Most Unnecessary Interstate

[JasonOfORoads]

I'd rather have 305 signed than the 80 business loop.

I agree...

In fact now that the number  California I-480 is available again, maybe I'd make the bypass loop I-480 and restore I-80 to the original route.

I agree on re-using I-480 for the Sacramento area. It's 2017 -- the "480" moniker is no longer the four-letter word it was in the 1970s and 80s in the Bay Area. It's stupid not to use an available number because some aging hippies the next town over don't like it.

That said, 480 should replace Biz 80, not mainline 80, because of how the exits are arranged. I'm also a fan of marking US-50 as I-305 from I-80 to Placerville, but that still leaves the Biz 80 designation on the eastern half.

[kkt]

I'd just as soon leave US 50 through Sacramento the same as it is now.  It's a cleaner terminus for US 50 than it had when it zigged south and then west and then north.  The Elvas Freeway is substandard for interstates and the interstate funds once slated for it were not used, so it can't become an interstate route.

[Flint1979]

I-895 in New York.  They're been talking about demolishing it for this reason.

More than talk -- it just got decommissioned at the last AASHTO meeting (details in another thread); the first step toward "boulevardization"!

Similar to that situation you have I-375 in Detroit.  Back in 2013/2014 MDOT was talking about making I-375 into a parkway but never went through with it.  My understanding was that there was supposed to be some impact survey this year to determine what to do with I-375.

I-375 doesn't really serve a ton of traffic for what it is. Almost all the traffic using it gets off at either the Madison or Lafayette exit. Near the end at Jefferson it's rarely that busy but Jefferson itself is. The whole interchange where I-75 exits onto itself needs to be rebuilt. I-375 shouldn't even be there as the freeway should end at Gratiot and the rest of it should be a city street. But I-75 between I-96 and I-94 should be replaced too and I-75 routed on I-94 and the last part of I-96. Then scale the Lodge back to the Grand Blvd. area with it being a city street south of Grand Blvd. and a freeway north of it. This would clear all the freeways away from downtown and be able to build viable neighborhoods. I'm doing more urban planning talking I guess than highway talking though.

[thenetwork]

One not mentioned yet:  I-277 in Akron.

- I-277 currently only runs about 4 miles connecting I-76 with I-77 on the south side of Akron.
- I-277 is totally multiplexed with a portion of US-224.


And if you're multiplexing I-277 with another highway already...

- I-277 would make more sense if it were extended up I-76 east's "Kenmore Leg" on the west side of Akron fully making it connecting on both ends to it's parent I-77. It's only another 2 miles and a few sign changes!!!

- I-277 could also make sense if it were extended on it's western end to follow I-76 west to SR-21 North, connecting back with I-77 in Montrose/Fairlawn -- Another commonly used bypass of the central Akron area.

- I-277 could also make sense if it was extended on it's eastern end to follow I-77 North to SR-8 North to I-271.

[Porksoda]

I-475 in downtown Flint, Michigan.

[Terry Shea]

I-475 in downtown Flint, Michigan.

Flint has a downtown? 

[paulthemapguy]

I will not be completely happy in life until I-74 in North Carolina is deleted.

[Flint1979]

I-475 in downtown Flint, Michigan.

How is I-475 unnecessary? It carries almost all the traffic coming from north of Flint to Port Huron and also serves as a bypass of I-75 through downtown Flint. I-475 in downtown Flint carries nearly 60,000 vehicles a day, that's more than any secondary street or state highway in Genesee County.

[Flint1979]

I-475 in downtown Flint, Michigan.

Flint has a downtown? 

Yes and actually Flint's downtown isn't as bad as one would think. The Flint Cultural Center is thriving and so is the UM-Flint campus. You'd be safe downtown but watch traveling in any other part of the city of Flint.

[Flint1979]

Also I wouldn't say that I-99 is unnecessary rather just has the wrong number.

[catch22]

Interstate 587 - Kingston, New York

My first accidental Interstate clinch.  On a recent trip from Michigan, I took the wrong exit off of the traffic circle next to the Thruway and took the rather short trip to the eastern end.  It was a lonely trip too, only saw a couple of other vehicles.

[Strider]

I will not be completely happy in life until I-74 in North Carolina is deleted.

I agree. We don't need I-74 in NC. (and I-87 in NC as well.)

[RobbieL2415]

I-587 runs concurrent with NY 28.  You dont need both.  I-384 could also stand to be removed and have US 6 rerouted onto it. I-290 (MA) should just be converted to I-395. 

[bing101]

I'd rather have 305 signed than the 80 business loop.

I agree...

In fact now that the number  California I-480 is available again, maybe I'd make the bypass loop I-480 and restore I-80 to the original route.

Make I-480 appear on I-238 then.

[bing101]

I'd rather have 305 signed than the 80 business loop.

I agree...

In fact now that the number  California I-480 is available again, maybe I'd make the bypass loop I-480 and restore I-80 to the original route.

I agree on re-using I-480 for the Sacramento area. It's 2017 -- the "480" moniker is no longer the four-letter word it was in the 1970s and 80s in the Bay Area. It's stupid not to use an available number because some aging hippies the next town over don't like it.

That said, 480 should replace Biz 80, not mainline 80, because of how the exits are arranged. I'm also a fan of marking US-50 as I-305 from I-80 to Placerville, but that still leaves the Biz 80 designation on the eastern half.

But Wait Business 80 aka CA-51 should be CA-X09 or CA-x07 if CA-99 becomes I-7 or I-9.

[JasonOfORoads]

I'd rather have 305 signed than the 80 business loop.

I agree...

In fact now that the number  California I-480 is available again, maybe I'd make the bypass loop I-480 and restore I-80 to the original route.

I agree on re-using I-480 for the Sacramento area. It's 2017 -- the "480" moniker is no longer the four-letter word it was in the 1970s and 80s in the Bay Area. It's stupid not to use an available number because some aging hippies the next town over don't like it.

That said, 480 should replace Biz 80, not mainline 80, because of how the exits are arranged. I'm also a fan of marking US-50 as I-305 from I-80 to Placerville, but that still leaves the Biz 80 designation on the eastern half.

But Wait Business 80 aka CA-51 should be CA-X09 or CA-x07 if CA-99 becomes I-7 or I-9.

It should be CA-807 or 809 to keep it an "x80" of sorts

[US 89]

I-115 and 315 in Montana. (Yes, I know 315 is unsigned). Both are glorified ramps with only one exit. 315 is also entirely concurrent with (and signed as) US-89, I-15 Business, and Montana state route 3 and 200. 

If I had to pick another 2di, it would be I-86. For the amount of traffic that actually travels that road, a 4-lane divided road (which would be US-30) would probably suffice. Most of the eastbound traffic at Burley ID heads southeast to Utah, so that they can either go south on 15 or east on 80.

[kkt]

I'd rather have 305 signed than the 80 business loop.

I agree...

In fact now that the number  California I-480 is available again, maybe I'd make the bypass loop I-480 and restore I-80 to the original route.

I agree on re-using I-480 for the Sacramento area. It's 2017 -- the "480" moniker is no longer the four-letter word it was in the 1970s and 80s in the Bay Area. It's stupid not to use an available number because some aging hippies the next town over don't like it.

That said, 480 should replace Biz 80, not mainline 80, because of how the exits are arranged. I'm also a fan of marking US-50 as I-305 from I-80 to Placerville, but that still leaves the Biz 80 designation on the eastern half.

But Wait Business 80 aka CA-51 should be CA-X09 or CA-x07 if CA-99 becomes I-7 or I-9.

It should be CA-807 or 809 to keep it an "x80" of sorts

CA 51 is unlikely to ever be an interstate.  It doesn't meet interstate standards, and the project that would have raised it to interstate standards was cancelled.  So call it Business 80 or CA 51, but don't call it I-anything.

[Beltway]

I-381 in Bristol is more of a ramp that an actual freeway.

It is a lot more than a ramp, it is a 4-lane freeway.  It also has a nice 3-level semi-directional interchange with I-81.

Interstate 381 in Virginia is the 1.45-mile-long connector from I-81 to the 4-lane 1.2-mile-long arterial VA-381 connector to the downtown of the City of Bristol.  I-381 and VA-381 form a continuous thoroughfare.

Traffic volumes on I-381 are about 15,000 annual average daily traffic (AADT) with 3% large trucks.  The southerly ramps between I-81 and I-381 carry about 700 AADT each.  The vast majority of the traffic is on the northerly ramps, about 6,500 AADT each.

Interstate 381 in Virginia
http://www.roadstothefuture.com/I381_VA_Desc.html

[paulthemapguy]

If I had to pick another 2di, it would be I-86. For the amount of traffic that actually travels that road, a 4-lane divided road (which would be US-30) would probably suffice. Most of the eastbound traffic at Burley ID heads southeast to Utah, so that they can either go south on 15 or east on 80.

I-86 should be a 3di at best.  Let the eastern 86 be the sole owner of the number.

[mrpablue]

Unsigned I-895B/I-895 Bus. south of Baltimore. Just a ramp, really. Number it I-97.

[Takumi]

I will not be completely happy in life until I-74 in North Carolina is deleted.

While to an extent I agree, it's not going anywhere.

[doorknob60]

If I had to pick another 2di, it would be I-86. For the amount of traffic that actually travels that road, a 4-lane divided road (which would be US-30) would probably suffice. Most of the eastbound traffic at Burley ID heads southeast to Utah, so that they can either go south on 15 or east on 80.

I 100% agree that it doesn't need to be a 2di. A 3di like I-284 (or anything really) would be just fine, or just US-30 (but it's already interstate standard and connects to major interstates on both ends so might as well keep the designation I suppose). But traffic levels aren't that far off. Just east of where I-84 and I-86 split, I-84 has AADT of 9140 and I-86 has AADT of 7407. They're both quite low, really, but not significantly different. Got the info from here by the way: http://apps.itd.idaho.gov/apps/roadwaydata/Maps/ATR_WIMmap_map.html

[Flint1979]

If I had to pick another 2di, it would be I-86. For the amount of traffic that actually travels that road, a 4-lane divided road (which would be US-30) would probably suffice. Most of the eastbound traffic at Burley ID heads southeast to Utah, so that they can either go south on 15 or east on 80.

I 100% agree that it doesn't need to be a 2di. A 3di like I-284 (or anything really) would be just fine, or just US-30 (but it's already interstate standard and connects to major interstates on both ends so might as well keep the designation I suppose). But traffic levels aren't that far off. Just east of where I-84 and I-86 split, I-84 has AADT of 9140 and I-86 has AADT of 7407. They're both quite low, really, but not significantly different. Got the info from here by the way: http://apps.itd.idaho.gov/apps/roadwaydata/Maps/ATR_WIMmap_map.html

I think it should be an odd numbered spur route off either I-84 or I-15 like I-184 or I-115. I think anytime AADT drops below 10,000 on an Interstate that's a quite low number. I-75 dips as low as 3,200 AADT in the U.P. of Michigan and another one out west is I-82 that seems pretty useless to me it could be another spur off I-84 or off I-90 and it even has a spur route in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. I was thinking though that I-86 should just be U.S. 30.

[US 89]

If I had to pick another 2di, it would be I-86. For the amount of traffic that actually travels that road, a 4-lane divided road (which would be US-30) would probably suffice. Most of the eastbound traffic at Burley ID heads southeast to Utah, so that they can either go south on 15 or east on 80.

I 100% agree that it doesn't need to be a 2di. A 3di like I-284 (or anything really) would be just fine, or just US-30 (but it's already interstate standard and connects to major interstates on both ends so might as well keep the designation I suppose). But traffic levels aren't that far off. Just east of where I-84 and I-86 split, I-84 has AADT of 9140 and I-86 has AADT of 7407. They're both quite low, really, but not significantly different. Got the info from here by the way: http://apps.itd.idaho.gov/apps/roadwaydata/Maps/ATR_WIMmap_map.html

I think it should be an odd numbered spur route off either I-84 or I-15 like I-184 or I-115. I think anytime AADT drops below 10,000 on an Interstate that's a quite low number. I-75 dips as low as 3,200 AADT in the U.P. of Michigan and another one out west is I-82 that seems pretty useless to me it could be another spur off I-84 or off I-90 and it even has a spur route in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. I was thinking though that I-86 should just be U.S. 30.

Since it is at Interstate standards already though, I think it is better to leave it as a 3di. It wouldn’t even be too long of a 3di at 62 miles, since I can find I-135 at 92 miles (and I’m sure there are probably more long 3dis that I don’t know about or can’t think of right now). I would suggest an I-x15 number since it was originally I-15W, but an I-x84 would work just as well.

I-82 just has a bad number since originally its south end was at I-80N which was renumbered to 84. Maybe it should have an odd number instead (perhaps I-11 in case they ever connect them?), but it should stay a 2di. It’s actually a pretty important connector for traffic heading southeast from Seattle. And, it’s 143 miles which is longer than any current 3di.