"Clinched" on a new level

[mp_quadrillion]

A moment to introduce myself: I am Andrew, a longtime roadgeek. I might have been the third person to browse the precursors to this site.. but I waited to see if this "Internet" thing would take off before joining a forum. Also, I knew if I joined I'd probably need an extra 10 hours daily, which I still haven't figured out how to produce.

So!

Like a great many of you I track the major highways I've "clinched". I've got all the Interstates in CalNevAri, UT, OR, CO, WY and that one pesky segment-or-two in about 10 more.

But how many of you have exited at every exit?

As part of my job, this is something I do. So I've been to the end of every Interstate ramp in Oregon and Nevada. And to the end of every Interstate ramp in the San Antonio, TX area and the San Francisco Bay Area. (To clarify, I haven't been to the end of every non-Interstate ramp in those areas.)

At another job, I traveled just about every street of consequence within the San Francisco city limits. Not every alley and cul-de-sac, but certainly every street in North Beach that no one in Hunters Point ever heard of and vice versa.

Along the way, I thought: Who else does this? Even the police are assigned a beat. There are probably neighborhoods you've spent your whole life avoiding (by choice or by coincidence). For every place I've loved there were at least two I couldn't leave fast enough!

I don't expect to find another every-exiter. But what flavors of clinching are out there? This can be along a route, or in a certain metro area, or whatever you think is sorta-kinda exceptional. Or traveled every ____ in _____? Traveled every inch of California's Amtrak rail service? Traveled every inch of Amtrak and heavy commuter rail in Southern California? Traveled every freeway and turnpike in Oklahoma? As you can tell, I'm curious!

[Duke87]

Couldn't see myself ever going for such a thing with roads... since, really, you don't see anything new from one ramp to another, and it seems like a very repetitive, bland task.

However, I have gotten on or off (defined as going between the train and the street, just changing trains does not count) at 257 of the 420 stations of the NYC subway (61.19%) - in large part, like you, due to traveling around the city for work. It is absolutely a goal of mine to get them all, however I have set a rule for myself that I cannot make a trip specifically just to clinch a subway station. I must have some purpose or destination in the area outside of the subway (but it is acceptable to walk further to get to a station I haven't used in lieu of using a closer one which I already have). This keeps the pursuit interesting and keeps it from getting too easy - otherwise, a few weekends and I could just kill the whole thing off (for free, no less, since I use unlimited ride cards). Where's the fun in that? I like that I've taken years to get to this point and will take at least a couple more years to finish. More rewarding that way.

[Brandon]

At every exit?  I've done it, but not intentionally.  It's happened in the course of business or pleasure driving to get to/from a destination or avoid a traffic jam.

Illinois:
I-355, I-294, I-190 (as if that's hard)

Indiana:
I-94 (yes, even Central Avenue - Exit 13)

[kphoger]

Every exit on Illinois I-24.  Yeah, like that was hard to do.
I've driven or bicycled every inch of paved road in Rawlins County, KS, but that's not all that hard to do either.

Alas, I am lame.

[Ian]

Like Brandon, on the highways that I have been on the ramps of every exit on a given route, it's usually done at separate times for heading to different destinations. My list isn't very huge but...

Pennsylvania:
I-476/Blue Route (south of Plymouth Meeting), I-676, I-76 east of King of Prussia

Delaware:
I-95

New York:
I-787

[NE2]

I haven't clinched I-180 in Wyoming, but I've been on all of its ramps.

[mp_quadrillion]

Couldn't see myself ever going for such a thing with roads... since, really, you don't see anything new from one ramp to another, and it seems like a very repetitive, bland task.

However, I have gotten on or off (defined as going between the train and the street, just changing trains does not count) at 257 of the 420 stations of the NYC subway (61.19%) - in large part, like you, due to traveling around the city for work.

I'm impressed! The subway's a big system.. I can imagine some stations everyone's been to, and some are on a "Why Would Anyone Go THERE?" list. Do you have a favorite, or a candidate for a hidden gem?

Sometimes "every exit" can be fun, but it's certainly not something I would have done if I wasn't updating a database of travel-related points-of-interest. Some things are reliable and too predictable.. like the GameStop-sandwichshop-Starbucks combo outbuilding that every new strip mall has.

Often I'll find a snippet of an old alignment, which can be fun. Sometimes, the foundations that were just going in last year are a brand-new truckstop this year; or I get to order the same thing from the same waitress again. Sometimes I'll find a state park or business that's so close to the highway that it's baffling that no one knows about it. Hidden in plain sight. Sometimes it's a whole town -- there are a few I can think of in CA, TX and CO where my first thought was "They do know it's the 21st century, right?" Same planet, different worlds.

[mp_quadrillion]

I've driven or bicycled every inch of paved road in Rawlins County, KS, but that's not all that hard to do either.

Were you looking for free land in Atwood like I was?   

[DandyDan]

I believe I have exited from every 3di exit ramp in Nebraska, but it's possible I may have missed one for I-129 up in South Sioux City (It's been a while since I've been there.)

[Duke87]

I'm impressed! The subway's a big system.. I can imagine some stations everyone's been to, and some are on a "Why Would Anyone Go THERE?" list. Do you have a favorite, or a candidate for a hidden gem?

What, I can only name one?

The subway is very large and diverse and there is a lot of interesting infrastructure out there.
- 190th Street on the A and 174th-175th Streets on the B/D share an interesting quirk: both are completely underground stations where you can get off the train and go physically down to get to the street!
- Wilson Avenue on the L is underground in one direction and above ground in the other.
- Broad Channel on the A is in the middle of a swamp.
- Ditmars Boulevard on the N/Q is elevated above the street but also directly below another elevated structure: the approach to the Hell Gate Bridge
- Mets-Willets Point on the 7 has a lot of gates that open and close and pedestrian traffic flows in and out of the station completely differently depending on if there's an event at one of the local stadiums or not.
- 168th Street and 181st Street on the 1 are among the deepest stations in the system and have beautiful barrel vaulted ceilings. Unfortunately, they've been covered with scaffolding since some masonry collapsed onto the tracks at 181st a few years ago.
- Essex Street on the J/M/Z is next to an abandoned underground trolley terminal which is visible from the eastern half of the outbound platform.
- there is a completely abandoned City Hall station at the south end of the 6 train, which you can see if you stay on a downtown train past the end of the line at Brooklyn Bridge (the track makes a loop from downtown, through City Hall, back to uptown).

Really, there is a lot to see!

[NE2]

- 168th Street and 181st Street on the 1 are among the deepest stations in the system and have beautiful barrel vaulted ceilings. Unfortunately, they've been covered with scaffolding since some masonry collapsed onto the tracks at 181st a few years ago.

Do some of the stations up there still have elevator operators?

[Duke87]

Do some of the stations up there still have elevator operators?

168th does sometimes. Haven't noticed a pattern as to when it does or doesn't, though.

Don't recall having seen one at 181st, but I've only gotten on or off there once or twice.

191st I know also has elevators (deepest station in the system, ~180 feet below the street), but it's as of this writing in the 38.81% of stations I haven't used, so no clue.

[national highway 1]

I'm impressed! The subway's a big system.. I can imagine some stations everyone's been to, and some are on a "Why Would Anyone Go THERE?" list. Do you have a favorite, or a candidate for a hidden gem?

What, I can only name one?

The subway is very large and diverse and there is a lot of interesting infrastructure out there.
- 190th Street on the A and 174th-175th Streets on the B/D share an interesting quirk: both are completely underground stations where you can get off the train and go physically down to get to the street!
- Wilson Avenue on the L is underground in one direction and above ground in the other.
- Broad Channel on the A is in the middle of a swamp.
- Ditmars Boulevard on the N/Q is elevated above the street but also directly below another elevated structure: the approach to the Hell Gate Bridge
- Mets-Willets Point on the 7 has a lot of gates that open and close and pedestrian traffic flows in and out of the station completely differently depending on if there's an event at one of the local stadiums or not.
- 168th Street and 181st Street on the 1 are among the deepest stations in the system and have beautiful barrel vaulted ceilings. Unfortunately, they've been covered with scaffolding since some masonry collapsed onto the tracks at 181st a few years ago.
- Essex Street on the J/M/Z is next to an abandoned underground trolley terminal which is visible from the eastern half of the outbound platform.
- there is a completely abandoned City Hall station at the south end of the 6 train, which you can see if you stay on a downtown train past the end of the line at Brooklyn Bridge (the track makes a loop from downtown, through City Hall, back to uptown).

Really, there is a lot to see!

Also the former South Ferry Terminus of the 1 used to involve a loop so they could turn the trains and also connect it to Bowling Green on the IRT Lexington Ave Line. They closed the inner loop in 1977, and the outer loop closed in March 2009 when the new station opened with a transfer to the R trains at Whitehall St.
The South Ferry loop is now used for 5 trains which terminate at Bowling Green which turn around and continue back Uptown.
Bleecker St also has a one-transfer from the Downtown 6 platform which connects to the B, D, F, M trains at Lafayette St. Does anyone know whether or not the northbound platform work is finished? It appears to be complete as of June 2012, but could anyone in the area verify this?
The Chrystie St Connection which carries the B, D & M trains is the only section of the Second Ave Subway built and operating to date
The IND 63rd St Line which carries the F train initially dead ended at 21st St-Queensbridge when it was built in 1989, however it was connected to the IND Queens Blvd line in late 2001.
Also on the F, the IND Culver Line also has a third and fourth unused express track. I'm not sure when after the rehab of the Culver is complete whether or not the express track(s) will be brought back into service.

[NE2]

The Chrystie St Connection which carries the B, D & M trains is the only section of the Second Ave Subway built and operating to date

I think the SAS was always supposed to use separate tracks there.

[Duke87]

Bleecker St also has a one-transfer from the Downtown 6 platform which connects to the B, D, F, M trains at Lafayette St. Does anyone know whether or not the northbound platform work is finished? It appears to be complete as of June 2012, but could anyone in the area verify this?

It is very near complete but not open just yet. Though, the scheduled opening date has not yet been stated publicly.

The Chrystie St Connection which carries the B, D & M trains is the only section of the Second Ave Subway built and operating to date

I think the SAS was always supposed to use separate tracks there.

The 1970's plan called for the current side platforms at Grand Street to become island platforms, with 2nd Avenue tracks on the outside. The current plan is for the 2nd Avenue tracks to be built underneath the existing tracks to the Manhattan Bridge, creating a two level station at Grand Street.

Of course, likelihood that the line gets built that far south in any of our lifetimes... not too good.

[Alps]

I've been off every exit ramp (or on every entrance) of the NJ Turnpike, as well as certain trivial cases where there are only one or two interchanges total that aren't even worth mentioning (NJ 495, just to give an example).

[kphoger]

I've driven or bicycled every inch of paved road in Rawlins County, KS, but that's not all that hard to do either.

Were you looking for free land in Atwood like I was?   

No, I grew up in Atwood.  Fourth grade through high school.

[english si]

However, I have gotten on or off (defined as going between the train and the street, just changing trains does not count) at 257 of the 420 stations of the NYC subway (61.19%) - in large part, like you, due to traveling around the city for work.

I've visited all 270 London Underground stations (including all in one day), plus all the DLR stations, most Overground stations and a few Tramlink stops but only can count 77 for leaving the system (counting changes to other rail/rail-replacement bus as well if you leave the ticketed zone, though I think that's only one station). If I count ones where I left the system on a railfanning trip (like all stations in one day), then it reaches 100, and changes add another 50. Still a long way short!

Visiting, but ignoring railfanning trips smashes a fair few stations visited - I lose all the nether regions but a few branches in West London. I have got much of inner London, and quite a lot of the DLR, especially if you count things like "I wanted to see the Olympic Park, but went an slightly less direct way to clinch a newly opened section of DLR", but they pail into comparison with your New York total.

[Duke87]

especially if you count things like "I wanted to see the Olympic Park, but went an slightly less direct way to clinch a newly opened section of DLR"

As stated previously, that counts.

I don't have the railfanning ambiguity since every subway trip I've ever made purely to trainsurf began and ended at the same station. I have ridden the entire system, but I didn't make any extra exits when I was doing so. Get to the end of the line, walk across the platform, get on the next train headed back the other way. No exit required. Dunno whether you can do this on the Tube considering it has fare zones, but you can do it in New York, where one swipe in and you're free to roam anywhere.

Indeed, I didn't start concerning myself with counting stations used until I'd already ridden every section of line (it came straight out of "well, with that goal achieved, what next?").

[english si]

I don't have the railfanning ambiguity since every subway trip I've ever made purely to trainsurf began and ended at the same station. I have ridden the entire system, but I didn't make any extra exits when I was doing so. Get to the end of the line, walk across the platform, get on the next train headed back the other way. No exit required. Dunno whether you can do this on the Tube considering it has fare zones, but you can do it in New York, where one swipe in and you're free to roam anywhere.

You can (provided you aren't using Oyster, which times out and gives you a full roaming fare each time you time out - time for short diversions, but not long ones, like the whole of a branch), but rather a paper travelcard - though I reckon it might flag if you spend hours on the system, but only have a zone 1-2 ticket). My leaving stations are either cases like West Hampstead, where there's three stations next to each other, but not linked, or getting to the end of the line and having to run/catch a bus to get to the end of another line, rather than travelling back into London rather than out of London. Oh, and doing runs between branches to grab awkward stations/save time on the 'marathon' - you can see some on the

My route for all stations was (as best as I can remember): Amersham - met - Chalfont - met - Chesham - met - Moor Park - met - Watford - met - North Harrow - run - West Harrow - met - Northwick Park - run - Kenton - bak - Harrow & Wealdstone - bak - Elephant & Castle - nor - Mill Hill East - nor - Finchley Central - nor - High Barnet - bus&run - Cockfosters - pic - Finsbury Park - vic - Highbury & Islington - vic - Walthamstow Central - vic - Finsbury Park - pic - Covent Garden - pic - Holborn - cen - Leytonstone - cen - Woodford via Hainault - cen - Epping - cen - Stratford - jub - Bond Street - cen - West Ruislip - run - Ruislip - pic - Uxbridge - met - Rayners Lane - pic - North Ealing - run - West Acton - cen - Ealing Broadway - dis - Turnham Green - dis - Richmond - dis - West Kensington - run - Kensington (Olympia) - dis - Earls Court - pic - Leicester Square - nor - Edgware - bus - Canons Park - jub - Stanmore - jub - Baker Street - met - Aldgate - run - Aldgate East - dis - Upminster - rail - Fenchurch St - run - Tower Hill - cir - Sloane Square - dis - Victoria - vic - Brixton - vic - Stockwell - nor - Kennington - nor - Morden - nor - South Wimbledon - bus - Wimbledon - dis - Edgware Road - h&c - Hammersmith - run - Hammersmith - pic - Heathrow T4 - pic - Heathrow T1,2,3 - pic - Heathrow T5.

If you look on a map, all the navy runs and buses will make sense - we had to leave the system at these points for a sensible route, rather than doubling back (our biggest mistake was not running Chiswick Park to Turnham Green). I'd imagine that a NY subway all-stops-as-fast-as-possible would involve some other form of transport between some of the termini in the Bronx and Queens.

Time was 17 hours, 28 minutes and 57 seconds - 3rd fastest time at the time - 5 seconds short at Hammersmith for our penultimate train adding 10 minutes, which would have put us at 2nd fastest. The current World Record route is radically different and when the end points were revealed, accusations of cheating were made as there's no way that both coming out to and going back in from zone 9 looks sensible, but apparently it works.

[huskeroadgeek]

I believe I have exited from every 3di exit ramp in Nebraska, but it's possible I may have missed one for I-129 up in South Sioux City (It's been a while since I've been there.)

Wow, I must have missed your previous posts-didn't know there was another Nebraskan on here. I was just thinking about how many of the 3di exit ramps in Nebraska I had been on. I know I have been on all of I-180's(all 2 of them-or 3 if you count the I-80 junction), all but maybe 1 or 2 of I-480's and most of I-680's. I have actually never been on I-129. I've also been on all but a few of I-80's from York east to I-29.

[pianocello]

I've entered every municipality in Scott County, IA.

[Duke87]

If you look on a map, all the navy runs and buses will make sense - we had to leave the system at these points for a sensible route, rather than doubling back (our biggest mistake was not running Chiswick Park to Turnham Green). I'd imagine that a NY subway all-stops-as-fast-as-possible would involve some other form of transport between some of the termini in the Bronx and Queens.

Not necessarily, buses in New York are notoriously slow and tend not to be routed such as to make hopping from one subway terminal to another convenient.

Besides, doing so would break the rules that Guinness has set forth. Guinness stipulates that the entire trip must be done on one fare - no leaving the subway system is permitted until you have stopped at every station.

The current record is I believe about 23 hours or so. Set a couple years ago by a couple of out of work former Wall Street employees who put their math skills that they previously analyzed stocks with to work analyzing the subway system and coming up with the optimal route. Guinness did confirm their record, however they have insisted that the route they took not be disclosed. Kept as a trade secret, so to speak - they don't want someone else using the route they developed to inch out their record without doing the planning work themselves.

[DandyDan]

I believe I have exited from every 3di exit ramp in Nebraska, but it's possible I may have missed one for I-129 up in South Sioux City (It's been a while since I've been there.)

Wow, I must have missed your previous posts-didn't know there was another Nebraskan on here. I was just thinking about how many of the 3di exit ramps in Nebraska I had been on. I know I have been on all of I-180's(all 2 of them-or 3 if you count the I-80 junction), all but maybe 1 or 2 of I-480's and most of I-680's. I have actually never been on I-129. I've also been on all but a few of I-80's from York east to I-29.

Only discovered this forum at the end of June, a time I was out of work due to surgery (too much free time).  I was actually talking about both directions of each 3di in Nebraska and all movements. Of course, it was helpful to once be a courier earlier in life.

[agentsteel53]

I may very well have taken every exit at least once of the California segments of the following roads: I-5, I-8, I-10, I-15, I-40, CA-99, US-101, and then some shorter ones in the LA and San Diego area. 

I-8 I've probably got the whole thing - Arizona too.

but I quite likely have not done every ramp, every direction possible, on any of these roads. 

I've definitely taken every exit, and probably every ramp, of CA-52, but that isn't exactly impressive, as it is a 15 mile long suburban connector.