What do visitors say about your area road network?

[webny99]

I would suggest reading through the Kansas Turnpike article on Wikipedia, as it is one of the most complete sources of information on the road as anyone could put together.

If this is not sarcasm, then I will do just that, someday when I got lots of spare time

Definitely not sarcasm. The Kansas Turnpike article is a featured article on Wikipedia for a reason. You should also check out Scott5114's Wikipedia userpage.

Alrighty then. Learn something new every day.

[Jmiles32]

Some things that in no particular order come to mind when referencing Northern Virginia's road network:
- Too many tolls
- Sprawl
- Way to congested
- Why the hell is I-66 inside the beltway four-lanes?
- Stupid
- Sad

And my personal favorite from a relative visiting back when I lived in Woodbridge:
- I-95 is a dumpster fire

[7/8]

For Kitchener-Waterloo:

- The road layout is too confusing (I won't disagree)
- Why are there two number 8's? (again, I can see why that's confusing)

- Why do the numbers change so much on the highways? (it's unfortunate, but I can't think of any better solutions)

- Lots of roundabouts

For Toronto:
- The 401 is huge!
- Traffic is terrible
- Drivers are aggressive
(I agree with all three of these, though I don't mind the drivers that much)

[hotdogPi]

Massachusetts:

Too many rotaries
Drivers are crazy (applies more to Boston proper than to where I live)
Driving in the breakdown lane is LEGAL at certain times of day on certain roads

One person in particular, about the Sumner Tunnel: "Is there a winter tunnel too?" (He was not joking; he just misread the sign.)

And then there's not being able to pronounce Woburn, Leominster, Worcester, Gloucester, or Peabody, but that's not the road network itself.

----

Some people I was with, about New Hampshire:

Food/gas/lodging signs don't tell you which restaurants or other businesses there are until AFTER you get onto the offramp (at least on I-93), which defeats the purpose.

[kphoger]

A lot of roadgeek friends who have visited me in MN comment impressively on the large volume of freeways in the Twin Cities.

I know this isn't what the thread is about, but allow me to offer my opinions about Minnesota roads.

(1)  County roads that are well signed, most paved, and many with hard shoulders.  This is freaking awesome.
(2)  Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.
(3)  Separate signage for snowmobiles?  OK, maybe we're starting to go overboard here...
(4)  I can't drive fifty-five.
(5)  People have no sense of slower traffic keeping right, and yet nobody seems to mind.
(6)  Bump, bump, bump, bump...  Freeze, thaw, freeze, thaw...

And, for the Twin Cities specifically...

(1)  Stupid Mississippi River!  I shouldn't have to go to Elk River in order to get from Rogers to Anoka.
(2)  Several highways that need to be freeways but aren't:  MN-252, US-10 west of Anoka, MN-13 west of Burnsville.
(3)  Lack of destination names on guide signs, just route numbers.  Boo!

[webny99]

Massachusetts:
Drivers are crazy (applies more to Boston proper than to where I live)

I have often heard this, too, though have no firsthand experience.

And then there's not being able to pronounce Woburn, Leominster, Worcester, Gloucester, or Peabody, but that's not the road network itself.

NY has this problem quite a bit, too. Skaneateles, Schuyler, Schuylkill, etc. There's also issues with spelling when it comes to Canandaigua and Irondequoit, and not even just non-locals.

I know this isn't what the thread is about, but allow me to offer my opinions about Minnesota roads.

Certainly seems relevant to me... you're just posting it yourself instead of the news traveling via someone from MN 

(2)  Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.

Totally agree. Ontario does this a bit, but I've not seen any other states that do it to the extent Minnesota does.

(4)  I can't drive fifty-five.

Do say more!

[Hurricane Rex]

Massachusetts:
Drivers are crazy (applies more to Boston proper than to where I live)

I have often heard this, too, though have no firsthand experience.

And then there's not being able to pronounce Woburn, Leominster, Worcester, Gloucester, or Peabody, but that's not the road network itself.

NY has this problem quite a bit, too. Skaneateles, Schuyler, Schuylkill, etc. There's also issues with spelling when it comes to Canandaigua and Irondequoit, and not even just non-locals.

I know this isn't what the thread is about, but allow me to offer my opinions about Minnesota roads.

Certainly seems relevant to me... you're just posting it yourself instead of the news traveling via someone from MN 

(2)  Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.

Totally agree. Ontario does this a bit, but I've not seen any other states that do it to the extent Minnesota does.

(4)  I can't drive fifty-five.

Do say more!

Too slow of speed limits? Or too much traffic? Those are my two guesses. Also for the bypass lanes, just toll them and build them.

[webny99]

Also for the bypass lanes, just toll them and build them.

I don't think you know what he meant by bypass lanes. They're lanes that allow you to pass people who are slowing down to make a turn. This prevents a whole string of cars from having a brake-fest when someone needs to turn, but yet while still eliminating the investment required for full turn lanes.

(Also, I wish that you had not quoted my whole quote, but, if you're using a mobile device then I'll forgive you  )

[ce929wax]

Interstate 94.  It sucks.  It seems like at any little snowfall there is a 10+ car pileup, and people don't pay any attention to what they are doing.  I would rather take back roads from Kalamazoo to Battle Creek than I-94.  Ditto US-131, although US-131 isn't as bad.

[kphoger]

(4)  I can't drive fifty-five.

Too slow of speed limits? Or too much traffic? Those are my two guesses

The first one

(2)  Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.

Also for the bypass lanes, just toll them and build them.

I don't think you know what he meant by bypass lanes.

Right, he obviously didn't know what I meant.  Like this and this.  They're all over Minnesota.

Ontario does this a bit, but I've not seen any other states that do it to the extent Minnesota does.

JREwing78 says they're common in Wisconsin.

[J N Winkler]

Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.

I would respectfully disagree.  The complete solution is road widening at the intersection such that on the road having priority, left-turning, straight-ahead, and right-turning vehicles are all segregated into their own lanes, with full paved shoulders being provided on all intersection approaches.  This is how it is done on Super Two highways in Kansas and that is the model to propagate.

In Minnesota the bypass lanes are nice at tee junctions, but at crossroads (notably along TH 23 around Foley) there are cases where right-turn lanes are provided when the bulk of traffic wants to turn left, so that the right-turn lane gets mistaken as a bypass lane and drivers going around a left-turning vehicle have to swerve abruptly back to the left to avoid going onto the shoulder or into the ditch.  And there are numerous examples in Minnesota where segregation of through and turning traffic is achieved by striping the shoulder as part of the traveled way rather than actually expanding the paved roadway cross-section.

Another point to keep in mind is that the motivation for explicitly signing bypass lanes is the same as for blade-up/blade-down signing for guardrails, explicit signing of turn lane beginnings, etc.:  heavy snow in winter.  States that get less snow also provide bypass lanes--they just don't put up "Bypass Lane" signs for them.

[webny99]

Bypass lanes.  Every other state needs to get on board with this one.

I would respectfully disagree.  The complete solution is road widening at the intersection such that on the road having priority, left-turning, straight-ahead, and right-turning vehicles are all segregated into their own lanes, with full paved shoulders being provided on all intersection approaches.  This is how it is done on Super Two highways in Kansas and that is the model to propagate.

I agree with both statements. I think the importance of the road makes a big difference as to whether full turn lanes are worth the investment. On a super-2, or main corridor that goes cross-state, definitely worth investing in proper turn lanes. On a local or county road (or even some less significant state highways) there's probably not significant long-distance traffic, and driver expectations aren't as high, so bypass lanes work just fine.

Just thought I'd be proactive in making that distinction 

[LM117]

Clusterfuck, mostly thanks to the suicide lane from hell on Piney Forest Road (US-29 Business) between Central Boulevard and VA-41.

[kkt]

What do you mean, I-5 narrows to two lanes through downtown?  Who thought that was a good idea?

[kphoger]

I thought of one for Wichita...

"He said to take Kellogg east to I-35 and it would be just past that.  I'm out here by Wal-Mart, and I don't see it anywhere."

This is because locals think I-135 is I-35, and they give directions accordingly.

[webny99]

This is because locals think I-135 is I-35, and they give directions accordingly.

Oops. That could get awkward at times. Is there a reason for this? 

[kphoger]

This is because locals think I-135 is I-35, and they give directions accordingly.

Oops. That could get awkward at times. Is there a reason for this? 

The assumption among the users here is that it's because the highway used to be I-35W until 1976.

[J N Winkler]

I-135 in Kansas was I-35W originally.  And just to add to the fun and games, the length of current I-135 between I-35 (Turnpike access) and the I-235 wye was originally I-235.  I-235 itself was originally signed as US 81 Bypass, and that was the preferred way of referring to it locally for decades.

Edit:  (1) Foregoing crossed with Kphoger's last post; and (2) in cases where it is suspected the directions-giver is confusing I-135 and I-35, bring the Canal Route into the conversation.  Ordinary folks in Wichita just don't have a concept of the Turnpike as a Wichita freeway or as part of I-35 because it runs in a blind corridor in southeast Wichita.

[webny99]

This is because locals think I-135 is I-35, and they give directions accordingly.

Oops. That could get awkward at times. Is there a reason for this? 

The assumption among the users here is that it's because the highway used to be I-35W until 1976.

Learn something new every day. That's funny, because in the Twin Cities, locals definitely use the suffixes for I-35E and I-35W.

[US 81]

What is with all the frontage/service/access roads along the freeways in Texas?

[odditude]

NOVA: "nobody knows how to drive, traffic sucks... and why the hell do so many people have their high-beams on?!"

[Perfxion]

Houston:
1: With so many lanes, why so much traffic?
2: Whats with so many toll roads?
3:(coming back after 30+ years to I-45 Gulf Freeway) Damn, they still not done with this?
4:What?! We're still in Houston? When been driving for over an hour.

[Scott5114]

"This is the worst Interstate I've ever been on" –H.B. Elkins, I think, traveling the old I-40 Crosstown at the 2008 OKC Meet

[kkt]

This is because locals think I-135 is I-35, and they give directions accordingly.

Oops. That could get awkward at times. Is there a reason for this? 

The assumption among the users here is that it's because the highway used to be I-35W until 1976.

Moral for all the frequenters of Fictional Highways:  be careful of changing numbers all willy-nilly because people will be getting confused for the next 20 years.

[1995hoo]

NOVA: "nobody knows how to drive, traffic sucks... and why the hell do so many people have their high-beams on?!"

Funny, lately I've noticed less of this and a lot more of people driving around at night with no headlights at all, not even DRLs.