Chicagoland Control Cities

[rmsandw]

Just a thought as I was driving home tonight...So on most Chicagoland interstates the control cities are the next state.

For example...

I-294  (Wisconsin/Indiana)
I-90  (Wisconsin/Indiana)
I-80 (Indiana/Iowa)
I-88 (Iowa...on some)
I-94 (Indiana/Wisconsin)

So the throught that came to mind was if the control city for I-57 and I-55 were changed...what would it be?

What came to mind was...

I-57...either (Missouri/Kentucky or Southern Illinois)
I-55...either (Central Illinois or Missouri)

[Alps]

I-55 Missouri
I-57 Southern Illinois (it's a different state to Chicagoans)/Tennessee

[mgk920]

The I-57 controls in Chicago say 'Memphis': http://goo.gl/maps/md5yJ

I-55 says 'Lake Shore Dr' and 'St Louis': http://goo.gl/maps/LJZRe and http://goo.gl/maps/xPO8V

At the Edens-Kennedy split (I-90/94) on the northwest side, IDOT uses 'O'Hare - Rockford' and 'Milwaukee': http://goo.gl/maps/NiCnj

Mike

[tdindy88]

I-55 Missouri
I-57 Southern Illinois (it's a different state to Chicagoans)/Tennessee

Or just sign it Illinois, after all it's a different state to Chicagoans. 

[rmsandw]

The I-57 controls in Chicago say 'Memphis': http://goo.gl/maps/md5yJ

I-55 says 'Lake Shore Dr' and 'St Louis': http://goo.gl/maps/LJZRe and http://goo.gl/maps/xPO8V

At the Edens-Kennedy split (I-90/94) on the northwest side, IDOT uses 'O'Hare - Rockford' and 'Milwaukee': http://goo.gl/maps/NiCnj

Mike

Those are correct...Most of 90/94 have been updated to the next state.  I-80 has even been updated.  I laugh when they put Iowa for I-80 over I-80/94 near the Indiana Line (over 150 miles from the state line).  So the thought out of just pure curiosity, which would be better for 57 and 55, since they are the only two that do not use a state for a control city.

[pianocello]

I would go with I-55 Illinois (after all, the capital of IL is on I-55) and I-57 Tennessee (or stick with Memphis).

[StogieGuy7]

They just changed the guide signs on IL 120 which direct to I-94 East (which is actually south).  They used to say "Indiana" and the new signs say "Chicago".   Which makes a lot more sense, since few around here are interested in going to Indiana. 

The westbound entry in the area is from IL 21 and those signs have not been changed; they still say "Wisconsin".

[Road Hog]

I dream of the day when I-57 is signed Arkansas.

[hobsini2]

The I-57 controls in Chicago say 'Memphis': http://goo.gl/maps/md5yJ

I-55 says 'Lake Shore Dr' and 'St Louis': http://goo.gl/maps/LJZRe and http://goo.gl/maps/xPO8V

At the Edens-Kennedy split (I-90/94) on the northwest side, IDOT uses 'O'Hare - Rockford' and 'Milwaukee': http://goo.gl/maps/NiCnj

Mike

Those are correct...Most of 90/94 have been updated to the next state.  I-80 has even been updated.  I laugh when they put Iowa for I-80 over I-80/94 near the Indiana Line (over 150 miles from the state line).  So the thought out of just pure curiosity, which would be better for 57 and 55, since they are the only two that do not use a state for a control city.

The previous control city for I-80 West from the Tri-State Split was Des Moines, over 300 miles away. So Iowa is fine. I-80 East from I-55 and a couple around Joliet used to say Toledo as the control city.

[DevalDragon]

There are still some signs for I-80 ramps that say Gary Indiana.

The previous control city for I-80 West from the Tri-State Split was Des Moines, over 300 miles away. So Iowa is fine. I-80 East from I-55 and a couple around Joliet used to say Toledo as the control city.

[NJRoadfan]

I find it odd that I-57 is signed with such a distant city. Champaign-Urbana would be a logical control there.

[Brandon]

I find it odd that I-57 is signed with such a distant city. Champaign-Urbana would be a logical control there.

Champaign-Urbana is used as a secondary control south of Kankakee.

[amh424]

They just changed the guide signs on IL 120 which direct to I-94 East (which is actually south).  They used to say "Indiana" and the new signs say "Chicago".   Which makes a lot more sense, since few around here are interested in going to Indiana. 

The westbound entry in the area is from IL 21 and those signs have not been changed; they still say "Wisconsin".

They should do the same with the entry signs on IL 137, IL 60, and others.  Better yet, maybe say "Chicago-Indiana" like they do on the BGS where US 41 splits away from I-94 when you first come in from Wisconsin?  Seems silly to ignore such a major city that many are intending to travel to.

[StogieGuy7]

The westbound entry in the area is from IL 21 and those signs have not been changed; they still say "Wisconsin".

A mea culpa on this one: the westbound I-94 entry signs from IL-21 are new and now use "Milwaukee" as the control.  Both sets of signs also have the word "Toll" written with black letters on a yellow rectangle.   Just drove by there yesterday and noticed my mistake.

[Rick Powell]

I recall when the I-80 west control in Joliet was "Moline".  It used to be known as the Moline Expressway, so stands to reason.

[Brandon]

I recall when the I-80 west control in Joliet was "Moline".  It used to be known as the Moline Expressway, so stands to reason.

It's "Moline - Rock Island" on all the secondary control signs, even the old ones.  The east used to be "Gary, Indiana", but is now just "Indiana".  The primary controls as far back as I have seen (and that goes back to pre-1980 signs) were "Des Moines" (now commonly "Iowa") and "Toledo" (now commonly "Indiana").

[3467]

The control sign in Moline used to be Joliet ,now its Chicago. This is on 280

[Brandon]

The control sign in Moline used to be Joliet ,now its Chicago. This is on 280

Which is nuts IMHO.  I-80 should be "Joliet/Indiana" and I-88 should be "Aurora/Chicago".  Why send extra Chicago-bound traffic down I-80?

[nwi_navigator_1181]

The control sign in Moline used to be Joliet ,now its Chicago. This is on 280

Which is nuts IMHO.  I-80 should be "Joliet/Indiana" and I-88 should be "Aurora/Chicago".  Why send extra Chicago-bound traffic down I-80?

The funny thing is, I-80 gets the Chicago designation as far east as I-39 (when the more direct I-88 is 20 miles further north), then gets Indiana once east of I-55; I-57 is the only other mention of Chicago after that. While I agree there is no rhyme or reason for it, I'd guess that it was done to give drivers a non-tolled option of heading into the city...similar to the 90 vs. 94 dilemma westbound drivers have in this area.

Control city designations in the Chicagoland area are fickle. As implied here, it has been streamlined a bit - the result of massive highway makeovers done in recent years - but the inner-city signage needs to be more in line. If anything, I-55 and I-57 should stay as is and other highways should follow suit. Even if I-80/94 get control cities the next state over (Toledo/Detroit), it would be more uniform.

[ftballfan]

What the control cities should be:
I-55 south: Bloomington (St. Louis)
I-57 south: Champaign-Urbana (Memphis)
I-65 south: Indianapolis
I-80 west: Quad Cities
I-80 east: South Bend (Toledo)
I-88 west: Quad Cities
I-90 west: Rockford (Madison)
I-90 east: South Bend (Toledo)
I-94 west: Milwaukee
I-94 east: Kalamazoo (Detroit)

[hbelkins]

A question: What do the people of Chicago call the rest of Illinois? "Downstate?" Or is there another preferred term?

As an aside, do people in New York City really consider Westchester County to be "upstate?" I always thought of "Upstate NY" as being pretty much along and north of I-90. I never even really considered Poughkeepsie or Kingston to be "upstate."

[DandyDan]

The control sign in Moline used to be Joliet ,now its Chicago. This is on 280

Which is nuts IMHO.  I-80 should be "Joliet/Indiana" and I-88 should be "Aurora/Chicago".  Why send extra Chicago-bound traffic down I-80?

That one has always irritated me, but I suppose you don't want to send a bunch of unsuspecting travelers down a toll road

[Brandon]

A question: What do the people of Chicago call the rest of Illinois? "Downstate?" Or is there another preferred term?

"Downstate" is typically used.  Now, what constitutes "Downstate" is subjective.  Ask a Northsider, and they think anything south of Madison is "Downstate".  Ask a Southlander (Tinley, Harvey, etc), and they'll say the line is closer to Kankakee.  Now, bizarrely, Rockford and Galena are considered "Downstate" even though they're north of Chicago.

[amh424]

https://maps.google.com/?ll=41.983548,-87.869993&spn=0.005535,0.013078&t=m&z=17&layer=c&cbll=41.98402,-87.869861&panoid=wTnWTq-agfvYpFc07t1RnA&cbp=12,35.72,,0,2.21

I've noticed this while driving NB on 294.  As you cross under I-190, you see a BGS reassuring you that you're heading toward "Wisconsin".  However, the collector lane that you see to the right directs traffic toward "Milwaukee" instead.  Two different control points, same road, same direction, right next to each other. 

I realize the "Milwaukee" sign is newer and in Clearview, so maybe they're in the process of switching the other one, though it's apparently been several years now with this discrepancy (image is from 2009).

[amh424]

A question: What do the people of Chicago call the rest of Illinois? "Downstate?" Or is there another preferred term?

"Downstate" is typically used.  Now, what constitutes "Downstate" is subjective.  Ask a Northsider, and they think anything south of Madison is "Downstate".  Ask a Southlander (Tinley, Harvey, etc), and they'll say the line is closer to Kankakee.  Now, bizarrely, Rockford and Galena are considered "Downstate" even though they're north of Chicago.

Many Chicagoans, including myself, feel that anything south of I-80 is "downstate".  And I'm from the north burbs.

I think of places like Rockford, DeKalb, etc. as simply Northern Illinois.