Differences In How States Treat US Routes (+Jarring Transitions at State Lines)

[CoreySamson]

I've noticed in the past year how different the US states are in how they treat US routes. What I mean by "treat" is how sophisticated or unsophisticated they are, especially when compared to neighboring states. I find it particularly interesting when one state upgrades a road to be 4-lanes at a state line, but the other state leaves the road a two-lane road. We could even extend this conversation to how states handle it when US highways are superseded and truncated.

As an example, let's look at Mississippi and Alabama. These two states are similarly struggling when it comes to road funding (correct me if I'm wrong), but they treat their US routes almost completely differently. Mississippi's US routes are typically 4-lane divided highways with bypasses and sometimes exits (except when the route in question has been superseded by an interstate). Alabama, on the other hand, is more frugal in upgrading it's US highways, which seems to be only 4-laned on high-traffic corridors. Just look at US 84 on the border between these two states, and you'll see what I mean:
https://www.google.com/maps/@31.7643196,-88.4771634,12175m/data=!3m1!1e3

Florida's default for US highways in rural areas appears to be 2 lane roads (excepting US 27). Texas is a bit like Alabama by having a mixed bag of 2-lane highways and 4-lane divided highways, but unlike Alabama, they are upgrading their US routes at a fairly rapid pace. Louisiana is a lot like Mississippi but a bit more inconsistent. Meanwhile Arkansas seems content to put all their US highway upgrades into 2 routes and leave the others as they have been for decades.

I guess it all comes down to how much time and effort each state puts into upgrading its highways. So how does your state treat its US routes, especially now that the US routes are past their heyday? And what are the most jarring state line transitions between divided highways and 2-lane roads?

[TheHighwayMan3561]

The one that always jumps in my mind is going from Louisiana into Mississippi northbound on US 61. You crest a rise and in the distance see the shoulder simply cease to exist when it hits the state line.

[elsmere241]

US 301 used to go from a four-lane expressway in Maryland to a two-lane road in Delaware.  Delaware has since built a toll road that carries it to Delaware 1 at the Roth Bridge.

US 1 in Maryland is two way, then becomes a freeway in Pennsylvania.

[ethanhopkin14]

The one that always jumps in my mind is going from Louisiana into Mississippi northbound on US 61. You crest a rise and in the distance see the shoulder simply cease to exist when it hits the state line.

Here you go.

Not at state lines, but I have noticed how some states treat US highways the same or even lesser than state highways and some states actually have a middle ground for US highways between interstate and state highways.  Texas, for example, has shoulders on almost all of it's 2 lane US highways, some thing that is less frequent on state highways and almost never on Farm-to-Market roads. 

[Bruce]

US 195 is all ramp in Idaho and an actual highway in Washington.

[thspfc]

WISDOT was planning on a US-12 freeway across the IL border into Chicagoland, but IDOT never started it so the freeway ends at an awkward intersection in Genoa City.

[Dirt Roads]

Virginia is well known for its unique way of "twinning" its US routes by constructing a modern set of lanes roughly parallel to the existing two-lane to create a four-lane.  There's not that many examples crossing state lines, but it is quite pronounced on US-522 coming over from West Virginia.  Not quite as big of a transition on US-340 coming over from West Virginia, nor on US-501 coming over from North Carolina.  Oddly, all three of these route transition from two-lane roads in the adjacent state to the "twinning" roads in Virginia. 

On the other hand, the transition between West Virginia and Virginia is even more pronounced on Corridor Q (US-460) at both of its border crossings.  You need to drive westbound on US-460 from Narrows towards Princeton to get the full effect of the old road but over the cliffs above the railroad corridor along the New River (which now hosts the eastbound lanes).  On the West Virginia side (both borders), you transition to a full blown high-speed expressway (that wouldn't take much to convert to a full freeway if [never] needed).

[Max Rockatansky]

US 98 goes from a modern expressway in Mississippi to a two-lane mess upon entering Alabama. 

[Techknow]

US 101 is anywhere from 2 to 12 lanes in both directions in California to 2 to 4 lanes in Oregon. I don't think US 101 has freeway portions in Oregon at all. US 101 at the north terminus in Washington is freeway. No jarring transition between the California and Oregon though.

[Road Hog]

The one that always jumps in my mind is going from Louisiana into Mississippi northbound on US 61. You crest a rise and in the distance see the shoulder simply cease to exist when it hits the state line.

Here you go.

Not at state lines, but I have noticed how some states treat US highways the same or even lesser than state highways and some states actually have a middle ground for US highways between interstate and state highways.  Texas, for example, has shoulders on almost all of it's 2 lane US highways, some thing that is less frequent on state highways and almost never on Farm-to-Market roads.

Depends on the age of the highway and the traffic load. TxDOT added shoulders and straightened SH 289 north of Gunter in the early 2000s. Before that it was narrower than some of the FM roads it intersected.

[Scott5114]

US 195 is all ramp in Idaho and an actual highway in Washington.

Oklahoma has two US routes that end more or less immediately upon entering Kansas (177, 270). Meanwhile, Kansas has three of its routes that get the same treatment from Missouri (166, 400), Colorado (400 again), and Nebraska (73).

[Ted$8roadFan]

In New England, if my memory is correct, there aren't that many dramatic transitions on US Highways on state boundaries.

[index]

Although their roads are generally worse, South Carolina seems to treat all US routes with a level of priority that North Carolina doesn't give them.  In SC, you can generally expect that a US highway is going to have rumble strips and wide lanes, and if you're lucky a small shoulder. In NC, it seems that US highways can be pretty much anything.

The transition between US 76 from SC to NC is an example of this:

https://www.google.com/maps/@34.2762223,-79.0417388,3a,47.6y,165.69h,79t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s686B230xS38wYcPPY66pKg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Overall, from observed experience, South Carolina has more roads in general with that treatment than North Carolina does.

[DJDBVT]

In New England, if my memory is correct, there aren't that many dramatic transitions on US Highways on state boundaries.

US 4 at the NY/VT border is the only one I can think of offhand.

[MoiraPrime]

As an example, let's look at Mississippi and Alabama. These two states are similarly struggling when it comes to road funding (correct me if I'm wrong), but they treat their US routes almost completely differently. Mississippi's US routes are typically 4-lane divided highways with bypasses and sometimes exits (except when the route in question has been superseded by an interstate). Alabama, on the other hand, is more frugal in upgrading it's US highways, which seems to be only 4-laned on high-traffic corridors. Just look at US 84 on the border between these two states, and you'll see what I mean:
https://www.google.com/maps/@31.7643196,-88.4771634,12175m/data=!3m1!1e3

In Mississippi this is because in 1987 the state legislature passed a 4 lane highway project. They basically picked all the trunk roads in Mississippi and slowly upgraded them in phases.

I found a document about it here: https://mdot.ms.gov/documents/Administration/Reports/FY%202012/1987%20Four-Lane%20Highway%20Program%20Report.pdf

[webny99]

The four-laning of rural highways is one of the rare cases where one could say "be like Mississippi" 

[ethanhopkin14]

This is an interesting topic that I have had some fascination with.  When the lane orientation in one state doesn't match the one in the next state the highway is about to cross into, which state handles the transition.  This also happens on interstates are well.  One state built the interstate 6 lanes and the next state built it with only 4 lanes.  In most cases, the state with more lanes kills the extra lanes right before you cross the line, but not always.

[MoiraPrime]

The four-laning of rural highways is one of the rare cases where one could say "be like Mississippi" 

Mississippi also has the quirk of being almost evenly split 50/50 rural and urban. It's uniquely populated for a 4 lane highway system to be necessary.

Just don't be like Texas. As a roadgeek Texas leaves me in awe. As a fan of cities with proper urban design, Texas also horrifies me.

[3467]

Note some US highways are not federal primary routes the NHS system though most are . There is massive variation in states. The ideal 2 lane design in Illinois is 12 foot lanes though 11 are OK with a 8 foot should 3 paved and no bad curves ...of course not many are.
A good example is US 67 in Mercer County that meets this and has passing lanes and it goes to one of the worst 2 lanes in Warren. The state is after 40 years correcting it. I should get some pictures. It's a complete reconstruction with 5 to 7 foot paved should and brand new curves.
A long example of saying beyond the interstates we have no consistent design standard.

[FrCorySticha]

It's not at the state line, but close on US 2. It goes from divided highway 4-lane across a large portion of MN and all of ND except about 10 miles before the MT state line. This is because MT has chosen not to 4-lane pretty much any of US 2 outside of larger towns. It's been upgraded to relatively modern standards for lane width and shoulders, and there are projects to add passing lanes, but no 4-lanes any time soon.

[jdbx]

I have precious few familiar examples to cite, seeing as CA only has seven US routes.  Every one of them seems to maintain the same characteristics crossing over state lines. If there was a way to summarize how CA treats US routes, it would be "Do not want" hence why so many were decommissioned back in the 1964 renumbering.

[Dirt Roads]

Although their roads are generally worse, South Carolina seems to treat all US routes with a level of priority that North Carolina doesn't give them. 

South Carolina also has a reverence to its old-fashioned extra-wide U.S. Route shield design like no other state (particularly after Florida dropped it's colored U.S. Route shields).

[Flint1979]

WISDOT was planning on a US-12 freeway across the IL border into Chicagoland, but IDOT never started it so the freeway ends at an awkward intersection in Genoa City.

That was the first one that came to mind when I was reading the OP. Like it's a nice freeway in Wisconsin then bam you get to the Illinois border and it turns into the two lane highway that IDOT doesn't want to upgrade into a freeway. I don't get IDOT from their weird selection of control cities to their lack of maintenance and upgrades it's just crazy. IDOT might just be the worst DOT out there.

[SEWIGuy]

WISDOT was planning on a US-12 freeway across the IL border into Chicagoland, but IDOT never started it so the freeway ends at an awkward intersection in Genoa City.

That was the first one that came to mind when I was reading the OP. Like it's a nice freeway in Wisconsin then bam you get to the Illinois border and it turns into the two lane highway that IDOT doesn't want to upgrade into a freeway. I don't get IDOT from their weird selection of control cities to their lack of maintenance and upgrades it's just crazy. IDOT might just be the worst DOT out there.

I think the Tollway Authority looked into it numerous times but it either wasn't economically feasible or ran into local opposition.

[froggie]

^ Lake County, in particular, has been adamantly opposed to ANY tollway plans in the area (including an IL 53 extension and an east-west tollway roughly parallel to IL 120)