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Roadgeekteen:
Can someone tell me more about the US 4 freeway? I've always wondered what it's purpose is. I looked it up and apparently it's part of a larger, cancelled project but IDK. Does it get enough traffic to justify it's upgrades? Seems like it just connects Rutland with nothing really, and it dead ends US 20 in Wisconsin style at the state line.
BlueOutback7:
--- Quote from: Roadgeekteen on February 20, 2023, 04:30:36 AM ---Can someone tell me more about the US 4 freeway? I've always wondered what it's purpose is. I looked it up and apparently it's part of a larger, cancelled project but IDK. Does it get enough traffic to justify it's upgrades? Seems like it just connects Rutland with nothing really, and it dead ends US 20 in Wisconsin style at the state line.
--- End quote ---
It helps people get from upstate New York to Central Vermont quicker, which probably helped with traffic on the 2 lane roads. I actually wonder if this was in anticipation of a potential “I-92” across Northern New England.
froggie:
^ It predates the "I-92" concept, which was studied in depth (but not with the actual 92 number) across Northern New England in the early 1970s. Though it stands to mention that the state of Vermont did want an Interstate along the corridor as early as 1945.
In the 1960s, Rutland and the nearby skiing/tourism spots (namely Killington) were growing faster than expected...this is in no small part why the US 4 freeway was built. New York didn't agree, which is why the freeway ends as it does near the state line.
shadyjay:
The few times I've taken US 4 in NY between the VT line and the Northway, there really isn't much between those two points to slow up traffic... outside of probably Whitehall itself and the light at Glens Falls. In between those points its pretty much a 55 MPH road (with some exceptions). The section in Vermont passes through Fair Haven, Castleton, and Center Rutland which are more "built up" and prone to more 30-40 mph speeds than in NY.
Its the same with US 11 across the "rooftop" in NY where an interstate has been talked about for awhile. Is one really needed? Probably not, as its 55 MPH most of the way, slowing down in the handful of towns along the way. The road is pretty straight with multiple opportunities for passing. (Though I think an interstate in that area is meant more to spur economic development than to relieve congestion).
Back to Rt 4, it would be nice if it looped around Rutland to rejoin Woodstock Rd on the "edge of development" just as you start climbing up to Killington, and in NY, if there was a bypass around Glens Falls or a more direct connection with the Northway. In a perfect world, it would be a freeway from the NY/VT line all the way to the Northway, but its not, so we have to deal with what we have, for now.
The Ghostbuster:
Any eastern extension of the US 4 freeway would not only require the demolition of the Diamond Run Mall but would also run through Aitken State and Rutland City Forests (which would make any route unconstructable). Also, what is the terrain like in the forementioned forests like? Would they be a barrier to theoretically constructing a US 4 eastward freeway (or any roadway) extension? Also, it seems like getting a US 4 westward freeway extension to Interstate 87 would be quite difficult to construct (which is probably why it doesn't exist). Forests and mountains are probably also the reason why the US 7 expressway ends in East Dorset, and doesn't continue past Rutland.
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