Supplanted Roads We Still Appreciate

[TheHighwayMan3561]

County 61 from Duluth to Two Harbors.  If you're going to points north and willing to drive at a leisurely pace and enjoy the shore, why skip the first 20 miles?  How much time are you saving? 

During the off-season, definitely.

On summer and early fall weekends (really, an all 7 days of the week issue during summer these days), staying on MN 61 and bypassing all the bikes and tourists clogging County 61 can also save your sanity.

[Roadsguy]

The original US 22 divided highway between Harrisburg and Allentown was upgraded directly into I-78 in Berks County, but in Dauphin and Lebanon Counties, I-78 and I-81 were built on new alignments, leaving the original four-lane road between Colonial Park and the Lebanon/Berks county line unchanged. While it certainly can't be considered an at-grade expressway due to not being a limited-access right-of-way (with tons of direct driveway access to properties), and the westernmost sections closer to Harrisburg are pretty much just a four-lane suburban arterial due to all the development, it's still a very nice alternate to I-81 and I-78, especially with PennDOT reconstructing most of it to more modern standards (a jersey barrier, left turn lanes at intersections, etc.) over the past 15 years. It even has grade-separated interchanges (albeit still pretty substandard) with PA 934 and PA 72. Traffic counts are also very low east of PA 39, which means you'll rarely need to turn off cruise control for anything other than a red light, with traffic regularly going 70+ mph despite the 55 mph speed limit.

In fact, an accident closed I-81 SB a few weeks ago just before the PA 934 exit, with all of the I-81 SB and I-78 WB traffic detoured onto US 22. It still flowed as smoothly as it normally does on I-81 aside from a few chokepoints. Seeing that many trucks on 22 was definitely a weird experience.

[texaskdog]

County 61 from Duluth to Two Harbors.  If you're going to points north and willing to drive at a leisurely pace and enjoy the shore, why skip the first 20 miles?  How much time are you saving? 

During the off-season, definitely.

On summer and early fall weekends (really, an all 7 days of the week issue during summer these days), staying on MN 61 and bypassing all the bikes and tourists clogging County 61 can also save your sanity.

But you'd miss Russ Kendall's

[TheHighwayMan3561]

County 61 from Duluth to Two Harbors.  If you're going to points north and willing to drive at a leisurely pace and enjoy the shore, why skip the first 20 miles?  How much time are you saving? 

During the off-season, definitely.

On summer and early fall weekends (really, an all 7 days of the week issue during summer these days), staying on MN 61 and bypassing all the bikes and tourists clogging County 61 can also save your sanity.

But you'd miss Russ Kendall's

Heh, funny enough I'm more partial to the Great Lakes Candy Kitchen at the opposite end of Knife River from Russ's.

[index]

Some spots of US 1 in NoVA by I-95 are pretty scenic. I really like this curvy section in Stafford: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.4391767,-77.4046615,3a,35.5y,150.09h,92.42t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sfCPqfBi4xthJL7h-jpCwYg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

[Roadgeekteen]

US 1 in Massachusetts south of Dedham is also well used.

[skluth]

When I was a kid growing up in Madison, WI, we regularly took US-18 to visit family in Waukesha instead of I-94.

When I have time now, I love to take WI-57 from Milwaukee to Green Bay.

The old US 141 - CTH R, CTH CR, Sauk Trail, and a few other roads - are also pretty cool as is CTH LS along the shore (hence the initials) between Manty and Sheboygan. I've also taken the east shore route along Lake Winnebago - US 151, WI 55, CTH M - between GB and Madison.

[ilpt4u]

Southern Illinois:

Old Route 13, a.k.a. Main Street – Even west of town, it's a great back way to many industries and a decent alternate route between Marion and Route 148.

And part of Old 13 is at the bottom of Crab Orchard Lake! Kinda fun looking at the Sat view imagery and seeing the remnants of Old 13 at the lake - Foreville Rd, Campground Rd, and the Marinas/boat ramps on both the Carbondale and Carterville sides of the Lake where Old 13 quits being on dry land

[Bruce]

Fun fact: an early concept for the I-90 floating bridges in Seattle included keeping the old (now eastbound) bridge for "local traffic" on US 10 and having both directions (sans express lanes) on the new span.

Also there would have been a large interchange for the disastrous Thomson Expressway where the Sam Smith Park lid stands today.

[GaryA]

Former US 91 on Las Vegas Blvd through Las Vegas (including fairly long stretches north and south of the city).

[OCGuy81]

Fun fact: an early concept for the I-90 floating bridges in Seattle included keeping the old (now eastbound) bridge for "local traffic" on US 10 and having both directions (sans express lanes) on the new span.

Also there would have been a large interchange for the disastrous Thomson Expressway where the Sam Smith Park lid stands today.

And Seattle traffic would STILL be awful. Ha ha ha.

[sparker]

Although a latter-day unsuffixed US 99 had been signed over the R. H Baldock Freeway from Salem to Portland (OR) in the '50's -- that eventually became I-5 -- the former main route between those cities, US 99E/current OR 99E, remains a nice alternative to the present freeway, passing through several historic towns in the lower Willamette Valley.   

[D-Dey65]

Some spots of US 1 in NoVA by I-95 are pretty scenic. I really like this curvy section in Stafford: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.4391767,-77.4046615,3a,35.5y,150.09h,92.42t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sfCPqfBi4xthJL7h-jpCwYg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

It's that widened median that does it. Triangle and Dumfries are fun for the same reason.

[epzik8]

US 40 between Baltimore and Wilmington is still a through route for certain types of vehicles, and still an important route through each town it serves. There are also a lot of motels from the pre-Interstate days.

[dvferyance]

For me it's Hwy ES was the former WI-15 until it was moved onto the freeway which is now I-43.

[D-Dey65]

US 40 between Baltimore and Wilmington is still a through route for certain types of vehicles, and still an important route through each town it serves. There are also a lot of motels from the pre-Interstate days.

Oh, yes. That's also one of the reasons I'm such a fan of US 301 from Bowling Green to Bowie. Hell, even US 301 in southern Virginia's pre-interstate motels make it an interesting drive, some of which you can actually see from I-95.

I'm still fascinated with US 17 in Ridgeland SC, and old US 17 from Ridgeland to Point South.

[sparker]

Actually -- and in reference to I-5 in the San Joaquin Valley -- for better or worse, a substantial amount of folks looking for affordable housing, and the developers of such, seem to have a profound appreciation for the northern reaches of parallel CA 33, since such facilities are being deployed around the south end of Tracy, at Patterson, and at both Gustine and Los Banos (now that's one helluva commute!).  It probably won't be long before the weekend real estate pages of Bay Area newspapers start referring to the "33 corridor" -- although most folks not using CA 152 will end up using I-5 (and 580) to actually get there!

[Occidental Tourist]

Actually -- and in reference to I-5 in the San Joaquin Valley -- for better or worse, a substantial amount of folks looking for affordable housing, and the developers of such, seem to have a profound appreciation for the northern reaches of parallel CA 33, since such facilities are being deployed around the south end of Tracy, at Patterson, and at both Gustine and Los Banos (now that's one helluva commute!).  It probably won't be long before the weekend real estate pages of Bay Area newspapers start referring to the "33 corridor" -- although most folks not using CA 152 will end up using I-5 (and 580) to actually get there!

Drove 25 and 33 back from Monterey before picking up the 5 at the southern end of the valley last weekend.  Both were great drives.  Very little traffic and both were scenic in their own ways.

[sparker]

Actually -- and in reference to I-5 in the San Joaquin Valley -- for better or worse, a substantial amount of folks looking for affordable housing, and the developers of such, seem to have a profound appreciation for the northern reaches of parallel CA 33, since such facilities are being deployed around the south end of Tracy, at Patterson, and at both Gustine and Los Banos (now that's one helluva commute!).  It probably won't be long before the weekend real estate pages of Bay Area newspapers start referring to the "33 corridor" -- although most folks not using CA 152 will end up using I-5 (and 580) to actually get there!

Drove 25 and 33 back from Monterey before picking up the 5 at the southern end of the valley last weekend.  Both were great drives.  Very little traffic and both were scenic in their own ways.

You would have been well south of the northern portion of CA 33 that is hosting numerous new housing tracts; that portion includes the CA 152 multiplex through Los Banos as well as the segment of 33 north from there to its terminus SE of Tracy proper.   But if you cut over to I-5 south of Bakersfield, you missed the most scenic portion of 33: over the hill from CA 166 south to Ojai and later US 101 at Ventura.

[texaskdog]

Avenue of the Giants through the Redwoods!

[Max Rockatansky]

Avenue of the Giants through the Redwoods!

Doesn't get much older than that either given the corridor of the Redwood Highway on the South Fork River was built during the 1910s.