Pointless routes

[74/171FAN]

I should have mentioned this earlier but the ultimate pointless route in VA outside of West Point is VA 13 due to US 13 out east and that this route has nothing to do with it.  Besides VA 13 should probably either be a VA 260 or an SR. Also VA 360 is completely pointless due to its proximity to US 360 as well.

[74/171FAN]

I'll agree on VA 13, which has been a numbering violation for the 76 years it's existed.

VA 360, while a numbering violation, could only be considered a "pointless route NUMBER".  The route itself is valid.  Easy fix would be to extend VA 344 along it.

I agree with that for all except the portion with VA 293(which I could throw into the useless multiplexes or pointless termini thread) and have VA 344 end at VA 293.

[corco]

As far as Washington, I'd say SR 515 and SR 181 are the only really pointless routes.

Idaho has one of the most, if not the most efficient state highway systems in the country.

Hmm...state highways in Wyoming that serve no visible purpose (not even serving bridges, or state parks):

WYOs
10, 12, 33, 35, 36, 37, 71, 73, 76, 90, 91, 93, 94, 114, 133, 137, 138, 139, 153, 157, 158, 159, 170, 171, 172, 173, 175, 190, 211, 218, 221, 233, 236, 237, 238, 239, 241, 251, 252, 253, 256, 272, 291, 294, 310, 311, 314, 315, 330, 335, 336, 340, 341, 350, 351, 352, 354, 370,  374, 375, 390, 391, 411, 435, 436, 451

[Terry Shea]

Business Spur 196 (Chicago Drive), at exit 72 in Grand Rapids makes no sense whatsoever.  I thought business routes were supposed to have restaurants, gas stations and the like along them.  This business spur has none of that, it just runs through a very old industrial part of town and some bad neighborhoods.  Why they even built an exit here is unfathomable.  Chicago Drive doesn't even intersect the freeway here...it runs parallel to I-196 and is about a mile away, so they had to build very long exit ramps just to make the connection.  Furthermore there is an exit to Chicago Dr just 3 miles back at exit 69 and it can also be accessed at exit 70 (28th St).  And then to top it all off it was built as just a partial interchange.  You can only access the business spur from eastbound I-196 and you can only enter the freeway westbound from the business spur.  Weird!

[DrZoidberg]

Is there really any point to I-175 and I-375 in Tampa?  Granted, they probably do a decent job of directing traffic into downtown...but as for signing them...is there a point?  They're basically long offramps.

[Sykotyk]

I was on both I-175 and I-375 down there, they really don't need to be signed.

Another pointless route (or at least upgrade) would be PA-8 from I-80 towards Franklin, PA. No need to be limited access four-lane freeway.

Sykotyk

[Alex]

I was on both I-175 and I-375 down there, they really don't need to be signed.

Another pointless route (or at least upgrade) would be PA-8 from I-80 towards Franklin, PA. No need to be limited access four-lane freeway.

Sykotyk

They both have use, and I'm happy with them being Interstates, as 175 would be unused otherwise and 375 would be a number I've never seen yet. Having said all of that, there are a few off-ramps on both, and they have some benefit to Tropicana Field that sits between them, and provide high-speed access to downtown St. Petersburg and its attractions. When I lived in St. Pete, I used them often when heading to/fromdowntown, and it made it a fast trip at just 5-7 minutes. Though I will say that St. Pete's street grid system is equally efficient.

[Revive 755]

I'm not entirely sure what the point is to I-155 in IL, either.

One could argue that it should've been an even x55, but it does serve a purpose:  providing an Interstate connection from Springfield (the state capital) to not only Peoria but to the Quad Cities.  One could also argue that it provides an Interstate connection from St. Louis to the Quad Cities.

It does provide the fastest route between St. Louis and the Quad Cities, at least until Illinois finishes four-laning most of US 67 (even then I'm not sure the US 67/US 34/I-74 will be much faster given all the curves in the alignment and having to cut east over to I-74 at Galesburg).  I think it should have instead started near Springfield and roughly followed IL 29 to Peoria.

[Scott5114]

OK 96 is the most pointless I can think of. If it really needs to exist (not likely!), it should be OK 32A. And OK 42 has no business tying up a two-digit number.

[SSOWorld]

I-894 seems pointless - considering it piggybacks US 45 and I-43 (split between)

[DrZoidberg]

What about I-172?  It doesn't really seem to be necessary, IMHO.

[Hellfighter]

I-275 for the Detroit Area is now pointless, except to get people to the airport. After that, it ends halfway in it's journey. Also, since it was never completed back to I-75 in the Clarkston area, it should be a odd 3-digit, ie. I-775 or even I-975.

[DrZoidberg]

I-894 seems pointless - considering it piggybacks US 45 and I-43 (split between)

I like the freeway, but....one could make the same argument of I-39 in Wisconsin. 

[FLRoads]

I-275 for the Detroit Area is now pointless, except to get people to the airport. After that, it ends halfway in it's journey. Also, since it was never completed back to I-75 in the Clarkston area, it should be a odd 3-digit, ie. I-775 or even I-975.

Technically, no, it doesn't have to be an odd 3di as it does end at another two digit interstate, namely Interstate 96 (as well as Interstate 696 via the overlap I-275 has with I-96). And though it may seem pointless, Interstate 275 does provide an alternative for those wishing to get to either Interstate 94 or 96 without having to endure Detroit traffic. The only "pointless" section of Interstate 275 in my opinion is the overlap with Interstate 96. I don't think it would really hurt anything if I-275 were truncated to the I-96 interchange southwest of Livonia, though I normally do not like the truncation of Interstate highways unless they really serve no greater purpose.

[mightyace]

I-894 seems pointless - considering it piggybacks US 45 and I-43 (split between)

I like the freeway, but....one could make the same argument of I-39 in Wisconsin. 

Before I-43 was extended and even before it existed, the highway was only multiplexed with US 45 on the west (north-south) leg.

I disagree on the numbering because the highway is an alternate route to I-94 and, as such, the 894 designation as valid.  If you removed I-894, it would be harder to tell that the freeway was an alternate to I-94 without a roadmap.

[Hellfighter]

I-275 for the Detroit Area is now pointless, except to get people to the airport. After that, it ends halfway in it's journey. Also, since it was never completed back to I-75 in the Clarkston area, it should be a odd 3-digit, ie. I-775 or even I-975.

Technically, no, it doesn't have to be an odd 3di as it does end at another two digit interstate, namely Interstate 96 (as well as Interstate 696 via the overlap I-275 has with I-96). And though it may seem pointless, Interstate 275 does provide an alternative for those wishing to get to either Interstate 94 or 96 without having to endure Detroit traffic. The only "pointless" section of Interstate 275 in my opinion is the overlap with Interstate 96. I don't think it would really hurt anything if I-275 were truncated to the I-96 interchange southwest of Livonia, though I normally do not like the truncation of Interstate highways unless they really serve no greater purpose.

Actually, there is a dispute between FHWA and MDOT on where I-275 ends. FHWA says it ends at the I-96/M-14 interchange, but MDOT insists that it will end at I-96/I-696/M-5.

[SSOWorld]

I-894 seems pointless - considering it piggybacks US 45 and I-43 (split between)

I like the freeway, but....one could make the same argument of I-39 in Wisconsin. 

and Illinois 

[Voyager]

Many highways in the central valley are useless, I still can't figure out why some of them are signed.

[brad2971]

I-270 was REALLY pointless when CDOT built it; it wasn't connected correctly to the entrance of Stapleton Airport to make it useful, and it ended AT I-76! Now that I-270 is connected to I-25 and US36, its main purpose is to be a more direct freeway connection from Boulder to DIA without having to pay a toll. 

In that spirit, I-270 needs to be renumbered as US36. No way it can be, for example, I-570 (170 and 370 are already SH numbers), because Boulder would NEVER ACCEPT ANYTHING with an Interstate number leading to their town.

[corco]

I-270 is fine if they would also sign US-36. For through traffic (Kansas City to Salt Lake) it is good to have that interstate number but they really need to do a better job of signing US-36 along with I-270

[TheStranger]

Many highways in the central valley are useless, I still can't figure out why some of them are signed.

Which ones in particular?  It seems some of them were designed to provide state hghway links between larger communities in the area.

[JT]

Inspired by the "Pointless Termini" thread, what signed route designations would you consider pointless in themselves? This can be Interstate, US highway, state route, whatever.

Most of the GA 300 series routes come readily to mind.  Many of those literally go nowhere and were basically an attempt at farm-to-market roads that were stopped dead in 1963 due to the deteriorating condition of the existing state highways.  Many of the most pointless 300 series routes (e.g. GA 336 and 342) were purged in the Great Decommissioning of 1982. 

TN has a ton of pointless routes...apparently when they created the secondary system, route additions were a tad random.  TN 422 takes the cake...a corkscrew route that goes into Alabama as Jackson CR 93.  Jackson CR 93 eventually does connect to AL 73, but just go a couple miles down the road and take TN 377...much faster.  And the TN connection to Jackson CR 91 seems like a more logical choice for a state route since that is a lengthy river road.

Small state route systems are not immune, either.  Think of AL 257 that extends up to the Winston County line only to become a county road...mind you that was a secondary state route when that highway was commissioned to the south of it, but still...what's the point?

[74/171FAN]

I'll agree on VA 13, which has been a numbering violation for the 76 years it's existed.

VA 360, while a numbering violation, could only be considered a "pointless route NUMBER".  The route itself is valid.  Easy fix would be to extend VA 344 along it.

VA 157 in Henrico County would be considered a "'pointless route' ROUTING".  It should only follow Gaskins Rd and Hungary Rd(don't know how important this road is though) as both are more direct to US 33 from VA 6 and do not travel through residential areas compared to Springfield Rd.

[njroadhorse]

VT F-5.  DE 24A (which only seems to exist on the official state map).  DE 9A.  DE 1D (entirely multiplexed).  NJ 413 (entirely county-maintained).  NJ 13, 59, 62, 64, 152, 162 - just because a bridge was built by the state doesn't mean it has to be a state route.  NJ 26 and 91 - parallel and useless.  NJ 163, 167, 324 - just because the state once owned it doesn't mean it has to be a route after it's made into a dead end.  NJ 165 - entirely concurrent with 29 now.  NJ 444S - make it part of 36.

You forgot 159, 62, and 166

[njroadhorse]

Also, here's some Pennsylvania routes I find to be pointless:
PA 226- Only real connection to another highway is US 6N, and even then it still goes nowhere
I-180- Should not be an Interstate designation, probably just a PA 147 extension.
I-283- Why?
Business I-83- Only instance that PA does this with an Interstate.  Why stick out?
PA 739- Not a whole lot back there to merit a state route designation