Cities Well-Served by the Interstate System

[vdeane]

As someone who loves the interstate highway system and how it works as a network rather than just a bunch of corridors, one of the things I love about living near Albany is how well Albany is served by the interstate system.  Of the six major directions, five of them are interstates - I-90 to Rochester/Buffalo/Syracuse, I-90 to Springfield/Boston, I-87 to NYC, I-87 to Montréal, and I-88 to Binghamton.  The one that isn't is NY 7 to Bennington.  Moreover, most of the rest of the country that is on the interstate system is possible to get to by interstate without going out of one's way - the major exceptions being Vermont and Rhode Island (and the latter isn't excruciatingly far out of the way by I-495, and at least MA/RI 146 is mostly freeway and four-lane divided throughout).

Contrast this to Rochester, which does function this way within NY, but doesn't with respect to the rest of the country since the US 15 corridor is not an interstate across PA and MD, resulting in the entire Mid-Atlantic and much of the Southeast being inaccessible without significant mileage on non-interstates or going way out of the way.

Syracuse would seem to fit, depending on whether you desire to include interstate equivalents in Canada and how much you'd penalize it for the non-freeway portion of ON 137... and, of course, that its own freeway system means you're likely to have to pass through and non-interstate between two interstates just to get around the metro area even before you leave it, a problem that will get even worse when I-81 is removed.

I wonder how many other places there are that fit so well into the system.

[Ben114]

Boston is well served.

You've got I-90 going towards Albany and points west, I-95 to NH / Maine, I-95 towards Providence / NYC, I-93 towards NH. The only direction not served is southeast, where MA 3 does a good job serving.

[Revive 755]

Indianapolis.  The under construction portion of I-69 can be bypassed using I-70, I-57, and I-55.  After I-69 is completed I really only see two corridors standing out that haven't been built out from Indianapolis:  US 31 up to South Bend (kind of being slowly built), and a diagonal towards Cleveland, OH (the latter of which is currently served by using I-70 and I-71).

[The Nature Boy]

How far do we stretch city?

The Washington DC area can be reached directly via I-95 (and you can go into the center of the city via I-395, through its east side via I-295, or around it entirely via I-495). I-270 brings you into DC from I-70, which connects to the Midwest to the District. I-66 connects DC to I-81 and points north and south along the Appalachians. I-97 also starts and ends in the DC area but it's best we avoid talking about that one.

We need an outer beltway for me to be satisfied with the DC area freeway system.

[webny99]

The one that isn't is NY 7 to Bennington.

That's an annoying one, because of that slow stretch right through the heart of Troy.
I wonder if an interstate along the NY 7/VT 9 corridor has ever been proposed. That's definitely the missing link that would give Albany almost perfect connectivity.

Contrast this to Rochester, which does function this way within NY, but doesn't with respect to the rest of the country since the US 15 corridor is not an interstate across PA and MD, resulting in the entire Mid-Atlantic and much of the Southeast being inaccessible without significant mileage on non-interstates or going way out of the way.

If/when the CSVT is ever complete, I'll actually have very few complaints about the US 15 corridor. Sure, you've got that long non-freeway stretch along the Susquehanna, and I-180 adds some extra mileage, but other than that, getting from Rochester to Harrisburg (and Baltimore, etc.) is really not that bad. I don't care so much about the lack of an interstate designation per se, as long the route is stoplight-free and expressway grade or better (which it will be). 

I do think I-390 would take on much greater significance as a 2-di instead of a 3-di. I-83 would have been perfect, but I'd settle for an I-99 extension to get another 2-di to the Rochester area.

I wonder how many other places there are that fit so well into the system.

Scranton is actually quite similar to Albany, with 5 major directions served by the interstate system.
US 6 westbound appears at first to be the exception, but I-81 to I-86 is actually faster for most trips in that direction, even places as nearby as Elmira and Sayre. I would say the actual missing connection is west/southwest to Williamsport. I'm surprised better connectivity between Scranton and Williamsport hasn't come up here as a complaint, or in the fictional board, more often.

[webny99]

Here's a partial list of what I guess we could call textbook examples (interstates in 6 or more directions):
Indianapolis (8), Chicago (7), Birmingham (6-7)*, Dallas-Fort Worth (6), Oklahoma City (6), Kansas City (6), St. Louis (6), Nashville (6),  and Atlanta (6).

*Depending on how you account for the extremely long I-20/I-59 mutiplex.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

I know it's bias talking, but I gotta give a nod to Chicago. Even if the interstates entering/leaving the city don't have direct access to other parts of the country, they have easy access to the nearby interstates that do.

I-65 (via I-80/94 or the quicker, more expensive Skyway/Toll Road): access to the Southeast
I-90: access to Ohio, upstate New York, and Boston (eastbound); access to the upper Rockies and the Pacific Northwest (westbound)
I-80: same with I-90 until Cleveland, then access to New York City (skipping the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Turnpikes, eastbound); central plains, major mountain cities and San Francisco (westbound). Can be accessed with Interstates 90, 94, 57, 55, 355, and even 88.
I-57: access to the Mid-South, with Little Rock in future plans
I-55: access to St.Louis, Memphis, and New Orleans
I-94: the way to Michigan and Canada (east), while accessing Milwaukee, the Twin Cities and Fargo as an alternative to I-90 (westbound)
I-88 (via I-290 or I-294): stays in state but provide access to the west suburbs and the network of Interstates in the Quad Cities (80, 280, and 74).

I also like the intricacies of the 3dis, which give quick access to the mainlines.

[Roadgeekteen]

Seattle. Can't really think of any other directions that are needed.

[vdeane]

Scranton is actually quite similar to Albany, with 5 major directions served by the interstate system.
US 6 westbound appears at first to be the exception, but I-81 to I-86 is actually faster for most trips in that direction, even places as nearby as Elmira and Sayre. I would say the actual missing connection is west/southwest to Williamsport. I'm surprised better connectivity between Scranton and Williamsport hasn't come up here as a complaint, or in the fictional board, more often.

Google says that I-81/I-80/I-180 is less than five minutes longer than PA 118, so close enough.

[Hwy 61 Revisited]

KC and St. Louis are über-important crossroads, both having 4 2dis within city limits.

[sprjus4]

San Antonio, TX.

I-10 East - Houston, Gulf Coast, connections to other interstates along the East Coast.
I-10 West - El Paso, points west. Not the best connections to the northwest.
I-35 North - Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, points north/northeast, connections to other interstates in the Midwest.
I-35 South - Laredo and Mexico
I-37 South - Corpus Christi, connections to US-281 and US-77 to the Rio Grande Valley.

No major connections that are screaming to be built - such as Houston with an Austin and southwest / northeast connection (I-69). Well served to many major metros on the interstate system with good connections to other highways. The exception is the northwest which doesn't have interstate connections from any of the three Texas triangle metros.

[webny99]

... I would say the actual missing connection is west/southwest to Williamsport. I'm surprised better connectivity between Scranton and Williamsport hasn't come up here as a complaint, or in the fictional board, more often.

Google says that I-81/I-80/I-180 is less than five minutes longer than PA 118, so close enough.

Hmmm. I could have sworn it was longer than that when I checked last night.
I guess it's a Rochester-Niagara Falls type situation where the freeway adds quite a bit of mileage and creates a U-shaped routing, but still manages to be just as fast.

[kphoger]

Google says that I-81/I-80/I-180 is less than five minutes longer than PA 118, so close enough.

Hmmm. I could have sworn it was longer than that when I checked last night.

Who's saying it wasn't longer last night?  Google Maps estimates are based on current traffic.

[webny99]

Google says that I-81/I-80/I-180 is less than five minutes longer than PA 118, so close enough.

Hmmm. I could have sworn it was longer than that when I checked last night.

Who's saying it wasn't longer last night?  Google Maps estimates are based on current traffic.

Well, of course, but I don't recall any significant traffic (which would have displayed in orange/red), and I would have thought that if anything, the times would have been more comparable in the late evening than at mid-day. Not that it really matters. She's right - it's close enough either way.

[MikieTimT]

For its size, I'd say Little Rock is very well served by 2.5 2-DI's and lots of 3DI's.

2DI's:
I-30
I-40
Future I-57

3DI's:
I-430
I-530
I-630
I-440

And Northwest Arkansas is just recently getting it's first one, despite being only 27 places below LR in the MSA listings.

[wanderer2575]

Detroit. 

Interstate access to/from the south, west, northwest, and north.  Full bypass on the north side (I-696) and a partial bypass of the west side (I-275), the latter of which combines with two other freeways to form a full bypass.  I-94 provides access to all points west via interstate without going out of the way; same with I-75 to all points south and east.  (I don't deduct points for Lake Erie being in the way or the hopeless obsolescence of I-94 through downtown.)

[sbeaver44]

... I would say the actual missing connection is west/southwest to Williamsport. I'm surprised better connectivity between Scranton and Williamsport hasn't come up here as a complaint, or in the fictional board, more often.

Google says that I-81/I-80/I-180 is less than five minutes longer than PA 118, so close enough.

Hmmm. I could have sworn it was longer than that when I checked last night.
I guess it's a Rochester-Niagara Falls type situation where the freeway adds quite a bit of mileage and creates a U-shaped routing, but still manages to be just as fast.

PA 118 is a fun and beautiful road.  Make a stop at the Red Rock Scoop!

[zzcarp]

Cleveland is well-served. I-90 East to Buffalo/Canadian Border, I-71 to Columbus and Cincinnati, I-77 to Charleston and points south, I-80/Turnpike east to Pittsburgh/New York, I-80-90/Turnpike west to Chicago, I-480 is a good outer belt connecting to the Turnpike at both ends. I-271 is a good road connecting I-71, I-77, and I-480 with I-90 east of Cleveland. And the I-490 connector provides the missing movements from EB I-90 to SB I-77 and vice-versa.

[hotdogPi]

Cleveland is well-served. I-90 East to Buffalo/Canadian Border, I-71 to Columbus and Cincinnati, I-77 to Charleston and points south, I-80/Turnpike east to Pittsburgh/New York, I-80-90/Turnpike west to Chicago, I-480 is a good outer belt connecting to the Turnpike at both ends. I-271 is a good road connecting I-71, I-77, and I-480 with I-90 east of Cleveland. And the I-490 connector provides the missing movements from EB I-90 to SB I-77 and vice-versa.

Cleveland to Toronto is not direct.

[webny99]

Cleveland is well-served. I-90 East to Buffalo/Canadian Border, I-71 to Columbus and Cincinnati, I-77 to Charleston and points south, I-80/Turnpike east to Pittsburgh/New York, I-80-90/Turnpike west to Chicago, I-480 is a good outer belt connecting to the Turnpike at both ends. I-271 is a good road connecting I-71, I-77, and I-480 with I-90 east of Cleveland. And the I-490 connector provides the missing movements from EB I-90 to SB I-77 and vice-versa.

Cleveland to Toronto is not direct.

I don't see where he mentioned anything about Toronto. But in any case, the reason Cleveland-Toronto is not direct is because Lake Erie is in the way, not because of the lack of freeways. The current route (I-90 - I-190 - QEW) is all freeway except for the Peace Bridge and associated connections to I-190.

[hobsini2]

Indianapolis.  The under construction portion of I-69 can be bypassed using I-70, I-57, and I-55.  After I-69 is completed I really only see two corridors standing out that haven't been built out from Indianapolis:  US 31 up to South Bend (kind of being slowly built), and a diagonal towards Cleveland, OH (the latter of which is currently served by using I-70 and I-71).

You could make a case that the NE diagonal for Indy is I-69 to Ft Wayne since it does goe northeast to Muncie first.

[hobsini2]

Milwaukee is pretty well served.
I-41 North: Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Appleton, Green Bay and eventually the UP of Michigan.
I-41 South/I-94 East: Chicago and points south, east and southeast.
I-43 North: Sheboygan, Manitowoc and Green Bay
I-43 South: Beloit and towards Iowa to San Francisco via I-39, I-88 & I-80. Also St Louis, Texas and New Orleans via I-39 and I-44 or I-55.
I-94 West: Madison, Minneapolis/St Paul and the Pacific Northwest.

[STLmapboy]

STL was already mentioned but it feels very overserved for it's current size; the plans were drawn up when STL was far more important than it is now. That does leave us with several easy routes out of town, though.

[Roadgeekteen]

STL was already mentioned but it feels very overserved for it's current size; the plans were drawn up when STL was far more important than it is now. That does leave us with several easy routes out of town, though.

Which routes do you think are not needed?

[thspfc]

All Midwestern cities are pretty well off when it comes to Interstates. Chicago in particular has five inside its inner beltway (I-294), and ten in total if you count Rockford and Beloit WI as part of the Chicago area.