Longest Commercial Corridors

[hbelkins]

US 27 in Jessamine and Fayette counties in Kentucky. from the end of the Nicholasville bypass to the I-75/I-64 interchange, through downtown Lexington.

KY 61 between Shepherdsville and Louisville is getting to be like that, from just south of the Bullitt/Jefferson county line all the way into Louisville.

And US 31W from Elizabethtown through Radcliff and Fort Knox to the interstates. About the only part not built up is Muldraugh Hill.

[debragga]

6.7 miles of LA-1 (Youree Drive) on the south side of Shreveport, LA

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/32.4889804,-93.7244594/32.3981957,-93.6909656/@32.455229,-93.7410847,12.17z/data=!4m2!4m1!3e0

[NWI_Irish96]

Depending on how picky you are, there are brief breaks that may qualify it as 2-3 corridors instead one, but the 15 miles of US 30 between the IL/IN line and Randolph St is almost entirely commercial.

[Scott5114]

Are you wanting to limit this to numbered routes? Otherwise, you could pick any street in the grid of any city west of the Mississippi and get 20 miles of commercial corridor easy.

It never occurred to me that we might need to limit it to numbered routes. In my area, I can't think of any non-numbered examples. Commercial development tends to cluster around the numbered routes, while the non-numbered routes (and unsigned county routes)  serve residential areas.

But now I'm interested to see some non-numbered examples, so I won't limit it! 

Just picking any random street in OKC, Penn Avenue starts getting built up around SW 119th Street and stays that way clear up to NW 150th Street, a distance of 18 miles. There are nearly identical corridors one mile to the west (May Avenue) and the east (Western Avenue).

You could probably get an even longer distance out of Reno Avenue (east-west), since it goes through the eastern suburbs uninterrupted too, but I unfortunately don't have the time to look at the moment.

[webny99]

Just picking any random street in OKC, Penn Avenue starts getting built up around SW 119th Street and stays that way clear up to NW 150th Street, a distance of 18 miles. There are nearly identical corridors one mile to the west (May Avenue) and the east (Western Avenue).

You could probably get an even longer distance out of Reno Avenue (east-west), since it goes through the eastern suburbs uninterrupted too, but I unfortunately don't have the time to look at the moment.

Regarding Penn(sylvania?) Avenue, I'm not sure I'd call that continuous commercial development. Between Penn Square Mall and the John Kirkpatrick Turnpike, it looks like mostly residential with intermittent commercial at the major junctions.

From what I can tell from satellite view, Reno Avenue is a better example of what I'm looking for, especially between Downtown and where it crosses I-40 near OK 4.

[SectorZ]

A couple years ago I followed the entire length of US 1, from Fort Kent, Maine to Key West, Florida, in Street View - to me, it seemed like the stretch from New Haven, through western Connecticut and Westchester into NYC, was pretty much one long commercial strip. To those who live in that region - does that seem right?

(From the same Street View trip, I also got the same impression with the stretch in South Florida, from Jupiter all the way down to Homestead - about 120 miles in all!)

It's like that in 2 large portions of Massachusetts as well, one from the RI border to I-95 in Dedham, then from MA 60 in Revere to I-95 in Danvers. Even NH has a solid stretch a few miles long once you exit Massachusetts.

(Also kudos for taking that virtual trip of US 1. FWIW it's worth I've cycled everything from Stamford CT to New Haven CT and all the legal stretches you can cycle on from Westport RI to Brunswick ME - but not all at once)

[Thing 342]

From VA-105 to its end in downtown, 16 miles of Jefferson Ave in Newport News. Could argue that the entire southern 22 miles of VA-143 count, but there's somewhat of a separation between the Hampton and Newport News commercial areas.

[silverback1065]

colfax av in denver.

[Scott5114]

Just picking any random street in OKC, Penn Avenue starts getting built up around SW 119th Street and stays that way clear up to NW 150th Street, a distance of 18 miles. There are nearly identical corridors one mile to the west (May Avenue) and the east (Western Avenue).

You could probably get an even longer distance out of Reno Avenue (east-west), since it goes through the eastern suburbs uninterrupted too, but I unfortunately don't have the time to look at the moment.

Regarding Penn(sylvania?) Avenue, I'm not sure I'd call that continuous commercial development. Between Penn Square Mall and the John Kirkpatrick Turnpike, it looks like mostly residential with intermittent commercial at the major junctions.

The official name is Pennsylvania, but pretty much everyone calls it Penn (pronounced "pin"), to the extent that even ODOT posts it as such on BGSes sometimes.

The sort of development I pointed to on Penn is so typical of OKC's development pattern that if you exclude it as "not being commercial", you knock out the vast majority of OKC as not being commercial. That's just how the zoning is here.

[mgk920]

Las Vegas Boulevard?

Mike

[sparker]

I'd have to say that the original CA 111 from where it enters Palm Springs near its northwestern terminus all the way down through Cathedral City and Palm Desert into Indio -- about 27 miles overall -- would certainly qualify as an effectively uninterrupted commercial strip.  Of course, the '90's 111 reroute out of downtown Palm Springs, which does include some residential areas as well as schlepping past the regional airport, keeps present 111 from being totally commercial in nature (and the sporadic relinquishments, with CA 111 status being nostalgically referred to only by blade signs hanging from traffic signal arms, doesn't help much either currently).  But still, if one traverses the pre-1995 alignment through downtown Palm Springs, the effect is there -- it'll be a continuous commercial experience all the way down to old US 60/70/99 in central Indio.

[Henry]

Lake Street has a whole lot of businesses lining it too (even the part that is not followed by US 20).

[DeaconG]

Melbourne: US 192 from A1A to I-95, 8.4 miles of God Help Me.
Also: US 1 From the Beachline in Cocoa to Eyster Blvd in Rockledge
US 1 from Parkway Drive to University Blvd, Melbourne
FL 520 from Newfound Harbor Drive in Merritt Island to Clear Lake Road in Cocoa
SR 3 from the Beachline to Post Road, Merritt Island

Palm Bay Road from Robert J Conlan to Minton would qualify, but there are two developments between I-95 and Wickham plus the one by the junction with Minton. God What A Pain. A1A, Wichkam Road, Fiske Blvd (Cocoa), Barnes Blvd (Rockledge); US 1 and Cheney Drive (Titusville) are in the same boat (plus A1A is split by Patrick AFB).

[debragga]

US 80 in Louisiana from Claiborne to Lakeshore, going through West Monroe and Monroe. 14.2 miles: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/32.5144673,-92.2179636/32.5338303,-92.0300926/@32.5181622,-92.1780599,12.28z/data=!4m3!4m2!3e0!5i2

[thspfc]

Does I-10 through El Paso count?

The second you mention El Paso, people here will start whining about how it's a control city in San Antonio, so I'd suggest you not.

[sprjus4]

Does I-10 through El Paso count?

The second you mention El Paso, people here will start whining about how it's a control city in San Antonio, so I'd suggest you not.

An appropriately used, large population center for a long-distance corridor. It's the next major city on the route, even if it's 500+ miles away.

[michravera]

What are some of the longest stretches of road where the strip malls, restaurants, and just general store fronts and businesses, seem to be never-ending? I am mainly looking for examples that (a) are clearly not rural, and (b) are clearly not residential. As long as it meets those criteria, then tell us about it!

I'll start off with this stretch of NY 404 - 5 miles in length, and 15 stoplights, but an absolute eternity to drive in one sitting. Find me the freeway!!
Across town, NY 104 has about 7 miles of this - also painful, but at least it's mostly six lanes now!

El Camino Real, CASR-82, in San Francisco, Man Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties in California is more or less continuously built up for a distance of about 80 km. It is rare to go more than about 800 m (and usually only a couple hundred) without a traffic signal, and there are very few residences apart from set back apartment complexes. This is a great road to take, if you are hungry, but a very bad one to take, if you want to get anywhere. I suspect that, if you took CASR-82 to I-880/CASR-17 to Santa Cruz, someone who took CASR-1 would beat you (and by a fair margin).

[Rothman]

What are some of the longest stretches of road where the strip malls, restaurants, and just general store fronts and businesses, seem to be never-ending? I am mainly looking for examples that (a) are clearly not rural, and (b) are clearly not residential. As long as it meets those criteria, then tell us about it!

I'll start off with this stretch of NY 404 - 5 miles in length, and 15 stoplights, but an absolute eternity to drive in one sitting. Find me the freeway!!
Across town, NY 104 has about 7 miles of this - also painful, but at least it's mostly six lanes now!

El Camino Real, CASR-82, in San Francisco, Man Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties in California is more or less continuously built up for a distance of about 80 km. It is rare to go more than about 800 m (and usually only a couple hundred) without a traffic signal, and there are very few residences apart from set back apartment complexes. This is a great road to take, if you are hungry, but a very bad one to take, if you want to get anywhere. I suspect that, if you took CASR-82 to I-880/CASR-17 to Santa Cruz, someone who took CASR-1 would beat you (and by a fair margin).

At least when I lived in San Mateo, I wouldn't have called El Camino Real a commercial strip.  Sure, it is a spine of suburbia, but the stretch through Burlingame -- where it is lined by trees -- certainly doesn't bring to mind strip mall hell.

[US 89]

US 89 along State Street in Salt Lake is pretty much one 17-mile corridor of commercial activity. The #1 industry? Almost certainly car dealerships.

It's mostly six lanes, and easily bypassed by I-15 about a mile to the west.

[michravera]

What are some of the longest stretches of road where the strip malls, restaurants, and just general store fronts and businesses, seem to be never-ending? I am mainly looking for examples that (a) are clearly not rural, and (b) are clearly not residential. As long as it meets those criteria, then tell us about it!

I'll start off with this stretch of NY 404 - 5 miles in length, and 15 stoplights, but an absolute eternity to drive in one sitting. Find me the freeway!!
Across town, NY 104 has about 7 miles of this - also painful, but at least it's mostly six lanes now!

El Camino Real, CASR-82, in San Francisco, Man Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties in California is more or less continuously built up for a distance of about 80 km. It is rare to go more than about 800 m (and usually only a couple hundred) without a traffic signal, and there are very few residences apart from set back apartment complexes. This is a great road to take, if you are hungry, but a very bad one to take, if you want to get anywhere. I suspect that, if you took CASR-82 to I-880/CASR-17 to Santa Cruz, someone who took CASR-1 would beat you (and by a fair margin).

At least when I lived in San Mateo, I wouldn't have called El Camino Real a commercial strip.  Sure, it is a spine of suburbia, but the stretch through Burlingame -- where it is lined by trees -- certainly doesn't bring to mind strip mall hell.

Most of the strip malls in Fremont have trees. And so it is with CASR-82. Nobody said that a continous commercial strip had to look ugly!

[Rothman]

What are some of the longest stretches of road where the strip malls, restaurants, and just general store fronts and businesses, seem to be never-ending? I am mainly looking for examples that (a) are clearly not rural, and (b) are clearly not residential. As long as it meets those criteria, then tell us about it!

I'll start off with this stretch of NY 404 - 5 miles in length, and 15 stoplights, but an absolute eternity to drive in one sitting. Find me the freeway!!
Across town, NY 104 has about 7 miles of this - also painful, but at least it's mostly six lanes now!

El Camino Real, CASR-82, in San Francisco, Man Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties in California is more or less continuously built up for a distance of about 80 km. It is rare to go more than about 800 m (and usually only a couple hundred) without a traffic signal, and there are very few residences apart from set back apartment complexes. This is a great road to take, if you are hungry, but a very bad one to take, if you want to get anywhere. I suspect that, if you took CASR-82 to I-880/CASR-17 to Santa Cruz, someone who took CASR-1 would beat you (and by a fair margin).

At least when I lived in San Mateo, I wouldn't have called El Camino Real a commercial strip.  Sure, it is a spine of suburbia, but the stretch through Burlingame -- where it is lined by trees -- certainly doesn't bring to mind strip mall hell.

Most of the strip malls in Fremont have trees. And so it is with CASR-82. Nobody said that a continous commercial strip had to look ugly!

Well, let me be more clear:  In Burlingame (what does Fremont have to do with it?), the commercial strips are perpendicular to El Camino Real, rather than being El Camino Real itself.  The tree-lined section doesn't cover up strip malls in that area, from what I recall.

[michravera]

What are some of the longest stretches of road where the strip malls, restaurants, and just general store fronts and businesses, seem to be never-ending? I am mainly looking for examples that (a) are clearly not rural, and (b) are clearly not residential. As long as it meets those criteria, then tell us about it!

I'll start off with this stretch of NY 404 - 5 miles in length, and 15 stoplights, but an absolute eternity to drive in one sitting. Find me the freeway!!
Across town, NY 104 has about 7 miles of this - also painful, but at least it's mostly six lanes now!

El Camino Real, CASR-82, in San Francisco, Man Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties in California is more or less continuously built up for a distance of about 80 km. It is rare to go more than about 800 m (and usually only a couple hundred) without a traffic signal, and there are very few residences apart from set back apartment complexes. This is a great road to take, if you are hungry, but a very bad one to take, if you want to get anywhere. I suspect that, if you took CASR-82 to I-880/CASR-17 to Santa Cruz, someone who took CASR-1 would beat you (and by a fair margin).

At least when I lived in San Mateo, I wouldn't have called El Camino Real a commercial strip.  Sure, it is a spine of suburbia, but the stretch through Burlingame -- where it is lined by trees -- certainly doesn't bring to mind strip mall hell.

Most of the strip malls in Fremont have trees. And so it is with CASR-82. Nobody said that a continuous commercial strip had to look ugly!

Well, let me be more clear:  In Burlingame (what does Fremont have to do with it?), the commercial strips are perpendicular to El Camino Real, rather than being El Camino Real itself.  The tree-lined section doesn't cover up strip malls in that area, from what I recall.

I will have to drive or VDrive it again to be sure, but are you sure that you aren't thinking of Old Bayshore? Which *IS* as I recall, as you describe.

[SeriesE]

The 30 mile Valley Boulevard in Los Angeles County, CA is almost all commercial or light industrial.