Biggest claim to fame: control city.

[Pete from Boston]

The mention of Effingham, Ill. – a place I only know as the nexus of I-70 and I-57 – made me think about places that have probably taken a bigger recognition boost from being a control city than from anything else.

Brewster, N.Y., is the one that comes to my mind first.  For decades I figured Brewster to be an important something-or-other given the amount its name features on signs.  Then my car broke down there, and it turned out to be tiny town with a half-vacant little commercial strip.  It'd be all but forgotten but for the BGS publicity (and yet, look where that publicity's gotten it...).

What other places are there that get way more exposure as a control city than for anything else?

[NE2]

Remember as always that a control city is the bottom line on a distance sign. Anything else is a supplemental destination.
http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2e.htm#section2E13

[pianocello]

Breezewood.

[agentsteel53]

other Desert Cities

[Pete from Boston]

Remember as always that a control city is the bottom line on a distance sign. Anything else is a supplemental destination.
http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2e.htm#section2E13

Well, whichever is the proper term, there are plenty of signs reading

      [684 emblem]
          Brewster

[Brandon]

The mention of Effingham, Ill. – a place I only know as the nexus of I-70 and I-57 – made me think about places that have probably taken a bigger recognition boost from being a control city than from anything else.

What other places are there that get way more exposure as a control city than for anything else?

Effingham is a city of over 12,000 at that junction, as well as the Effingham County county seat.  And it's only a secondary control to IDOT, at the same level as East St Louis and Terre Haute.  I-70's primary controls are Indianapolis and St Louis.  I-57 is likewise.  The secondary controls are Chicago, Kankakee, Champaign-Urbana, Effingham, Mt Vernon, Cairo, and Sikeston.  The primary controls are Chicago and Memphis

If there is a municipality in Illinois that is purely a primary control city and nothing more, it's Hennepin.

[hobsini2]

Albert Lea MN and Tomah WI come to mind.

[Alps]

Mahwah for I-287
Delaware Water Gap for I-80 NJ
Any control city on I-80 in PA, pretty much

[formulanone]

Lake City, Florida - just because it's a few miles southeast of the intersection between I-10 and I-75.

[Zeffy]

Mahwah for I-287

I don't know when it was changed, but I could swear that signs on I-287 listed 'Zarephath' on the Exit 12 BGS. However, Google Maps isn't showing it anymore, since the images are from 2013 (wow!), but having been up and down I-287 most of my childhood, I know I saw Zarephath on either a BGS for Exit 12 or maybe on the off ramp. The latter being irrelevant to this topic, since it's just a destination.

[golden eagle]

McComb, MS.

In regards to Effingham, maybe it's a control city due to being at the interchange of two interstates. Even with that in mind, Memphis and Chicago are still the primary control cities on I-57.

[tdindy88]

Limon, Colorado.

[texaskdog]

Albert Lea MN and Tomah WI come to mind.

Hey Tomah is a happening place

[roadman65]

Ewing, NJ on I-295
Pennsville, NJ also on I-295

[hbelkins]

Wytheville. (I-77)

Hancock. (I-68)

[roadman65]

How about Benson in NC

[Thing 342]

Emporia and South Hill, Va.

[thenetwork]

Green River, UT.

I think their biggest claim to fame is Watermelons...And the last services for 106+ miles on I-70 West.

[1995hoo]

Norwood, Maryland. Even the people who live there hadn't heard of it until it appeared on a BGS.

[Pete from Boston]

For the record, I have no idea if Effingham is a control city.  I just know it's where the intersection is.

[Brandon]

For the record, I have no idea if Effingham is a control city.  I just know it's where the intersection is.

As I said, it's a secondary control city for IDOT, not a primary control city.  IDOT uses two levels of control cities: one for most interchanges, and one for major interchanges.

[roadman65]

For the record, I have no idea if Effingham is a control city.  I just know it's where the intersection is.

As I said, it's a secondary control city for IDOT, not a primary control city.  IDOT uses two levels of control cities: one for most interchanges, and one for major interchanges.

Why is Rockford used then for I-90 heading west out of Chicago and not Madison?  I see the Effingham thing on I-57 used on non freeway SB signs from Champain southward, but Memphis used at all the major interstates.  So it depends there where you are to see what is used for control cities along I-57.

[Brandon]

For the record, I have no idea if Effingham is a control city.  I just know it's where the intersection is.

As I said, it's a secondary control city for IDOT, not a primary control city.  IDOT uses two levels of control cities: one for most interchanges, and one for major interchanges.

Why is Rockford used then for I-90 heading west out of Chicago and not Madison?  I see the Effingham thing on I-57 used on non freeway SB signs from Champain southward, but Memphis used at all the major interstates.  So it depends there where you are to see what is used for control cities along I-57.

Rockford is used as it is the third largest city in the state (formerly second largest)  North of Rockford, the control is Madison.  I-74 is likewise with Peoria.  Outside Chicago, Rockford and Peoria were historically the largest cities in the state.

Yes, it depends on what interchange you are at for most IDOT freeways.  If you get on at Mattoon (IL-16), it's Champaign-Urbana and Effingham.  If you get on from a freeway (say, I-70), it's Chicago and Memphis.  Primary versus secondary control cities.

The one major exception to the rule in Illinois is I-72.  There, the controls are:
I-72 EB:
Quincy, Jacksonville, Springfield, Decatur, Champaign-Urbana
I-72 WB:
Decatur, Springfield, Jacksonville, Hannibal
That's due to it having been an intrastate interstate at one point.

I-39 is similar, but the controls are more consistent than I-72.

[bing101]

San Pedro (I-110 South) Harbor Freeway to the port of Los Angeles since its a district. US-101 and CA-110 North from Downtown LA would have Hollywood district. And the West of of I-8 in San Diego will have the control city of Beaches.

[PHLBOS]

1 SOUTH Lima ramp signage at I-476 interchange

For those unfamiliar with the area; Lima, PA isn't even a town per say but rather a section of Middletown Twp., Delaware County.