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Road Trip Day 1 (OKC to Albert Lea)

Started by rte66man, June 22, 2012, 09:55:42 PM

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rte66man

Took the annual family trip up north.  I35 almost all the way (detours in Overland Park and Des Moines for some book shopping).

OK has taken out the last of the northbound rest areas at Blackwell. If you are going north on 35 from the Red River, you will have a grand total of 2 rest areas in 235 miles (the Welcome Center at Thackerville and the OKC Center at 122nd St.).  Bridge replacement is ongoing at Perry and Braman. The OK legislature finally appropriated some $$$ to upgrade our pitiful bridges.  No other traffic delays.

Kansas was nice at 75 mph, although the Kansas Turnpike caused more vibration than any other road we were on at that speed.  Overland Park was a disaster.  We got off at 119th to eat and shop, thereby avoiding a large tieup on northbound 35.  We tried to cut over and up to 435, but the interchange was closed. We had to divert over to US69. More construction there as well.  I did appreciate the dual exit lanes on 435 in Kansas. One was exit only and the other was optional.  More states should do that.

Missouri (other than Liberty) was uneventful.  The interchange at 152 and 35 is a joke.  Overburdened diamond with long backups from all directions.  It took 4 lights to get from the first light west of the interchange to the northbound on ramp to 35. This was at 2 in the afternoon. I can't imagine how bad it is during rush hour.

Iowa had a couple of bridge replacements going on 35 between Osceola and Des Moines.  They are also widening 35 from IA5 north to the I80 interchange.  They are still working on the new interchange at Ankeny north of Des Moines. I would have thought they would be done by now as it was being worked on last year at this time.

I'm not sure how I feel about Iowa's practice of moving their rest areas/Welcome Centers to off the freeway. I am assuming that maintenance has been privatized and those groups want you to buy something.

rte66man
When you come to a fork in the road... TAKE IT.

                                                               -Yogi Berra


route56

Surprised you didn't get caught up in the construction at Homestead Lane, or between Olathe and Gardner.

Actually, if you went back to I-35, you probably been better off - The construction at the Overland Parkway merge is substantially completed.
Peace to you, and... don't drive like my brother.

R.P.K.

iowahighways

Quote from: rte66man on June 22, 2012, 09:55:42 PM
Iowa had a couple of bridge replacements going on 35 between Osceola and Des Moines.  They are also widening 35 from IA5 north to the I80 interchange.  They are still working on the new interchange at Ankeny north of Des Moines. I would have thought they would be done by now as it was being worked on last year at this time.

Because of the golf course at the west end of that interchange, they have to realign the I-35 mainline lanes before they can build the southbound on- and off-ramps. They're doing the same thing with a new interchange at US 218/IA 27 and County Road C50 in Janesville, north of Cedar Falls.
The Iowa Highways Page: Now exclusively at www.iowahighways.org
The Iowa Highways Photo Gallery: www.flickr.com/photos/iowahighways/

bugo

Iowa seems to be in a state of perpetual construction.  Every time I've taken I-29 through Iowa, I've run into several construction zones with 2 lane traffic, some just a mile or two apart from each other.  I-35 was in places as well when I rode it.  Is it always like that or are they rebuilding all the interstates a section at a time and when they get through, they will be through for a while?

kphoger

This is a route I'm quite familiar with.  I live in Wichita, and my two most common destinations are México and Minnesota.  Yes, I've come to both love and hate I-35.  My observations along your route:

Oklahoma - What used to have terrible pavement and perpetual road construction is now mostly a decent road.  A few bridge replacements and whatnot, and some relatively short sections of rough pavement are all that are left to annoy a driver.  I no longer cringe at the thought of driving I-35 in Oklahoma.

Kansas - I haven't experienced the pavement shudder, though it's been my experience that this varies by vehicle; some roads feel smooth to some cars and vibrate others, and vice versa on other roads.  My beef with the Turnpike is that it doesn't do well in heavy rain, snow, or ice.  It might be a drainage issue–I don't know, I'm not an engineer–but I find it necessary to drive more slowly on the Turnpike in inclement weather than on other Interstates.  I-35 all the way through downtown KC has gradually won favor with me.  I used to avoid it due to traffic and the bridge replacement; now I choose my route through/around KC by time of day.

Missouri - The 35/152 junction is crying out for some free-flow action, agreed.  I've never had to wait more than two stoplight cycles, but I've definitely seen tailbacks extending through signalized intersections (with red light cameras!), and it doesn't surprise me that you had to wait through four.  North from KC, you're lucky you didn't drive through there when half of the highway between Liberty and Cameron was down to two lanes for construction a couple of years ago.  Yikes!

Iowa - I used to call I-35 the Pothole Memorial Highway.  Things have greatly improved over the last few years.  The construction around WDM doesn't seem to slow traffic flow down too terribly much; ironically, it's often better through there than it is closer to the Chicago/MSP 80/35 split farther northeast.  Traffic from Des Moines to Ames gives me a headache; from there to Minnesota, I keep wanting to go about 90 mph and constantly have to creep down closer to the speed limit.

Minnesota - Albert Lea:  good truck stops.  Construction zones have advance signs telling drivers to form two lines and then take turns at the two-lanes-to-one merge point.  Contrast that with Oklahoma, which posts STATE LAW/MERGE NOW signs well in advance of the physical merge point.  I think Minnesota has the right idea, but I don't have the computer models to prove it.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
Visit scenic Orleans County, NY!
Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.

Scott5114

Some Oklahoma drivers have a tendency to zoom all the way up to the cones and then have to brake hard when they realize there's no gap for them to merge into. I'm pretty sure that's what the MERGE NOW signs are attempting to address. (It doesn't seem to work.)

Asking people to please take turns and merge politely only works when the drivers are Minnesota Nice™.
uncontrollable freak sardine salad chef

kphoger

It just irks me to sit in a mile-long tailback with the other lane completely empty (except for the occasional car going 40 mph faster than us) due to a STATE LAW/MERGE NOW/OFFICERS WILL SHOOT AT WILL sign.  This is for two reasons:  (1) That lane could be used for storing vehicles instead of sitting empty, reducing the length of the tailback without hindering the throughput of the bottleneck (a computer model to support my theory would be appreciated); (2) Instead of traffic taking turns at, say, 35 mph, you end up with the aforementioned zoom-ahead guy entering the main stream of traffic from a dead stop, causing what I'll call (for lack of a better, non-train-related term) slack-action slowdown.

So, yeah, Minnesota drivers often frustrate me because they're so polite that nobody cares at all about lane discipline, but I'm a big fan of their DOT, and the merge signs I've seen on I-35 construction are one my favorite examples.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
Visit scenic Orleans County, NY!
Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.

Alps

Quote from: kphoger on June 24, 2012, 10:01:56 PM
It just irks me to sit in a mile-long tailback with the other lane completely empty (except for the occasional car going 40 mph faster than us) due to a STATE LAW/MERGE NOW/OFFICERS WILL SHOOT AT WILL sign.  This is for two reasons:  (1) That lane could be used for storing vehicles instead of sitting empty, reducing the length of the tailback without hindering the throughput of the bottleneck (a computer model to support my theory would be appreciated); (2) Instead of traffic taking turns at, say, 35 mph, you end up with the aforementioned zoom-ahead guy entering the main stream of traffic from a dead stop, causing what I'll call (for lack of a better, non-train-related term) slack-action slowdown.

(2) is the real argument in favor. (1) is meaningless because it will take you the same time to get through the queue regardless of what the length is leading up to it. I've seen a study comparing (a) MERGE NOW, (b) MERGE AT THE LAST POSSIBLE MOMENT, and (c) dynamic merge signs every mile that decide when to tell you to merge based on queuing (basically (b) if there's no queue or (a) if there is a queue - so basically (a)). The study found at best marginal differences in throughput between all three.

kphoger

Quote from: Steve on June 25, 2012, 08:35:30 PM
(1) is meaningless because it will take you the same time to get through the queue regardless of what the length is leading up to it. I've seen a study comparing (a) MERGE NOW, (b) MERGE AT THE LAST POSSIBLE MOMENT, and (c) dynamic merge signs every mile that decide when to tell you to merge based on queuing (basically (b) if there's no queue or (a) if there is a queue - so basically (a)). The study found at best marginal differences in throughput between all three.

Thank you so much for reporting an actual study's findings!  I can, however, think of one tangible way and one intangible way that the length of the tailback affects traffic, even if not directly related to the throughput of the bottleneck.  First, if there is an on-ramp just upstream of the merge point, then the length of the tailback could affect merging traffic.  Second, I feel that the zoom-ahead guy creates more road rage in other drivers the more forceful the wording on the signs:  if signs say to take turns at the merge, then people wouldn't be upset at all that someone drives all the way up to the merge; if signs don't offer anything better than "lane ends", then people are moderately upset that the driver isn't being polite and following normal custom; if signs say STATE LAW/MERGE NOW, then people are going to be seriously pissed off at him.  As I said, road rage probably doesn't affect throughput in the slightest, but it matters nonetheless.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
Visit scenic Orleans County, NY!
Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.

Alps

Quote from: kphoger on June 26, 2012, 09:42:17 AM
Quote from: Steve on June 25, 2012, 08:35:30 PM
(1) is meaningless because it will take you the same time to get through the queue regardless of what the length is leading up to it. I've seen a study comparing (a) MERGE NOW, (b) MERGE AT THE LAST POSSIBLE MOMENT, and (c) dynamic merge signs every mile that decide when to tell you to merge based on queuing (basically (b) if there's no queue or (a) if there is a queue - so basically (a)). The study found at best marginal differences in throughput between all three.

Thank you so much for reporting an actual study's findings!  I can, however, think of one tangible way and one intangible way that the length of the tailback affects traffic, even if not directly related to the throughput of the bottleneck.  First, if there is an on-ramp just upstream of the merge point, then the length of the tailback could affect merging traffic.  Second, I feel that the zoom-ahead guy creates more road rage in other drivers the more forceful the wording on the signs:  if signs say to take turns at the merge, then people wouldn't be upset at all that someone drives all the way up to the merge; if signs don't offer anything better than "lane ends", then people are moderately upset that the driver isn't being polite and following normal custom; if signs say STATE LAW/MERGE NOW, then people are going to be seriously pissed off at him.  As I said, road rage probably doesn't affect throughput in the slightest, but it matters nonetheless.
Hey, I'm a traffic guy. I just care about the volumes. :D

Mdcastle

The Top of Iowa rest area was a one shot deal, I've heard the legislature put the kibbosh on new private details. However the new ones their rebuilding are really nice. New sites they do tend to use off an existing interchange so they only need one building, but they do build new ones at existing sites that are a standard design but have unique detailing and themes. I'm posting this from the highway themed Story City Rest Area. Intestate shields as part of the floor, highway trivia on wall tiles. Little cubbyholes with a stool, counter, and outlet for computers. The tile in my kiosk says "Iowa's first segment of interstate highway, I-35/I-80 at the southwest edge of Des Moines, was opened in 1958".

rte66man

Quote from: Mdcastle on June 30, 2012, 04:58:01 PM
The Top of Iowa rest area was a one shot deal, I've heard the legislature put the kibbosh on new private details. However the new ones their rebuilding are really nice. New sites they do tend to use off an existing interchange so they only need one building, but they do build new ones at existing sites that are a standard design but have unique detailing and themes. I'm posting this from the highway themed Story City Rest Area. Intestate shields as part of the floor, highway trivia on wall tiles. Little cubbyholes with a stool, counter, and outlet for computers. The tile in my kiosk says "Iowa's first segment of interstate highway, I-35/I-80 at the southwest edge of Des Moines, was opened in 1958".

AArrghhh. Wife and kids wanted the McDonalds at Story City, so we skipped the rest area.  Do you have some pics?

rte66man
When you come to a fork in the road... TAKE IT.

                                                               -Yogi Berra

Mdcastle

I felt odd taking pictures of a rest area with lots of people around but I found a couple in my archives from a previous trip. I'll post them as part of my own road trip report later on.

kphoger

Quote from: rte66man on July 01, 2012, 04:54:29 PM
Quote from: Mdcastle on June 30, 2012, 04:58:01 PM
The Top of Iowa rest area was a one shot deal, I've heard the legislature put the kibbosh on new private details. However the new ones their rebuilding are really nice. New sites they do tend to use off an existing interchange so they only need one building, but they do build new ones at existing sites that are a standard design but have unique detailing and themes. I'm posting this from the highway themed Story City Rest Area. Intestate shields as part of the floor, highway trivia on wall tiles. Little cubbyholes with a stool, counter, and outlet for computers. The tile in my kiosk says "Iowa's first segment of interstate highway, I-35/I-80 at the southwest edge of Des Moines, was opened in 1958".

AArrghhh. Wife and kids wanted the McDonalds at Story City, so we skipped the rest area.  Do you have some pics?

rte66man

Story City.  A common lunch stop for my family.  Usually Subway for us, though.
Wow, I feel so much like part of a community right now, I'm all warm and fuzzy.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
Visit scenic Orleans County, NY!
Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.



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