Unusual Exit Numbers

[connroadgeek]

Off the top of my head, definitely Connecticut as well.

Connecticut mixes and matches. There doesn't seem to be a standard regardless if the interchanges provide access to both directions of a signed route. Sometimes they use the alphabet sequence (A-B-C-D) and other times it's directional (N-S-E-W), sometimes both styles exist on the same highway. I think Route 2's 5D is the deepest it ever gets into the alphabet sequence, and I think 3 of the 4 directions are the most present at some interchanges (could be wrong about this - thought there was an interchange somewhere that used N, S, and W).

[NE2]

From http://alpsroads.net/roads/ct/i-95/s1.html

[vdeane]

NY's depends on who maintains the road.  Regions 4 and 5 use A/B.  The other regions and the Thruway use directional suffixes.

[Duke87]

Quebec uses directional suffixes... the thing is, since it's in French, it's N-S-E-O (Nord, Sud, Est, Ouest), not N-S-E-W. To alleviate the problem of the O looking near identical to a 0, they hyphenate it (example). And they are consistent in doing so. The opposing exit is "3-E".

They have distance based numbering but since it's based on kilometers rather than miles and they haven't been in the habit of cramming interchanges closer together than that, they avoid going into alphabet soup in any other circumstance.

[roadman65]

Quebec uses directional suffixes... the thing is, since it's in French, it's N-S-E-O (Nord, Sud, Est, Ouest), not N-S-E-W. To alleviate the problem of the O looking near identical to a 0, they hyphenate it (example). And they are consistent in doing so. The opposing exit is "3-E".

They have distance based numbering but since it's based on kilometers rather than miles and they haven't been in the habit of cramming interchanges closer together than that, they avoid going into alphabet soup in any other circumstance.

Is that why there are no more numbers along I-71 in Cincinnati?  I remember how many letters Exit 1 had back in 89.  I was there back in 03 and saw the lack of any exit numbers then.

Then alphabet soup created problems for I-4 in Orlando when both Robinson and South Street ramps were closed as now there is an Exit 83A and no others in that number, as I previously mentioned in this thread.

[Duke87]

Is that why there are no more numbers along I-71 in Cincinnati?  I remember how many letters Exit 1 had back in 89.  I was there back in 03 and saw the lack of any exit numbers then.

You didn't see them because you were looking in the wrong spot. The sequence which goes up to 1G is on I-75, not I-71.

Of course, a large part of this is ODOT's not wanting to have an exit 0. If you actually went by nearest milepost if would be 0A-0B-0C-0D-1A-1B-1C. Which is maybe slightly less crazy. The fact that the state line is actually on the Ohio side of the river rather than in the middle doesn't help the situation, either.

[connroadgeek]

From http://alpsroads.net/roads/ct/i-95/s1.html

That's the one I was thinking of! I knew it was in the New London area somewhere.

[PurdueBill]

Is that why there are no more numbers along I-71 in Cincinnati?  I remember how many letters Exit 1 had back in 89.  I was there back in 03 and saw the lack of any exit numbers then.

You didn't see them because you were looking in the wrong spot. The sequence which goes up to 1G is on I-75, not I-71.

Of course, a large part of this is ODOT's not wanting to have an exit 0. If you actually went by nearest milepost if would be 0A-0B-0C-0D-1A-1B-1C. Which is maybe slightly less crazy. The fact that the state line is actually on the Ohio side of the river rather than in the middle doesn't help the situation, either.

I wonder what it is that Ohio has against Exit 0.  It's not very illogical.  Indiana uses Exit 0 a lot and it's very useful when there is another exit nearby (I-69 and I-469, for example, have Exit 0 and nearby Exit 1.   469 even splits it into 0A and 0B!  The exception in Indiana is 465 where they wrap the numbers around and use 53 instead of 0 for the zero-point exit, I-65 on the south side.)

I never got what the big deal was with the directional suffixes; there are occasions where in both directions of a highway the A exit comes before the B due to interesting ramp configurations, in order to keep the A and B labels assigned to the same direction of the intersecting route, but then you are violating expectation of B coming before A in the direction in which the exit numbers decrease.

The Everett Turnpike in NH has an interesting hybrid--it has Exits 5E, 5W, and 5A in that order heading northbound.  It's only 5W and 5E southbound.  (I-93 has some traditional ones like 15E-W but nothing with E/W or N/S plus an A.)

[rickmastfan67]

left except for Exit 212 on I-80 in PA.

Gone.  Can't remember exactly when I took this photo, but it was in 2010 as I have a photo from 2009 with the W-S letters still posted.

Park Ave. has A-B exits in State College, PA. This also happens at US 22/219 in Ebensburg (I think) and US 422/219 in Indiana. No other lettered or numbered exits on any of those highways. (Park Ave. is by the I-99/US 322 junction). I-76 Exit 354 is the first exit in New Jersey. Same state, I-195 Exit 60 is the westernmost exit on the freeway.

There are two other "A-B" exits in PA that you missed Steve.  US-40 @ PA-Turnpike-43 and US-422/PA-28 @ PA-66.

[hbelkins]

I still see New York still uses its N-S and E-W suffixes over the A & B letters on multiple ramp interchanges.   I believe that NY is the only one left except for Exit 212 on I-80 in PA.  PennDOT dropped directional suffixes even before the mile based exits were added and unless PA still has them elsewhere, I am to assume only the Empire State uniquely uses them.

The Richmond- Petersburg Turnpike had one for VA 10 at Chester before the Old Dominion State went to mile based numbers.  I cannot think of any place that would still have other than NYS.

West Virginia uses directional suffixes for I-81 in the eastern panhandle, but A-B on all the other interstates in the state.

[mightyace]

left except for Exit 212 on I-80 in PA.

Gone.  Can't remember exactly when I took this photo, but it was in 2010 as I have a photo from 2009 with the W-S letters still posted.

Of course, the exit was originally N-S as PA 147 went through on both sides.

IIRC The exit still was N-S well into the I-180 era.

(Even though I've passed that exit over 100 times in the past 27 years, I can't tell you when it went from N-S to W-S)

Even though I like sequential numbering, the whole E-W/N-S thing didn't always make sense.  As I-81 spends some places going mostly E-W at many points in PA, you had weird things like the PA 61 exits being labeled E-W.  IIRC It was 36E for PA 61 South and 36W for PA 61 North.

[kphoger]

Regarding the use of Exit 0.....

Is there a case where a state 'borrows' another state or highway's numbering scheme?

Let's say highway X crosses a state line, and there are two exits right after the state line that would typically be numbered 0A and 0B, or 0 and 1, or 1A and 1B.  Maybe it would make more sense to motorists (but maybe not roadgeeks) to simply number them 371A and 371B (or whatever the number would be) if that's where the other state's numbering scheme had left off?

Example exit list:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 371A . 371B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

Instead of:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 0A . 0B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

[kendancy66]

Regarding the use of Exit 0.....

Is there a case where a state 'borrows' another state or highway's numbering scheme?

Let's say highway X crosses a state line, and there are two exits right after the state line that would typically be numbered 0A and 0B, or 0 and 1, or 1A and 1B.  Maybe it would make more sense to motorists (but maybe not roadgeeks) to simply number them 371A and 371B (or whatever the number would be) if that's where the other state's numbering scheme had left off?

Example exit list:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 371A . 371B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

Instead of:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 0A . 0B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

The Capital Beltway (I-495) in MD/VA.  The outer loop after it crosses into VA from MD across Cabin John Bridge.  At one time the VA exits on their potion of the Beltway were sequential instead of mile based.  When they were converted to mile based, they continued on from MD's existing mile based numbers.  This ends at I-95.  From that point to Wilson Bridge, the Beltway uses I-95's miles for exit numbers.

[NE2]

Regarding the use of Exit 0.....

Is there a case where a state 'borrows' another state or highway's numbering scheme?

I-76 entering New Jersey (this is the DRPA doing it). From http://www.interstate-guide.com/i-676_panj.html

[Scott5114]

I would think the majority of states in that scenario would just fudge it to eliminate the 0 if so desired–instead of 0A/0B/1, 1A/1B/1C. This is how Oklahoma avoids Exit 0.

[PHLBOS]

Mass still had a couple old N-S/E-W exits on 128 in Danvers; are they still there?  It's been nearly a year since I checked, despite being in Peabody just 48 hours ago.  Exit 25E-W (Route 114) was renumbred back in the late 80s; the NB 128 signs were mostly replaced to show directions with the shields but the SB signs were not; only the exit suffixes were changed so the exits would have the same numbers in both directions.  That led to signs which for over 20 years read "Exit 25B/114/Middleton" and "Exit 25A/114/Salem" with no indication of the direction at all.  Wonder why they didn't at least slap a direction plate on or something.
Exit 23N-S (Route 35) and 22E-W (Route 62, only split on 128 NB) kept their directional suffixed exit numbers until at least a year ago, but I believe those signs were scheduled for replacement and probably would get A-B lettering when replaced.

Add MA 1A (Exit 20) in Beverly to that list as well.  It used to be 20S-N but it changed over to 20A-B when newer overhead signs were erected about a decade ago.

When the original modern-looking steel signs were erected during the late 70s (1977); MassDPW didn't bother adding cardinal directions to the signs.  Such action, allowed for narrower signs for ones that listed only Salem for its control destination (114 east off 128 North and the 35 South exit signs).

The original 50s-era wooden signs didn't feature direction cardinals either; just a suffix on the smaller Exit panel mounted above the main sign.

Speaking of 128; its exit number oddity is that its starts at Exit 9 in Gloucester (and increases southbound to 29 at I-95 North) and that exit along with 10 & 11 are actually intersections not interchanges.  11's actually a rotary (Grant Circle).  Another rotary located between Exits 11 & 10 (both of which are MA 127) called Blackburn Circle has no exit number whatsoever.

[1995hoo]

Regarding the use of Exit 0.....

Is there a case where a state 'borrows' another state or highway's numbering scheme?

Let's say highway X crosses a state line, and there are two exits right after the state line that would typically be numbered 0A and 0B, or 0 and 1, or 1A and 1B.  Maybe it would make more sense to motorists (but maybe not roadgeeks) to simply number them 371A and 371B (or whatever the number would be) if that's where the other state's numbering scheme had left off?

Example exit list:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 371A . 371B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

Instead of:
360 . 361 . 366A . 366B . 369 . 370 |State line| 0A . 0B . 1 . 2 . 4A . 4B

The Capital Beltway (I-495) in MD/VA.  The outer loop after it crosses into VA from MD across Cabin John Bridge.  At one time the VA exits on their potion of the Beltway were sequential instead of mile based.  When they were converted to mile based, they continued on from MD's existing mile based numbers.  This ends at I-95.  From that point to Wilson Bridge, the Beltway uses I-95's miles for exit numbers.

The Beltway had consecutive numbers all the way around prior to then, but they ascended in the other direction. The numbers were originally sequential in a clockwise direction starting with Exit 1 at US-1 in Alexandria, Virginia, and running around to Exit 38 just across the Wilson Bridge at I-295 in PG County, Maryland. Exit 14 was the George Washington Parkway in Virginia and the next exit, located in Maryland across what we then called the Cabin John Bridge, was Exit 15 (serving what was then the Maryland side of the George Washington Parkway). There was no Exit 22 because the road planned for that number was cancelled. In 1977 I-95 was shifted from Shirley Highway in Virginia (and a small segment in DC) to the eastern half of the Beltway, and around the same time Maryland was making plans to use mileage-based exit numbers. So around 1980 they renumbered their exits such that the old Exit 38 became Exit 2 and it ascended anti-clockwise to the old Exit 15, which became Exit 41. Virginia left the sequential exit numbers in place until 2000; during the interim, one new exit opened in Virginia between Exit 2 (VA-241, Telegraph Road) and Exit 3 (Van Dorn Street); it was numbered Exit 3A, probably because Exit 2 already had two ramps numbered 2A and 2B. (It's now I-95 Exit 174.)

I'm pretty certain the Maryland exit number switch didn't happen much before 1980 because I remember the Beltway exit numbers changing and I doubt I'd have remembered it had it been much before 1980 since I was 7 years old that year.

The anti-clockwise numbering now in place is an exception to the MUTCD principle that an orbital use clockwise numbering. In this case the exception is due to the presence of I-95 on the eastern half of the Beltway–its 2di status means its north—south exit numbers trump the 3di clockwise numbers that would otherwise apply. I suppose you could consider the western half of the Beltway (the side numbered solely as I-495) to be another situation of an Interstate borrowing another route's exit numbers because when I-95 leaves the Beltway near College Park, Maryland, both I-95 and I-495 continue to have their exit numbers ascend (northbound and anti-clockwise, respectively) based on the mileage from the same starting point at the Virginia state line partway across the Potomac River on the Wilson Bridge.

I never understood why it was a problem to have the consecutive numbers in Virginia versus the mile-based numbers in Maryland. It seems to me it's routine to see exit numbers resetting at a state line such that it shouldn't have been confusing. The old setup where there were two separate George Washington Parkways in Virginia and Maryland (the connecting segment was cancelled many years ago) was a more understandable source of confusion for people, and it was fixed around 1990 when Maryland's side was renamed to Clara Barton Parkway (instead of the more sensible Martha Washington Parkway name that was proposed).


To give another example of a state "borrowing" another state's numbers, the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut is an example of that. Originally the numbers on the Hutchinson River Parkway in New York and the Merritt Parkway were continuous, but over the years New York tweaked its numbers a bit and Connecticut never did, so they no longer match. I believe Exit 27 is the first exit in Connecticut going northbound.

[PurdueBill]

Add MA 1A (Exit 20) in Beverly to that list as well.  It used to be 20S-N but it changed over to 20A-B when newer overhead signs were erected about a decade ago.
.............
Speaking of 128; its exit number oddity is that its starts at Exit 9 in Gloucester (and increases southbound to 29 at I-95 North) and that exit along with 10 & 11 are actually intersections not interchanges.  11's actually a rotary (Grant Circle).  Another rotary located between Exits 11 & 10 (both of which are MA 127) called Blackburn Circle has no exit number whatsoever.

Yep, I remember 20S-N as well but on here probably you and I are the only ones who remember them.    Wish I'd taken pictures of those to document them when they were still alive.

The exit numbering in Mass used to be so wacky--128 starting at 9 (not like there is room for 8 more exits) and increasing southbound to 69 or 70, by far the highest exit numbers in Mass at the time; the "128=25" thing being used (which remains on US 3 north of town); I-95 going through three sets of exit numbers (its own from RI to 128, 128's on the overlap, and none at all north of 128 to NH); the dual mile/exit numbers on I-93 north of Boston (the last evidence of which only disappeared in the past year at 128*); most of 128's exits being renumbered to I-93 or I-95 exit numbers and the I-93 exit north of Boston miraculously staying Exit 37 despite all the others changing**......old maps are quite a hoot to look at.

*The old exit numbers on 93 north of Boston included N-S or E-W suffixes but changed to A-B when I-93 was renumbered as a single set of exit numbers starting in Canton.  The signage at 128 was newer but still had the mileage atop even the gore signs, and they simply pried off the mile number on those signs.  As recently as last year, the gore sign for at least Exit 37A southbound (to 128/95 NB) still had that extra space at the top of the sign.

**Sadly, I can't recall if the 93 exits from 128 used N-S but I think they did.  PHLBOS, do you remember?  Did 37N become 37A?  Because I don't recall 37B becoming 37A and vice versa, which would have been mayhem.  I remember when all those exit numbers were changing how they had the black-on-white FORMERLY signs at the exits and I don't recall what was at that exit.  It still amazes me that somehow with all the changes, that Exit 37 stayed Exit 37--and I-93's exit number at the same interchange also became 37!

[PHLBOS]

The exit numbering in Mass used to be so wacky--128 starting at 9 (not like there is room for 8 more exits) and increasing southbound to 69 or 70, by far the highest exit numbers in Mass at the time; the "128=25" thing being used (which remains on US 3 north of town); I-95 going through three sets of exit numbers (its own from RI to 128, 128's on the overlap, and none at all north of 128 to NH); the dual mile/exit numbers on I-93 north of Boston (the last evidence of which only disappeared in the past year at 128*); most of 128's exits being renumbered to I-93 or I-95 exit numbers and the I-93 exit north of Boston miraculously staying Exit 37 despite all the others changing**......old maps are quite a hoot to look at.

*The old exit numbers on 93 north of Boston included N-S or E-W suffixes but changed to A-B when I-93 was renumbered as a single set of exit numbers starting in Canton.  The signage at 128 was newer but still had the mileage atop even the gore signs, and they simply pried off the mile number on those signs.  As recently as last year, the gore sign for at least Exit 37A southbound (to 128/95 NB) still had that extra space at the top of the sign.

**Sadly, I can't recall if the 93 exits from 128 used N-S but I think they did.  PHLBOS, do you remember?  Did 37N become 37A?  Because I don't recall 37B becoming 37A and vice versa, which would have been mayhem.  I remember when all those exit numbers were changing how they had the black-on-white FORMERLY signs at the exits and I don't recall what was at that exit.  It still amazes me that somehow with all the changes, that Exit 37 stayed Exit 37--and I-93's exit number at the same interchange also became 37!

IIRC, the highest exit number for 128 was 69 and it was for the Northbound Southeast Expressway (then, just MA 3).  The signs at that interchange were also unique in that the route shields & cardinal were actually the left third of the sign board with the control cities and arrows occupying the remaining two-thirds.

As far as the I-93 changing from N-S-E-W to just A-B; that coincided with the conversion to the current exit numbering that took place in 1986-1987; although the renumbering started as early as 1985 when the Southeast Expressway was being overhauled.  Exits 37A-B off I-93 was originally Exits 25N-S then later Exits 11N-S (with the mile marker composite tabs).  I believe that interchange was signed as MILE 10 - EXIT 11.  During the 80s renumbering, many of those early 70s era signs (now long gone) along I-93 north of Boston simply had new stickers bearing EXIT XX placed in the middle of the large exit tab with the lettering from the old Mile and Exit Numbers removed.  Such a move resulted in motorists still seeing a "glimpse" of the old numbers (via light green shadows on the signs).

The I-95 renumbering that took place roughly a year later, in anticipation of the then-eventual completion of the I-95/MA 128 interchange (circa 1988), was where EXITS 37S-N became the current EXITS 37A-B.

128 starting at Exit 9 in Gloucester (it didn't always) was supposedly due to a planned extension to Rockport that never materialized.

http://www.bostonroads.com/roads/MA-128/
Scroll towards the bottom of the page.

[PurdueBill]

I wish I could find that picture of the recent gore sign with extra space at the top for the mileage.  I guess it was done that way because the signs at that interchange were new enough.  I remember the extra-wide and extra-tall tabs on I-93 in the previous-generation signs that gave the hint to the old numbering and mileage...it was sad seeing them go but I guess their time had come.

I always thought that 8 more "exits" seemed like a lot, even with an extension to Rockport--that would be a lot of intersections or interchanges, but by that far north 128 is nowhere near the character it is much further south.

Until you mentioned them, I had almost forgotten the old, old sign layout down at the south end of 128....

[PHLBOS]

I wish I could find that picture of the recent gore sign with extra space at the top for the mileage.

How old is this 'recent sign' you're referring to?  The 90s era signage with the button-copy 93 in the I-shields all featured the conventional exit tabs right-justified.

It's possible that the sign you're referring to was a one-off replacement due to the original sign being damaged in an accident and the fabricator just matched the lettering and dimensions of the previous sign in kind.

[PurdueBill]

I wish I could find that picture of the recent gore sign with extra space at the top for the mileage.

How old is this 'recent sign' you're referring to?  The 90s era signage with the button-copy 93 in the I-shields all featured the conventional exit tabs right-justified.

It's possible that the sign you're referring to was a one-off replacement due to the original sign being damaged in an accident and the fabricator just matched the lettering and dimensions of the previous sign in kind.

What do you know--I found it eventually.  I was only able to get a picture at night one time but here it is. The 37A was a patch but that is only able to be made out in the night pic from the slight difference in reflectivity of that vs. the rest of the lettering.  The extra space at the top is a relic of the mileage.

[formulanone]

The section of Florida's Turnpike between the split from the Homestead Extension are 4X (the exit as you approach it northbound), 2X for Sun Life Stadium, and 0X (unsigned) for the Toll Plaza at the Golden Glades Interchange.





(fixed photo links)

[PHLBOS]

What do you know--I found it eventually.  I was only able to get a picture at night one time but here it is. The 37A was a patch but that is only able to be made out in the night pic from the slight difference in reflectivity of that vs. the rest of the lettering.  The extra space at the top is a relic of the mileage.

That sign's probably from the early 70s as well.  The 37A patch replaced what was once 11N.  The smaller MILE 10 lettering was indeed above the EXIT lettering.

The approach signs all had the mile number above the exit number whereas the exit sign itself had the mile number next to the exit number (example: MILE 10 - EXIT 11N).

Worth noting: 2 of those exit signs that were replaced during the 90s re-signing project were actually the original signage from the 1960s w/button-copy lettering and beige horizontal 128 shields (that were replaced w/I-95 shields circa 1981-1982).  The last approach sign (before the exit and gore signs) for 128 (95) North from I-93 North and for 128 (95) South from I-93 South were those 2 signs.  The exit tabs were actually separate from the main sign. 

When the DPW changed I-93's exit numbers the first time around (from 25 to 11 at 128/95 during the early 70s); button-copy lettering for the mile and exit numbers were crammed very close together on the older exit tab (due to the tab being originally sized for only the exit number, these tabs had no border outline BTW).  When the exit numbers changed again, I believe the old button copy lettering was removed and a new EXIT number sticker was placed in the middle of the tab.

[1995hoo]

The section of Florida's Turnpike between the split from the Homestead Extension are 4X (the exit as you approach it northbound), 2X for Sun Life Stadium, and 0X (unsigned) for the Toll Plaza at the Golden Glades Interchange.



....

I like the way the bridge girders are painted in Dolphins colors at that interchange. Neat gesture.