One thing that amazed me is how KDOT conceals all of their original alignments through a city that is now bypassed. Unlike many places where a turn is required to use the new alignment, or a Y or obvious T intersection where the old road is obvious, Kansas roads default their current roadways into the new alignment requiring you to make adjustments to access the old alignment.
Perfect example is on Nickerson Boulevard in Hutchinson, KS. If you head East on that road, which is current K-14 and K-96, at the point the new Bob Dole Bypass begins deviating the two state routes from Nickerson Boulevard the old road is completely chopped up and out of view. To continue on Nickerson, you must exit at the first bypass exit that is over a quarter mile up then use the ramps and turn right on another road which makes a gradual turn which in turn defaults into Nickerson Blvd.
Another thing good KDOT does is builds super twos and even expressways with full 10 feet shoulders and gradual turns to allow for safe driving around bends, and great sight distances on straight away segments. Unlike many that offer no shoulders and even 11 feet lanes with not so gradual turns. Basically Kansas Roads two lanes or four are built to freeways standards to allow for constant high speeds. The state and municipalities seem to do their best to keep through traffic off local streets which is kind of neat. In addition its more natural looking the way they do their tie ins over the obvious looking ones.
Not limited to just Kansas.
KDOT has a policy, which it does not often waive, of providing only one access to a bypassed small town, and in general takes considerable pains with intersection treatments, including realigning side roads so that they intersect the relocated state highway perpendicularly. But this is something that has evolved over time.
US 50 Peabody bypass (built mid-1990's) (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Peabody,+KS+66866/@38.1755168,-97.1120391,16.04z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x87bb75ec48312df7:0xf7977fb687a7882d!8m2!3d38.1694596!4d-97.1066965)--this took US 50 off the 9th Street alignment in Peabody and was part of a Super Two upgrade of US 50 between Newton and Florence, but still has considerable porosity to local traffic and has been signed with a 55 limit since opening (the rest of the road is signed for 65).
K-254 Benton and Towanda bypasses (opened late 1990's) (https://www.google.com/maps/@37.7902178,-97.0984739,14.85z)--Relocated expressway K-254 (four-lane divided all the way from I-235 in Wichita to the Turnpike access in El Dorado) is fairly close to its 1950's alignment in the vicinity of both towns. Benton has two accesses while Towanda has three, one of which is at a mild skew. There is no reduction in speed limit going past either town--K-254 is 70 MPH throughout--but things get hairy with ill-judged turns out of the side roads.
US 54 Cunningham bypass (opened early 2010's) (https://www.google.com/maps/@37.6434101,-98.4315558,15.6z)--the bypassed US 54 alignment, itself built probably in the mid-1980's to Super Two standards, is largely still in existence as a county road, but there is absolutely no access at all on either end (don't be fooled by the tail on the west end labelled as part of SW 180 Avenue--this is just Google Maps trying to "see" a road where satellite imagery shows a vaguely road-like linear patch of unvegetated waste ground), and Cunningham gets just one access, via a freeway exit. Speed limit is 70 MPH.
K-61 Inman bypass (opened early 2010's) (https://www.google.com/maps/@38.2345231,-97.7672368,14.85z)--At one point all of K-61 between Hutchinson and McPherson was considered for development to full freeway standard. As an economy measure, full grade separation was abandoned in favor of a freeway bypass with just one exit for town access at Inman, and intersection consolidation at certain locations (e.g. 9th Avenue and Chisholm Road about a mile north of Inman, which would have formed two closely spaced skew intersections on K-61 if both roads had been left on the county section lines). Speed limit is 70 MPH throughout.
Quote from: roadman65 on November 07, 2016, 08:03:26 AM
Perfect example is on Nickerson Boulevard in Hutchinson, KS. If you head East on that road, which is current K-14 and K-96, at the point the new Bob Dole Bypass begins deviating the two state routes from Nickerson Boulevard the old road is completely chopped up and out of view. To continue on Nickerson, you must exit at the first bypass exit that is over a quarter mile up then use the ramps and turn right on another road which makes a gradual turn which in turn defaults into Nickerson Blvd.
I'm having trouble finding the place you mention. Do you mean here? https://www.google.com/maps/search/bob+dole+bypass/@38.1025574,-98.0190413,886m/data=!3m1!1e3
Quote from: CtrlAltDel on November 27, 2016, 03:59:49 PMI'm having trouble finding the place you mention. Do you mean here?
https://www.google.com/maps/search/bob+dole+bypass/@38.1025574,-98.0190413,886m/data=!3m1!1e3
The area he is talking about is further southeast, just to the south of the Wilson Road exit. It actually gives access to two lengths of old K-96 alignment, both of which parallel the railroad line: the road into Hutchinson, and a segment to the north and west which feeds into the Yaggy Road/43rd Avenue intersection so it doesn't quite dead-end. But the Nickerson Blvd./Wilson Road intersection itself has been modified to remove skew.
Treating this topic like a Jeopardy answer, the question would be "What are Nebraska and Oklahoma?"...LOL!
Rick