Busiest 2-Lane Roads

[doorknob60]

In Idaho, #1 of state highways (not even going to try to consider city streets, though I can't think of any good candidates) is likely US-20/26 between Eagle Rd. and Locust Grove (3 lanes, one a center turn lane only counts for this, right?) in Boise/Meridian/Eagle. I can't find any traffic data there (ITD's website is pretty bad compared to ODOT, and information is less plentiful and harder to find), but farther west at McDermott Rd. (where there is less traffic) the AADT is around 16,000. So it wouldn't surprise me if farther east it approaches 25,000-30,000 (but that's just a guess). 1 mile between Eagle Rd. and Locust Grove is already planned for widening soon, and long terms plans for widening from Eagle Rd. to Caldwell.

A close #2 I'd guess would be ID-55 between Nampa and Marsing. Data shows about 16,000 AADT near Indiana Ave, though I bet closer in to Nampa that number is more like 20,000-25,000 (though again I'm just estimating).

EDIT: Another contender is ID-44 between Star and Eagle. Traffic counters should about 18,500 AADT there, though that's probably the peak of the 2 lane section (whereas the above two don't have counters in the highest traffic segments).

[roadman65]

US 1 from FL City to Key Largo.  Now with the Jersey barrier its harder to pass, except only in the passing areas.  It can get pretty congested with it being a major road to all the Keys.  Card Sound Road is nearby, but still is not the best alternate.

[Bickendan]

Portland: Sellwood Bridge, though Division Street between 3rd and 82nd gets up there.

[sparker]

Aside from the routes Max mentioned in his earlier post, the 2-lane road that stands out in terms of consistent congestion is CA 84: two segments, the first being Niles Canyon Road (between CA 238 and I-680; the second is the segment immediately east of I-680 heading toward Livermore.  The final segment of that route, the N-S section along Isabel Ave. (on the west side of Livermore) has recently been upgraded to a multilane facility.

In the same general area, Vasco Road has an unimproved section in Alameda County that remains 2 lanes, although the northern portion of the road in Contra Costa County has been improved to 2 lanes on uphill segments (both directions) with a K-rail down the middle.  However, the single-lane downhill sections are unbelievably congested during rush hours (morning, SB and evening, NB); Silicon Valley workers heading to and from their homes in Brentwood and Discovery Bay (where houses are about half as expensive as San Jose and environs).

When I was traveling regularly (at least 8-10 times per year) beween Northern California and the Northwest, I used to use OR 58 as a NB route during the periods of benign weather; that route was incredibly busy no matter what time of day or which day of the week -- and dominated by trucks.  US 97 from Klamath Falls to the OR 58 junction was equally busy -- and also truck-heavy.  Both were primarily 2 lanes except through the larger towns. 

[cjk374]

US 190 in Slidell from the US 11 junction westward is hell on Earth.

[sbeaver44]

Highest I can find in the Harrisburg-York-Lancaster area according to PennDOT is 21,000.  It appears 3x:

PA 74 between Davidsburg Rd in Dover and the beginning of the 4-lane by US 30.

PA 94 between PA 234 and PA 394

Harrisburg Pike in Lancaster east of US 30 to PA 72. 

Nexus 6P

[cpzilliacus]

In WV the very dangerous 12 mile gap in US 35 which will hopefully be eliminated by fall of 19 is the busiest.  After that, there really are no 2-lane roads that make much sense for thru traffic.

The remaining 2-lane segments of US 340 would fit the bill, especially the segment near Harpers Ferry which is well into the 20K's for daily traffic.

Very much agree.  That section of U.S. 340 is the main gateway road from "metropolitan" Maryland to the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia (even though U.S. 340 crosses the northern tip of Loudoun County, Virginia to get there), and carries heavy traffic most days of the  week.

The horse race track and casino at Charles Town draws at least some  customers from Maryland, presumably via U.S. 340.

Then there's the matter of a fair amount of "leapfrog" development in Jefferson and Berkeley Counties with many of the new homes being sold to Marylanders "voting with their feet" to leave the high home prices (caused at least in part by Smart Growth policies at the state and local levels) and move to the Eastern Panhandle. 

I am not aware of West Virginia having any Smart Growth laws at the state level.

[RobbieL2415]

Sullivan Ave. (CT 194), South Windsor, CT.  It serves as a main road/industrual route through the center of town and handles rush-hour traffic coming from west of the CT River via the Bissell Bridge.  It carries a 40mph speed limit but good luck going more than 35 during the day.  The NIMBYs refuse to widen it too even though there's a bunch of warehouses and a FedEx sorting center the lie on it.

[sparker]

I'd venture a guess that the multiplexed US 2/US 95 between Bonners Ferry and Sandpoint, ID would be the busiest 2-lane segment in northern Idaho -- and probably the entire extended Spokane area.  Carries most of the area traffic -- commercial and otherwise -- from I-90 north into Canada.

[JREwing78]

Wisconsin tends to 4-lane the busier stretches before they crest 10,000 vehicles per day. US-12/18 is an exception at 12,500 vpd east of the County N interchange, and north (west) of Sauk City.

Michigan hangs onto the 2-lanes a bit longer. US-127 south of Jackson is one outlier, at 19,000 vpd. Stretches of M-72 east of Traverse City run at about 15,000 vpd. M-53 north of Romeo reaches as high as 20,000 vpd, as does M-59 between Howell and US-23.

[jakeroot]

It'd be nice if we started seeing more AADT (VPD) numbers. That way, we could get an idea of the busiest section of single-carriageway in the US.

Surely traffic counts are published by most agencies. WSDOT publishes an interactive map. Several local counties near me publish PDFs with a list of every road.

In order from most to least, based on solid numbers already mentioned, here's the current leaderboard (only one number from each state):

1) sections of WA-522 (~27,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
2) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
3) sections of PA-74/PA-94/Harrisburg Pike (~21,000 VPD)
4) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
5) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
6) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
7) sections of US-12/US-18 (WI)(~12,500 VPD)

Several other more vague responses have been mentioned:

froggie suggests US-340 in WV is "well into the 20k's"
7/8 suggests ON-8 has an AADT that is "pretty high"

Most every other user has suggested that "X road is pretty busy" but not much in the way of a number or even a mention of the terms "AADT" or "VPD".

I wouldn't mind just looking up some of the roads mentioned, but it can be hard to decipher these AADT PDFs without being familiar with the route's mileposts or cross routes.

[7/8]

It turns out finding AADT for Ontario's provincial highways is easier than I expected: http://www.raqsa.mto.gov.on.ca/techpubs/TrafficVolumes.nsf/tvweb?OpenForm&Seq=1

It says that in 2013, the section of Highway 6 between Puslinch Townline Road and Calfass Road has an AADT of 27,700. Now that I know how easy it is to look up, I'll check the numbers before posting next time

[jakeroot]

It turns out finding AADT for Ontario's provincial highways is easier than I expected: http://www.raqsa.mto.gov.on.ca/techpubs/TrafficVolumes.nsf/tvweb?OpenForm&Seq=1

It says that in 2013, the section of Highway 6 between Puslinch Townline Road and Calfass Road has an AADT of 27,700. Now that I know how easy it is to look up, I'll check the numbers before posting next time

Not to worry. OP didn't ask for AADT numbers. I'm just being a finicky dickhead.

New list:

1) sections of ON-6 (CAN)(~27,700 VPD)
2) sections of WA-522 (~27,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
3) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
4) sections of PA-74/PA-94/Harrisburg Pike (~21,000 VPD)
5) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
6) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
7) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
8) sections of US-12/US-18 (WI)(~12,500 VPD)

[briantroutman]

Highest I can find in the Harrisburg-York-Lancaster area according to PennDOT is 21,000.

US 30 between PA 896 and Ronks Road (a two-lane section) is 24,000 according to PennDOT's 2015 Lancaster County traffic volume map.

[jakeroot]

Highest I can find in the Harrisburg-York-Lancaster area according to PennDOT is 21,000.

US 30 between PA 896 and Ronks Road (a two-lane section) is 24,000 according to PennDOT's 2015 Lancaster County traffic volume map.

PA remains at number 4...

1) sections of ON-6 (CAN)(~27,700 VPD)
2) sections of WA-522 (~27,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
3) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
4) sections of (PA) US-30 (~24,000 VPD)
5) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
6) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
7) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
8) sections of (WI) US-12/US-18 (~12,500 VPD)

[jwolfer]

NJ 47 is very busy during beach season, especially northbound on Sunday afternoons. We really need NJ 55 to be completed, but I don't see that happening any time soon.

And 347.  And 322. And 83.  And 9. 

Hell, we can pretty much name every state and US road in NJ with 2 lanes - they just about all qualify.

Agreeed on that... 70 and 72 should have been 4 lanes decades ago. Wont happen due to Pinelands

NJ had plans for an extensive freeway network, so old 2 lanes roads were not dualized... Then of course all the, well at least most if the plans were canceled or remain incomplete... Like 55 and 18

LGMS428

[Bickendan]

Sellwood Bridge clocks in at 30,000 VPD, and that count will include SE Tacoma St from the foot of the bridge to at least SE 13th Ave, likely to 17th.

[Buffaboy]

Nothing too crazy in the Buffalo area, which I would attribute to the ample capacity our roads have as a result of the population decline.

Although Losson Road in Lancaster runs between ~16-13k VPD from Union to Transit Roads, which might be the result of newer housing developments east of Transit Road. The turning lanes at Losson/Union/William would suggest these are big movements, with traffic headed to I-90.

Commuting that far out with no expressway must not be great.

Edit: I should also add Central Ave in Lancaster, as well as Genesee St east of Transit Rd.

[7/8]

I've added the 2-lane portion of Highway 7 between Kitchener and Guelph to the list (a new freeway is being built just to the north of the existing road).

1) sections of ON-6 (CAN) (~27,700 VPD)
2) sections of WA-522 (~27,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
3) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
4) sections of (PA) US-30 (~24,000 VPD)
5) sections of ON-7 (CAN) (~21,800 VPD)
6) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
7) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
8) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
9) sections of (WI) US-12/US-18 (~12,500 VPD)

[intelati49]

It'd be nice if we started seeing more AADT (VPD) numbers. That way, we could get an idea of the busiest section of single-carriageway in the US.

Hey, thanks. I had that thought, but felt kind of like an asshole for thinking to suggest that.

[hotdogPi]

Based on this webpage, US 3 immediately south of I-95/MA 128 (Exit 33A) has over 30000 AADT (and under 60000, but that's almost guaranteed anyway).

Note: The link itself won't do it for you. You have to use the interactive for it to show this segment of US 3 in orange, which means between 30000 and 60000 AADT. My steps were:
1. Zoom in to the segment of road I mentioned.
2. Click the + next to Tools in the upper right.
3. Click the Traffic Flow checkbox.
4. Click the + net to Traffic Flow to show the legend.

[froggie]

One that would have been near the top of the list until the recent completion of it's dualization is the US 58 Midtown Tunnel between Portsmouth and Norfolk, VA.  It was sitting at a 32,000 AADT.

One that should be on the list:  the US 12 Long Lake Bypass (MN) has a 2015 AADT of 23,100.  I'm not 100% on this next bit, but I believe this is the highest 2-lane average annual volume in Minnesota.

The Virginia portion of the above-mentioned US 340 near Harpers Ferry has an AADT of 24,000.

[jakeroot]

Based on this webpage, US 3 immediately south of I-95/MA 128 (Exit 33A) has over 30000 AADT (and under 60000, but that's almost guaranteed anyway).

Note: The link itself won't do it for you. You have to use the interactive for it to show this segment of US 3 in orange, which means between 30000 and 60000 AADT.

I got the page up and running. The blue boxes that appear along the route suggest an AADT somewhere between 24k and 26k, but the years were '92 and '88 when they were counted (respectively). Not sure how accurate that is in 2016 though. I couldn't manipulate the site to give me any new numbers. I try to use the location ID, but it wasn't having it. Either way, if you average those two numbers, that's still a very high AADT.

I've added the 2-lane portion of Highway 7 between Kitchener and Guelph to the list (a new freeway is being built just to the north of the existing road).

I'm trying to just have one route from each state or province. If you find a route in Ontario that has a higher VPD than sections of Hwy 6, you'd want to replace Hwy 6 on the list with the new route (since only one route from each state/province is allowed).

I'm only doing one route from state/province because I don't want the list to get ridiculously long. That said, if someone wants to keep track the busiest routes, period, they are certainly welcome to.

Sellwood Bridge clocks in at 30,000 VPD, and that count will include SE Tacoma St from the foot of the bridge to at least SE 13th Ave, likely to 17th.

Is that before or after widening? The new bridge looks to be four lanes. If before, that would be a very busy bridge! Looks like it would squeeze in at #2 (#1 for Oregon until we know better).

Whoops. Looks like the new bridge is still two lanes. I've added the bridge to the list...

One that would have been near the top of the list until the recent completion of it's dualization is the US 58 Midtown Tunnel between Portsmouth and Norfolk, VA.  It was sitting at a 32,000 AADT.

One that should be on the list:  the US 12 Long Lake Bypass (MN) has a 2015 AADT of 23,100.  I'm not 100% on this next bit, but I believe this is the highest 2-lane average annual volume in Minnesota.

The Virginia portion of the above-mentioned US 340 near Harpers Ferry has an AADT of 24,000.

Looks good. Looks like we have a new leader (by a country mile)

1) sections of SW Sellwood (OR, Sellwood Bridge) (~30,000 VPD)
2) sections of WA-522 (~28,000 VPD)
3) sections of ON-6 (CAN) (~27,700 VPD)
4) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
5) sections of (MA) US-3 (~25,550 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
6) sections of (PA) US-30 (~24,000 VPD)
6) sections of (VA) US-340 (~24,000 VPD)
8) sections of (MN) US-12 (~23,100 VPD)
9) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
9) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
11) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
12) sections of (NY, Lancaster) Losson Road (~14,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
13) sections of (WI) US-12/US-18 (~12,500 VPD)

By the way, I've changed the Michigan routes to also be number 8, since they're a tie with the Missouri route.

EDIT: I've had to adjust my Washington route (522). My original count included a four-lane section well past the Snohomish River. Weirdly, this four lane section is quieter than the two lane section (the number went up).

[froggie]

Jake:  take US 58 off the list.  As I noted, it would have been near the top until the recent completion of it's dualization.  It's a past one, but no longer current since it's now 4 lanes (as of last summer).  You also missed what I posted about US 340 near Harpers Ferry which would put it tied with #7.

[jakeroot]

Jake:  take US 58 off the list.  As I noted, it would have been near the top until the recent completion of it's dualization.  It's a past one, but no longer current since it's now 4 lanes (as of last summer).  You also missed what I posted about US 340 near Harpers Ferry which would put it tied with #7.

Ahh crap. I did see the bit on Harpers Ferry, but I ignored it because it looked like US-58 was busier. I see now that I completely missed that bit on dualization. Here's the list again:

1) sections of SW Sellwood (OR, Sellwood Bridge) (~30,000 VPD)
2) sections of WA-522 (~28,000 VPD)
3) sections of ON-6 (CAN) (~27,700 VPD)
4) sections of MD-32 (~26,200 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
5) sections of (MA) US-3 (~25,550 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
6) sections of (PA) US-30 (~24,000 VPD)
6) sections of (VA) US-340 (~24,000 VPD)
8) sections of (MN) US-12 (~23,100 VPD)
9) sections of MO-76 (~20,000 VPD)
9) sections of M-53/M-59 (~20,000 VPD)
11) sections of ID-44 (~18,500 VPD)
12) sections of (NY, Lancaster) Losson Road (~14,500 VPD) (averaged two numbers)
13) sections of (WI) US-12/US-18 (~12,500 VPD)