Multiple Lanes Ending Consecutively

[MCRoads]

A historical one was I-64 in Newport News VA.  It had consecutive lane drops westbound going from 4 lanes to 2 lanes.  They were both left lane endings.

The first hasn't changed.

The second you can still see in Streetview history.

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Oh man, that was a traffic disaster! Glad someone posted it! But, you missed one. Not only did it have 2 left hand lanes merging, the CD road from the right also merges at the same time!

When I was younger, I lived in FL. I used to think this was super common, because FL does it ALL THE TIME. here 4 lanes merge to two in about half a mile at the newly constructed FL-123/FL-85 interchange. The I-10/I-110 interchange has lots of consecutive merges, I-10 EB looses 2 lanes, and I-10 WB looses 3 lanes! And, probably my favorite example, the 595 reversible lanes near Miami. It only takes about a half mile for 4 lanes to merge into 2, all the while there are gates and signs screaming at drivers to keep right.

[Occidental Tourist]

The 110 north just past the 105 interchange in South Central Los Angeles.
Four through lanes traveling north on the 110 meet up with four lanes transitioning from both directions of the 105.  By the time the transition lanes join the mainline, there are only two left.  But these two lanes also end in rapid succession, returning to the original four-lane capacity.

Really fun during commute times.  A complete bottleneck.  I'm assuming the engineers thought ramp metering on the transition lanes would adequately address the continuous merging, but they were wrong.

[interstatefan990]

Real-life example that I've driven through several times

That looks like a lawsuit waiting to happen. But anyways, it's not in the US, with our fancy FHWA standards and all, so I'm not going to take it as a serious example (that sounded a little ethnocentric, didn't it?).

[jeffandnicole]

I just noted this on the Inside Lanes Ending thread...NJ Turnpike, entering from Interchange 6 on both the inner and outer roadways:  The 2 lane ramp from the NJ/PA Turnpike Extension ends completely about 800 feet after connecting with the NJ Turnpike mainline.

[hotdogPi]

Real-life example that I've driven through several times

That looks like a lawsuit waiting to happen. But anyways, it's not in the US, with our fancy FHWA standards and all, so I'm not going to take it as a serious example (that sounded a little ethnocentric, didn't it?).

I'm wondering how damages automatically paid for on Mexican toll roads applies to this interchange.

[kphoger]

I'm wondering how damages automatically paid for on Mexican toll roads applies to this interchange.

AFAIK, damages are only paid if they were due to the road surface itself.  I'm not sure other design standards come to bear at all.  But, either way, the merge point is after the signs stating "end road under CAPUFE control", so it's a moot point as it's no longer a toll road at that point.

[kphoger]

But anyways, it's not in the US, with our fancy FHWA standards and all, so I'm not going to take it as a serious example (that sounded a little ethnocentric, didn't it?).

Uh, yeah, it certainly did.  It's like you think Mexico doesn't have its own standards just because it doesn't have FHWA standards.

Of course, it certainly does.  Here are some .pdf documents to get you started, if you're interested:

http://www.sct.gob.mx/fileadmin/DireccionesGrales/DGST/Manuales/NUEVO-SENALAMIENTO/manualSenalamientoVialDispositivosSeguridad.pdf

https://www.sct.gob.mx/fileadmin/DireccionesGrales/DGST/Manuales/manual-pg/MPGC_2018_310718.pdf

[interstatefan990]

But anyways, it's not in the US, with our fancy FHWA standards and all, so I'm not going to take it as a serious example (that sounded a little ethnocentric, didn't it?).

Uh, yeah, it certainly did.  It's like you think Mexico doesn't have its own standards just because it doesn't have FHWA standards.

Of course, it certainly does.  Here are some .pdf documents to get you started, if you're interested:

http://www.sct.gob.mx/fileadmin/DireccionesGrales/DGST/Manuales/NUEVO-SENALAMIENTO/manualSenalamientoVialDispositivosSeguridad.pdf

https://www.sct.gob.mx/fileadmin/DireccionesGrales/DGST/Manuales/manual-pg/MPGC_2018_310718.pdf

Of course I knew Mexico has its own standards for roadway design, as does most of the developed world. It's just that highway standards vary a lot more and have different levels of adherence outside the USA. And since this forum has one lone section for all of the highways in the world outside the US and Canada, I would assume we mainly refer to American roads when considering examples of whatever the OP or last reply was discussing, although I welcome discussion of foreign roads as well. But you can't compare some third-world dirt path (not referring to Mexico) to the modern, paved, standardized highways we have here, and say "Lookie what I found here!!". It's inevitable that when you're talking about outside the US or other countries with a good road network, you're going to run into some instances of weird design or poor compliance, and you can't take all of those occurrences seriously.

[vdeane]

Apologies for posting about a video game, but you guys should see the hilarious merge lanes in Grand Theft Auto 5:

Cities: Skylines can be even worse: https://in.pinterest.com/pin/322429654566245667/ 

[bing101]

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge has to meet this criteria because from the Toll plaza to the bridge westbound you have multiple lanes merging together into 5 lanes.

[Bickendan]

Former: Northbound I-5 at Exit 294 (OR 99W), a 3+3 merge going up Capitol Hill - 6 lanes merged down to 3. Middle two merged right away, then middle and second to right merged, then later, at the crest the right two merged. Still relatively slow overall reduction, accounting for the right hand truck lane.
Now the OR 99W n -> I-5 n/I-5 Truck ramp got narrowed to two lanes, and right lane merges left both times, for a slow 5 to 3.

[Occidental Tourist]

Cities: Skylines can be even worse: https://in.pinterest.com/pin/322429654566245667/ 

That's why you always have to do your lane mathematics.

[Great Lakes Roads]

Costa Rica example:
https://www.google.com/maps/@9.9989773,-84.1983664,106m/data=!3m1!1e3

[webny99]

Apologies for posting about a video game, but you guys should see the hilarious merge lanes in Grand Theft Auto 5:

[img snipped]

Real-life example that I've driven through several times

If they're not going to provide any merging space, these should be signalized, like this.

[vdeane]

Cities: Skylines can be even worse: https://in.pinterest.com/pin/322429654566245667/ 

That's why you always have to do your lane mathematics.

I wonder if there are any mods that fix the "all striping disappears in ramp merges and/or change in road type" problem caused by the game treating them as intersections no different than any other, aside from the lack of traffic lights/stop signs.

[fillup420]

I drive through this ramp pretty frequently. The entrance ramp from NC 54 to I-40. Three lanes drops down to one. It could even be said that these three lanes merge into zero, since the ramp lane itself ends.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9122808,-78.983018,3a,67.4y,128.78h,82.88t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s0hzYPdNg6LslkotAqMe3gw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

[kphoger]

Apologies for posting about a video game, but you guys should see the hilarious merge lanes in Grand Theft Auto 5:

[img snipped]

Real-life example that I've driven through several times

If they're not going to provide any merging space, these should be signalized, like this.

It's actually not bad as it is, because the merge point is just downstream of a toll booth on the "main" road.  Thus traffic, especially in the right lane, isn't going too fast.  Traffic counts are also low there:  the toll road had a 2019 AADT of 3185, and the free road had 4177 at the next count site upstream (west).

[bassoon1986]

Not sure if you're looking for lane drops or losing lanes to exits.

In Shreveport, LA, I-20 has 5 lanes eastbound where I-49 merges in. 2 very quick exits and you're down to 2 lanes leading out of Shreveport into Bossier City. It was always fun coming off of 49 north to 20 east moving over 3 lanes.


iPhone

[interstatefan990]

Apologies for posting about a video game, but you guys should see the hilarious merge lanes in Grand Theft Auto 5:

[img snipped]

Real-life example that I've driven through several times

If they're not going to provide any merging space, these should be signalized, like this.

It's actually not bad as it is, because the merge point is just downstream of a toll booth on the "main" road.  Thus traffic, especially in the right lane, isn't going too fast.  Traffic counts are also low there:  the toll road had a 2019 AADT of 3185, and the free road had 4177 at the next count site upstream (west).

When has "traffic isn't going too fast" ever been an excuse to construct unsafe roads?

[kphoger]

Since it isn't really unsafe, what with the traffic not going very fast.

[vdeane]

When has "traffic isn't going too fast" ever been an excuse to construct unsafe roads?

This happens a lot with toll booths.  Look at this.  Or this.  Both former toll booth locations (the latter to funnel all traffic through the booths).  It's also the reason why most freeways in Canada that end at the border have at-grades just north of it - the Canadians don't see the need to construct a full freeway all the way because traffic stops for customs anyways.

[Occidental Tourist]

Cities: Skylines can be even worse: https://in.pinterest.com/pin/322429654566245667/ 

That's why you always have to do your lane mathematics.

I wonder if there are any mods that fix the "all striping disappears in ramp merges and/or change in road type" problem caused by the game treating them as intersections no different than any other, aside from the lack of traffic lights/stop signs.

You can install mods like TPME and then set them so that the mainline should continue through and the merging lane should give way.

[interstatefan990]

When has "traffic isn't going too fast" ever been an excuse to construct unsafe roads?

This happens a lot with toll booths.  Look at this.  Or this.  Both former toll booth locations (the latter to funnel all traffic through the booths).  It's also the reason why most freeways in Canada that end at the border have at-grades just north of it - the Canadians don't see the need to construct a full freeway all the way because traffic stops for customs anyways.

But at least in those, there's stop and yield signs, so the legal aspect of it is satisfied. Whereas with the Mexico example, two rights-of-way literally just run into each other with no merging situation, and the transportation officials could be held liable for any damages (at least if it were in the US).

[jeffandnicole]

When has "traffic isn't going too fast" ever been an excuse to construct unsafe roads?

This happens a lot with toll booths.  Look at this.  Or this.  Both former toll booth locations (the latter to funnel all traffic through the booths).  It's also the reason why most freeways in Canada that end at the border have at-grades just north of it - the Canadians don't see the need to construct a full freeway all the way because traffic stops for customs anyways.

But at least in those, there's stop and yield signs, so the legal aspect of it is satisfied. Whereas with the Mexico example, two rights-of-way literally just run into each other with no merging situation, and the transportation officials could be held liable for any damages (at least if it were in the US).

In the US there are numerous approvals when it comes to engineering and funding. The governments are usually protected against lawsuits on these type instances. So it's not really as cut and dry as you're making it out to be.

[kphoger]

When has "traffic isn't going too fast" ever been an excuse to construct unsafe roads?

This happens a lot with toll booths.  Look at this.  Or this.  Both former toll booth locations (the latter to funnel all traffic through the booths).  It's also the reason why most freeways in Canada that end at the border have at-grades just north of it - the Canadians don't see the need to construct a full freeway all the way because traffic stops for customs anyways.

And how about where five lanes suddenly converge into two lanes immediately past a toll booth?

Or where six lanes suddenly converge into two lanes?

These don't seem to be a problem, even without yield signs.