Roads/Highways referred to by a name/number other that what is signed

[jp the roadgeek]

People still (erroneously) refer to CT 322 east of I-84 as Route 66, and there's even a Deli 66 and Super 66 Liquors that exists on that stretch.  CT 229 (home of the Worldwide Leader) is always referred to by its local street name (West/Middle/King).  Of course US 5/CT 15 is always the Berlin Turnpike.  And US 1 in CT (and Westchester County, for that matter) anywhere west of the Connecticut River is referred to as The Post Road, although it has some other local names.

[roadman65]

I distinctly remember years ago someone on this forum telling me that US 23, Georgia's longest US route, is never called by it on any part. Someone gave me the rundown in a post and said it is called by the many route numbers signed concurrent with it.

Then you have the US 25 & 341 concurrency from Jesup to Brunswick that all locals call it just US 341.

[Pete from Boston]

Also, NJ 139 (Lower) = "1&9 approach" from when it was US 1/9 Business (original 1/9)

"Covered Roadway"

[Pete from Boston]

Here we have the Southeast Expressway, unsigned as such but universally understood.  But no talk of the Northeast, Northwest, or Northern Expressways, which are called by their numbers (1, 2, 93).

New Jersey folks refer to the northern part of 95 as "the Turnpike," and maps or traffic reporters call it "80/95," both wrong.

People very often refer to the combination of the Wilbur Cross and Merritt Parkways as "the Merritt."

[gonealookin]

Nobody ever refers to NV 207 by its number.  It's called "Kingsbury Grade", or locally just "Kingsbury" (just as nobody here calls Nevada's state capital "Carson City"; you say "Carson").

This was particularly irritating when I broke down on that road one evening.  The distant AAA dispatcher clearly didn't understand where "Kingsbury Grade" was, and it took quite a while before the bell rang and I realized I needed to say "Nevada State Highway 207".

[dgolub]

In New York City, there's a whole batch of stuff that's been renamed after people, but everyone still uses the old names and a lot of people don't even know what the new names are:

Jackie Robinson Parkway = Interboro Parkway
RFK Bridge (I-278) = Triboro Bridge
Hugh L. Carey Tunnel (I-478) = Battery Tunnel

[spooky]

Here we have the Southeast Expressway, unsigned as such but universally understood.  But no talk of the Northeast, Northwest, or Northern Expressways, which are called by their numbers (1, 2, 93).

most folks on the South Shore simply refer to the Southeast Expressway as "the expressway".

[PHLBOS]

Here we have the Southeast Expressway, unsigned as such but universally understood.  But no talk of the Northeast, Northwest, or Northern Expressways, which are called by their numbers (1, 2, 93).

That's likely because when the Southeast Expressway was first built, it orginally had no route number north of Neponset Circle/Granite Ave. and it was simply signed as Expressway North or Expressway South.  Prior to 1971, MA 3 exited off the expressway and followed the present MA 203 corridor.  IMHO, MA 3 should go back to its pre-1971 routing now that all of the Southeast Expressway is part of I-93 (& US 1); but that's another topic for another thread.

I'm a bit surprised that nobody has yet mentioned I-76 through Philly being referred to as the Schuylkill Expressway (signs indicating the latter were removed years ago) & I-676 as the Vine (St.) Expressway.

[roadman65]

In New York City, there's a whole batch of stuff that's been renamed after people, but everyone still uses the old names and a lot of people don't even know what the new names are:

Jackie Robinson Parkway = Interboro Parkway
RFK Bridge (I-278) = Triboro Bridge
Hugh L. Carey Tunnel (I-478) = Battery Tunnel

That happens with places everywhere.  I overheard a gentleman yesterday from the Knights of Columbus tell another man about his former life in Brooklyn.  The other man mentioned the bridge named after Gil Hodges and the Brooklyn man did not know what he was talking about until the second man said "Marine Parkway." 

So its obvious that a lot more than those you just mentioned are that way including the Avenue of The Americas in Manhattan where people still refer to it as Sixth Avenue several decades later.

[TEG24601]

That actually reminds me of another one; SR 167 south of Renton, is called by most people, "The Valley Freeway", even though it isn't signed at such, anywhere.  I-84 between I-205 and I-5 in Portland is almost universally referred to as "The Banfield [Freeway]", which again, isn't signed officially as such.

[TheStranger]

I don't think the Eastshore Freeway, Central Freeway or the SF Skyway have ever had their names signed, though all (especially the first two) are well known in the Bay Area.  Less well known (but not entirely obscure) is the Warren Freeway section of Route 13.

[GaryV]

Many of the named roads north of Detroit, particularly in Oakland County, are called by their Mile Road numbers.  E.g. 17 Mile for Wattles.

This also applies to McNichols in Detroit, often called 6 Mile.

[dfwmapper]

In Austin, TX there is a freeway west of and parallel to I-35 . Locals call it "Mopac" for the Missouri-Pacific RR tracks in the median of some of the freeway.  The signage is nearly all "Loop 1" and not Mopac.

When my sister got married a number of years ago, lots of family members were late, because they were looking for "Mopac" and not "Loop 1."

There's at least one sign I can think of referring to it as Mopac, so it doesn't count. http://goo.gl/maps/4b0k0

[tidecat]

In Louisville, KY, Shephersville Road is always called "Old Shephersville Road" or "Old Shep" despite the lack of any street being signed as "New Shephersville" Road.

It would not surprise me if people in Tuscaloosa still refer to Jack Warner Parkway as River Road.


iPhone

[DandyDan]

In the Omaha area, the only highways referred to by their number are the Interstates and Nebraska Highway 370.  Everything else is the official street designation, except that the US 6 freeway in West Omaha gets called Dodge Street, even though it's officially West Dodge Road. 

[citrus]

San Diego County Route S21 is called '101' by locals - it's mostly old US 101.

[Charles2]

Even though US 78 was rerouted onto what is fast becoming I-22 NW of Birmingham, most people refer to what is now only SR-5 as Highway 78.

[US81]

In Austin, TX there is a freeway west of and parallel to I-35 . Locals call it "Mopac" for the Missouri-Pacific RR tracks in the median of some of the freeway.  The signage is nearly all "Loop 1" and not Mopac.

When my sister got married a number of years ago, lots of family members were late, because they were looking for "Mopac" and not "Loop 1."

There's at least one sign I can think of referring to it as Mopac, so it doesn't count. http://goo.gl/maps/4b0k0

I don't believe that signage was there in 2000 when my sister got married. In any case, I did say "nearly all" in my first post.

As to whether it "counts" - I'm not planning to keep score; however, I still maintain it's in the spirit of the OP.

[cl94]

Really common in New York and New England.

*I-87 is the Northway north of I-90 with very few NYSDOT signs referring to it as such (there was one near Exit 30)
*I-495 (NY) = LIE for entire length , including the "Horace Harding Expressway"
*I-678 = the Van Wyck for the entire length
*NY 135 = the SOB
*NY 17 east of Binghamton = the Quickway
*Sunken Meadow Parkway = Sagtikos Parkway (I've heard native Islanders use them interchangeably)

[PHLBOS]

*NY 135 = the SOB

I'm guessing that reporters love saying that whenever there's an accident or traffic jam present.

[roadfro]

Nobody ever refers to NV 207 by its number.  It's called "Kingsbury Grade", or locally just "Kingsbury" (just as nobody here calls Nevada's state capital "Carson City"; you say "Carson").

This is common with many Nevada state highways. Each route has at least one "common" name which is recognized by NDOT in highway logs, but most roadside signs usually say "SR xxx" and leave the common name off. Local media even use the local names without numbers more often than not. Kingsbury Grade/SR 207 is one of many examples.

I'd like to see Nevada start using state highway shields on street name signs, so that local names show up on these signs as well.

[kphoger]

Here in Wichita, half the locals call I-135 "I-35". It drives me nuts.

"Highway 50" in O'Fallon, IL, is not US-50. It's not just called that, it's signed that way too.

[ekt8750]

US 1 through Philly is almost always called either Roosevelt Blvd or The Blvd east of the Schuylkill River (including the freeway portion of it) and west of it City Line Ave (although it's officially City Av).

[bzakharin]

It is referred to as Route 42 all the way to the Walt Whitman Bridge in NJ, ignoring the I-76 stretch from I-295 to the bridge.

Not only that, but just heard in a traffic report: "42 slow from [somewhere] to the Black Horse Pike". The Black Horse Pike there is, of course, route 42. So apparently 42 goes from the Walt Whitman Bridge to the Black Horse Pike. It picks up 2 miles on the north side and loses 7 miles on the south side.

The Manhattan portion of I-95 gets called the Cross Bronx

[TheStranger]

Here in Wichita, half the locals call I-135 "I-35". It drives me nuts.

Did that terminology originate from when 135 was 35W?  (Though given that 35 itself is on the south edge of town on the Turnpike that still seems a bit absurd)