulce, which is the first refueling opportunity on US 64 east of Bloomfield in northern New Mexico, is also the capital of the Jicarilla Apache reservation.  In some really small towns in the frontier-tier states (e.g. Lamont, Oklahoma or Leon, Kansas), availability of gas at the co-op has to do with having the only grain elevator for many miles.

Part of the problem with providing signing for fuel deserts is that gas availability constantly changes, especially in rural areas undergoing slow decline, and it is hard for agencies to keep up.  Rural Oklahoma east of I-35 is full of shuttered gas stations and in many places it is possible to tell when the gas station closed by the prices still displayed on the sign or at the pump.

It's not just west of the Mississippi either.  There are a fair number of places in Illinois that are like this once you get away from Chicagoland.  IDOT has been known to mark exits with "NO SERVICES" and "NO FUEL".

Exit 154, Shirley, I-55.
Exit 66, Troy Grove, I-39.
Exit 93, Steward, I-39.

And list the distance to the next fuel.

Exit 261, Paxton, I-57.  Next gas 20 miles.

I don't know if it's still there, but in the early 00s, IDOT had a 'NO SERVICES' warning sign on NWB I-24 just after its Ohio River bridge.

Mike

Now there's one that reads "Next Services 21 Miles," just before the US 45 interchange.