"Old" roads/avenues/streets

[route17fan]

"Old Post Road" is a common name for former alignments of US 9 between New York City and Albany. This is because the old alignment is the historic Albany Post Road. The Post Road follows NY 9H where US 9 detours to Hudson, so old alignments along 9H are also called "Old Post Road". Elsewhere on US 9, Old Loudon Road is the old alignment through Latham, the new one sometimes referred to as "New Loudon Road". In the Albany area, it is not uncommon for new alignments to get the "new" prefix with the old alignment keeping the old name.

Generally in New York, old alignments of state/US highways are named "old route X" or, if the road has a local name, "old [local name]".

When I lived in Albany, I would take many roadtrips with Dougtone and many other road enthusiasts here in the forum, and very frequently, "Old State Rd" would usually be an old alignment of a route (sometimes either a state or U.S. route).

A question in regards to an "Old State Rd" is in the capital region - NY 406 from eastern Schenectady County in to Albany County ending at NY 155 in the Albany Pine Bush. Is this an old alignment of US 20 - or is it an "old state legislative route"?  Map here: https://www.google.com/maps/@42.7295994,-73.9295758,13.53z

[route17fan]

I know I needed to highlight "Old State Rd" on that previous link, so I did an itinerary - but ignore the dip to US 20 - it's there because of an old dilapidated bridge being closed. https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Albany+Pine+Bush+Preserve/42.7244896,-73.9362421/42.7411928,-73.9660003/42.7394665,-73.970024/42.7509132,-74.0205298/@42.7343814,-73.9694709,13.03z/data=!4m12!4m11!1m5!1m1!1s0x0:0x10e3ed25d957150a!2m2!1d-73.8648068!2d42.7186615!1m0!1m0!1m0!1m0!3e0

[cl94]

Given what I can find, I'm thinking it's an old alignment of pre-renumbering NY 7, possibly dating to when NY 5 ran along it via the Cherry Valley Turnpike. Before 1926, NY 5 ran along US 20's route. Even if it predates the numbered route system, I think it might be the original Cherry Valley Turnpike.

[route17fan]

Given what I can find, I'm thinking it's an old alignment of pre-renumbering NY 7, possibly dating to when NY 5 ran along it via the Cherry Valley Turnpike. Before 1926, NY 5 ran along US 20's route. Even if it predates the numbered route system, I think it might be the original Cherry Valley Turnpike.

Thank you very much. That has bugged me for a very long time!!! 

[TR69]

Shelbyville, Kentucky. An old alignment for KY 53. As a matter of fact, Google Maps marks it as "Old Ky 53 Rd".

[Max Rockatansky]

Old Black Canyon Highway through Black Canyon City, Arizona.  This was part of AZ 69 when it ran from downtown Phoenix to Prescott before I-17 came to be.

[hbelkins]

Somewhere I have a photo of a sign from Old New Road in Boyle County, Ky., but I can't find it offhand to post it.

[coldshoulder]

In Trumbull County in northeastern Ohio, there is Warren-Sharon Road, a two-lane road more commonly referred to as "Old 82".  It runs parallel with "new" 82, (likely built in the early 1960's), a four-lane divided highway that is a state route, about 1/2 mile to the south.

[Max Rockatansky]

Not that this is the "Old" Road in the sense the OP meant but a large part of CA 247 is called "Old Woman Springs Road."



And this is far better a write up on why the road was named as such than I can possibly do:

http://www.desertusa.com/dusablog/i-have-always-drove-by-and-wondered-what-that-place-looks-like-old-woman-springs-ranch.html

[peterj920]

In Manitowoc County, WI there is an Old Wooden Bridge Lane.  The name speaks for itself and contains an old wooden bridge over a railroad.

https://www.google.com/maps/@44.0787891,-87.8363914,3a,15y,177.93h,89.16t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sCW3RD0JtY2Dpe-neDqwK-A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en

[sparker]

There are a few former state-maintained streets in the greater San Jose and East Bay areas that have or have had at one time "old" included in their names.  The best-known of these is right here in San Jose; the former US 101 Bypass alignment in the vicinity of the I-880/US 101 interchange, currently Old Bayshore Highway.  The portion just west of I-880 actually serves as part of the transition scheme from I-880 south to US 101 north (no room for a direct ramp; it's also a relatively obtuse angle).  Aside from its freeway-to-freeway transition usage, it's also provides access to the industrial area just north of the interchange.

The original alignment of SSR 17/LRN 5 north of central San Jose, formerly Oakland Road prior to the completion of the Nimitz (old CA 17, now I-880) freeway, was re-signed as "Old Oakland Road" from the intersection of Hedding St. and 13th Street in San Jose; it struck out northeast from that intersection and extended to Milpitas, where it became Main St.  It was maintained as part of CA 238 (and signed as such) from 1964 to 1973, when the I-680 freeway was completed to US 101 and I-280; at that time it was relinquished to the cities of San Jose and Milpitas; the latter severed the through route when it reconfigured its downtown area, while San Jose dropped the "Old" part of Oakland Road, returning it to its original name, which it carries today.

Other former state routes include Old Warm Springs Road in the south part of Fremont, connecting South Fremont Blvd. with Grimmer Blvd, but originally extending south toward Milpitas; it was originally part of SSR 17/LRN 69 prior to the construction of the now-I-880 freeway, CA 17 before its 1986 Interstate signage.  The remaining portion of this road features the original 2-lane segmented concrete pavement, typical of CA highways deployed in the 1920's & 1930's.  Also, in the eastern portion of Castro Valley, Old Dublin Road is part of the original US 50/LRN 5 alignment; it's a short segment south of the current I-580 alignment; most of the old road has been directly subsumed by the freeway.

There are a few instances of non-state highways with "old" designations; Old Almaden Road is part of the original road from central San Jose south to the Almaden Valley; Old Almaden is east of the current Almaden Expressway (County G8), and situated near the city's Auto Mall along the western reaches of Capitol Expressway. 

[CapeCodder]

Old Halls Ferry Road in Saint Louis County. That used to be one of the main routes into the heart of North County. That was until New Halls Ferry took over. NHF is almost a due NW road, whereas the old version twists and curves.

[Max Rockatansky]

Old Coulterville Road is an old Gold Rush era road out of Coulterville to Big Oak Flat Road which is in Yosemite.  Apparently it was used as a more accessible route from Coulterville if you didn't want to travel all the way north and up what is now the Old Priest Grade to Big Oak Flat and Groveland to take their road to Yosemite.

[TR69]

An old intersection! There is no "new" counterpart for Old Forest Road. I think it's referring to the old forest, not an old road.

Pewee Valley, KY.

[kphoger]

Shout out to Kansas members!

What is the significance of Old Lawrence Road in Wichita?

[1995hoo]

An old intersection! There is no "new" counterpart for Old Forest Road. I think it's referring to the old forest, not an old road.

....

Old Man Willow agrees with your analysis.

[cl94]

Here's one without an obvious "new" route: Old Niskayuna Road in Latham and Loudonville, NY. I honestly have no idea if/what the "old" refers to anything other than it being an old road, as the general road network in the area minus the airport bypasses and the expressways was in place by the 30s based on the old maps I can find. The oblique angle this road hits US 9/NY 378 at makes for some nasty rush hour backups, though.

[DTComposer]

South of San Jose is Old Santa Cruz Highway, the original routing of CA-17 (bypassed by the current alignment c. 1940).

A much shorter example is Old Blossom Hill Road in Los Gatos, a ~1000-foot stretch that seems to have been bypassed by 1950.

[myosh_tino]

South of San Jose is Old Santa Cruz Highway, the original routing of CA-17 (bypassed by the current alignment c. 1940).

Are you sure?  The entry about Hwy 17 on cahighways.org indicates that Old Santa Cruz Hwy *may* be an old alignment.

[DTComposer]

South of San Jose is Old Santa Cruz Highway, the original routing of CA-17 (bypassed by the current alignment c. 1940).

Are you sure?  The entry about Hwy 17 on cahighways.org indicates that Old Santa Cruz Hwy *may* be an old alignment.

According to the Richard Beal book on Highway 17, the particular section of the current route that bypassed Old Santa Cruz Highway was completed in 1938, a couple of years after the route was first signed as such - but Old Santa Cruz Highway was certainly part of the state highway (as LRN 5) for years prior to that.

Although based on other

[cl94]

Another one is Old West Road in Moreau, NY. Definitely not a "New West Road" in the area.

[Max Rockatansky]

Old Highway 50 just south of NV 28 on the east shore of Lake Tahoe which an old alignment of US 50 north of the current one:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Old+Hwy+50,+Carson+City,+NV+89703/@39.0850875,-119.9366574,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x80999da799bf61dd:0xecf4a0e2045558e7!8m2!3d39.0867198!4d-119.921637?hl=en

[TR69]

Another two-for-one, this time in Huntington, Indiana. There should be a "TO" banner on the IN 9 trailblazer assembly. Photo taken April 2000.

GSV in August 2011 shows that the old shield and directional arrow have been replaced, but still without a "TO" banner.

[lepidopteran]

West of Toledo, OH, there's an "Old Airport Highway".  This is because SR-2 was routed on a new almost-freeway grade alignment (with at-grades, no overpasses)  just to the south of there.  The old route runs alongside a railroad and has many residential properties.  It connects to the "new" Airport Highway at the east end, but has a cul-de-sac on the west side.
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.6097504,-83.756214,17z

The road is named Airport Highway since it was long the primary route to the Toledo Express Airport.  However, SR-2 is probably not the best route to get there anymore from most of the city.  This is because an exit from the Ohio Turnpike (I-80/90) was built near the airport, as well as at I-75.  There are also more traffic signals on the route than there used to be.

[plain]

There are quite a few "old" roads in the Richmond, Va metro, mainly due to the fact that the road was cut off by interstate interchanges and rerouted to newer alignments.

For instance, the following were a result of I-295 and/or its interchanges:
- Old Woodlawn St by Exit 9
- Old Charles City Rd near Exit 25, in this case cut off long before that exit existed
- Old Williamsburg Rd by Exit 28
- Old Hanover Rd by Exit 31
- Old Mountain Rd and Old Springfield Rd, both by Exit 49

There's also Old Midlothian Tpk inside Richmond itself, which was a result of US 60 being routed over bridges to cross a railroad and VA 161. I believe this was the first instance of a rerouting due to an overpass and interchange in the metro (late 1940s or early 1950s judging by the bridges)

There are several other "old" roads in the area too that has resulted from reroutings due to other reasons as well.