Counties with NO Direct Routes to Other States

[Flint1979]

Nevermind on Alger County I didn't realize it goes as far west as it does to include US-41 in it's southwest corner.

[GaryV]

Michigan has some. I know in my area that Gladwin, Midland, Tuscola, Sanillac and Huron don't have any routes that connect to another state. That's just a start for Michigan. My county has I-75 and US-23 that connect to Ohio and I-75 to Ontario, Canada.

You aren't counting the Badger as part of US-10?  That would eliminate Midland.

In the UP, I see only Luce County not having a single State/US/Interstate highway connection to another state.  Although if I recall correctly, at one time M-28 was concurrent with US-2 into Wisconsin, so historically it would not have qualified.

In the Lower Peninsula I add Montmorency and Oscoda to your list.  And Lake County's only connection is via the Badger as noted above for Midland.

You are correct however I have a hard time considering Lake Michigan as being a part of the route but it is. There is probably a few more. Leelanau and Alger seem like they could make the list as well. I'm thinking off the top of my head and not looking at a map. The way I'm thinking is the counties that  I-75, US-24, US-23, US-127, I-69, US-131, US-31, US-12, I-94, US-41, US-141, US-2, US-8 or US-45 don't go through. I can't think of another highway that leaves the state.

Another thing are we counting state highways that obviously end at the state line? Like Ionia County could count but M-66 goes to the Indiana State line.

You're right, Leelanau should be included in the list.

If you don't count M highways that become another number as they cross to IN, we would add Cass County to the list, even though it borders IN.  Hillsdale or Lenawee would be candidates, except that US-127 runs right down the border between the counties, and so is in both of them continuing into OH.

Other counties with the only connection as M-66 are Barry and Missaukee.

[Flint1979]

Michigan has some. I know in my area that Gladwin, Midland, Tuscola, Sanillac and Huron don't have any routes that connect to another state. That's just a start for Michigan. My county has I-75 and US-23 that connect to Ohio and I-75 to Ontario, Canada.

You aren't counting the Badger as part of US-10?  That would eliminate Midland.

In the UP, I see only Luce County not having a single State/US/Interstate highway connection to another state.  Although if I recall correctly, at one time M-28 was concurrent with US-2 into Wisconsin, so historically it would not have qualified.

In the Lower Peninsula I add Montmorency and Oscoda to your list.  And Lake County's only connection is via the Badger as noted above for Midland.

You are correct however I have a hard time considering Lake Michigan as being a part of the route but it is. There is probably a few more. Leelanau and Alger seem like they could make the list as well. I'm thinking off the top of my head and not looking at a map. The way I'm thinking is the counties that  I-75, US-24, US-23, US-127, I-69, US-131, US-31, US-12, I-94, US-41, US-141, US-2, US-8 or US-45 don't go through. I can't think of another highway that leaves the state.

Another thing are we counting state highways that obviously end at the state line? Like Ionia County could count but M-66 goes to the Indiana State line.

You're right, Leelanau should be included in the list.

If you don't count M highways that become another number as they cross to IN, we would add Cass County to the list, even though it borders IN.  Hillsdale or Lenawee would be candidates, except that US-127 runs right down the border between the counties, and so is in both of them continuing into OH.

Other counties with the only connection as M-66 are Barry and Missaukee.

Cass has US-12 in it. I was thinking US-127 entered Missaukee but it misses it by a few miles to the east.

[jp the roadgeek]

Two in Massachusetts. Not surprisingly, they are Dukes county and Nantucket county.

Pretty sure those are the only two in all of New England.

[Bitmapped]

West Virginia:
- Webster County qualifies. It only has 3 state routes and none of them go to the state line.
- Wirt County qualifies (barely). WV 14 will get you within about 2 blocks of the Ohio state line.
- Tyler County is debatable. An unsigned extension of WV 18 runs to the landing for the Sistersville Ferry, which connects to Ohio.

All of the other counties in West Virginia have either a US route or Interstate.

[webny99]

Two in Massachusetts. Not surprisingly, they are Dukes county and Nantucket county.

Pretty sure those are the only two in all of New England.

Surely there's some in Maine, no?

[formulanone]

If I'm understanding the thread premise correctly, all of Alabama's 67 counties have a direct connection to another state via Interstate, US route, or a singular state route (Wilcox 10, Clay 48, Geneva...there's several).

[Roadgeekteen]

Two in Massachusetts. Not surprisingly, they are Dukes county and Nantucket county.

Pretty sure those are the only two in all of New England.

Surely there's some in Maine, no?

counties in Maine are pretty big.

[sandwalk]

I was going to suggest Monroe County, Ohio until I found out State Route 536, while unsigned, becomes West Virginia Route 7 at the New Martinsville Bridge.

That being the case, I believe all counties in Ohio have a direct route connection with another state.

[wanderer2575]

Michigan has some. I know in my area that Gladwin, Midland, Tuscola, Sanillac and Huron don't have any routes that connect to another state. That's just a start for Michigan. My county has I-75 and US-23 that connect to Ohio and I-75 to Ontario, Canada.

You aren't counting the Badger as part of US-10?  That would eliminate Midland.

In the UP, I see only Luce County not having a single State/US/Interstate highway connection to another state.  Although if I recall correctly, at one time M-28 was concurrent with US-2 into Wisconsin, so historically it would not have qualified.

In the Lower Peninsula I add Montmorency and Oscoda to your list.  And Lake County's only connection is via the Badger as noted above for Midland.

Add Leelanau and Newaygo counties to the list for the Lower Peninsula.

[Flint1979]

Michigan has some. I know in my area that Gladwin, Midland, Tuscola, Sanillac and Huron don't have any routes that connect to another state. That's just a start for Michigan. My county has I-75 and US-23 that connect to Ohio and I-75 to Ontario, Canada.

You aren't counting the Badger as part of US-10?  That would eliminate Midland.

In the UP, I see only Luce County not having a single State/US/Interstate highway connection to another state.  Although if I recall correctly, at one time M-28 was concurrent with US-2 into Wisconsin, so historically it would not have qualified.

In the Lower Peninsula I add Montmorency and Oscoda to your list.  And Lake County's only connection is via the Badger as noted above for Midland.

Add Leelanau and Newaygo counties to the list for the Lower Peninsula.

I had Leelanau but not Newaygo.

[CNGL-Leudimin]

All counties of Hawaii

[mrcmc888]

Tennessee, being a crossroads state with plenty of state routes that go border to border (many with unsigned parts) has none, by my estimation.

[cpzilliacus]

I believe some of the remaining counties have zero connections to any other state... which gets me thinking...

... in figuring out which counties in New York are directly connected by numbered route to Pennsylvania, I discovered something interesting. Several of our counties actually have ZERO direct numbered highway connections to any other state.

48 of New York's 62 counties have direct connections to Pennsylvania.
Of the 14 that don't, 9 have direct routes to other bordering states, and a 10th (Hamilton County) has NY 30, a direct route to Quebec.

That leaves just 4 counties, Suffolk, Nassau, Lewis and Orleans*, with no direct routes to anywhere out of state.
How many such counties are there in your state?

Most counties in my state share a border with one of our neighbors, and from Frederick County to Garrett County in the west, all of them border Pennsylvania on the north and Virginia or West Virginia on the south.

I can think of two counties that do not share a land border (or a bridge) to a neighboring state and have no Interstate or U.S. highway miles.  Those are Calvert County and St. Mary's County.  But those fail the "direct highway" test, since both are connected to the District of Columbia (which I consider to be a state in this context) by MD-4.  Additionally, St. Mary's County has a second direct route to D.C. in MD-5, which runs the length of St. Mary's, from the southern tip of Maryland's Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay at Point Lookout all the way to D.C. (both MD-5 and MD-4 end at the D.C./Maryland border).

County-equivalent Baltimore City does not border any other state, but has three Interstate highways that lead directly to neighboring states (in addition to U.S. 1 and U.S. 40), so it does not count.

So the answer for Maryland is zero. 

[GaryA]

In California, Trinity County used to be this, but when State Route 299 (supplanting the former US 299) was extended to connect to a dirt road in Nevada, it no longer counts.

Lake County however does (Route 29, 175, 20, 53 all do not lead to a state border).

Butte County looks like it does now (state route 99, 70, 149, 191, 32, 162); prior to 1964 however 99 was US 99E and 70 at the time was Alternate US 40, the latter of which did cross into Nevada and the former of which was part of the multi-state US 99.

Because of the 1964 decommissioning of US 99E and Alternate US 40, Yuba County now also fits this category (99, 65, 70, 49, 20).

Tulare County fits this category specifically because the two segments of Route 190 have never been joined together.  Madera County fits due to US 99 becoming Route 99.

Mariposa County and Tuolumne County qualify as Route 120 ends at US 6 just a few miles from the Nevada state line.

Calaveras County also seems to be in this category.

For California, Santa Cruz County seems to also be in this category (routes 1, 9, 17, 35, 129, 152, 236).

[CoreySamson]

Texas has at least one, Delta County.

However, I'm surprised Brazoria County actually has a direct route to Oklahoma via TX 6.

[formulanone]

Florida only has one county without a singular route designation to another state, and that's Liberty County. After FL 65 was truncated north of US 90 near Quincy (as CR 65), it's had no directly-numbered route to any other state.

[paulthemapguy]

I figured out Illinois.  Jasper and Menard Counties both count.  Calhoun County probably also counts, even though it has a ferry to Winfield, Missouri.  That ferry isn't along a state or other kind of route, though. To figure this out, I made a big list of every county and trying to name a connecting route from each one, starting with naming all 102 counties from memory 

[mrcmc888]

Florida only has one county without a singular route designation to another state, and that's Liberty County. After FL 65 was truncated north of US 90 near Quincy (as CR 65), it's had no directly-numbered route to any other state.

Looking on Google Maps it appears that a small sliver of FL-267, which runs to the Georgia border, does enter Liberty County.

[roadfro]

Since all of Nevada's 16 counties plus the independent city of Carson City are served by either a US highway or an interstate that crosses into another state, there aren't any here.

Technically true.

Functionally, though, you could consider Storey County for this list. I-80 only very briefly passes through the northern tip of Storey County where there is no access between I-80 and the rest of the county. So someone living/working in Storey County can't take get out of the state by use of a single route.

In California, Trinity County used to be this, but when State Route 299 (supplanting the former US 299) was extended to connect to a dirt road in Nevada, it no longer counts.

Well, as long as the dirt road is at least a numbered state highway. If it's less than that, I would say the county still counts.

That dirt road is the northernmost section of the pre-1976 Nevada State Route 8A, and is no longer state-maintained. The old route, to my knowledge, is not numbered by Washoe County (and likely receives minimal, if any, maintenance from the county as it is in the sparsely-populated northwestern corner of the state).

[formulanone]

Florida only has one county without a singular route designation to another state, and that's Liberty County. After FL 65 was truncated north of US 90 near Quincy (as CR 65), it's had no directly-numbered route to any other state.

Looking on Google Maps it appears that a small sliver of FL-267, which runs to the Georgia border, does enter Liberty County.

Yeah, you're right about that. 267 just crossed the plane of Liberty County line at FL 20!

[JayhawkCO]

A few in Colorado: Gilpin, Hinsdale, Custer, and San Miguel.  San Miguel is on the Utah border as well, but doesn't have any numbered routes that cross the border, which may be unique in the country I suppose.  Any others that are on a border but don't have a road that eventually crosses one?

Chris

[index]

With only a handful of state highways, 306, 304, 55, and a tiny slice of 33, it doesn't appear Pamlico County, NC has any direct connection to another state. I don't believe Hyde has any direct connections either (US 264 doesn't leave the state), and some other rural eastern NC counties like Chowan and Tyrrell would have no direct connections if it wasn't for US 17 and 64. Western North Carolina, while rural, is on the border with Tennessee so its counties also avoid this situation.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think any SC county has this situation at all, I think all of them have at least two US highways and there aren't any intra-state ones there.