What are some highways that have the most "transformations" (for lack of a better term) throughout their length?
I'm going to use US-41 as an example.
From a rural highway in Michigan's upper peninsula
To an arterial in one of Wisconsin's larger cities (Green Bay)
To an Interstate for nearly 200 miles.
To Lake Shore Drive in Chicago
Once again to a rural highway in Kentucky and Tennessee.
To a parallel to I-75 on Florida's west coast
To the Tamiami Trail
To an arterial in downtown Miami.
US 101 in California alone is pretty wild:
Starts out at a massive interchange (East Los Angeles Interchange) as the northern segment of the freeway that goes to Disneyland on its other end
Continues as massive urban/suburban freeway for about 70 miles
Then rural beach freeway/expressway
Then narrower urban expressway in Santa Barbara
Then rural/semi-rural expressway/freeway for about 200 miles
Finally into larger suburban/urban freeway for 80 miles from Gilroy to San Francisco.
Then...surface boulevards along a busy municipal and commercial corridor in SF (Van Ness and Lombard)
Back to being freeway for another hour and a half, including the most iconic bridge in California
Then undivided four lane road in Hopland
Freeway again briefly in Ukiah
Mostly four-lane road north of there until a bit before Laytonville
Two-lane road in Laytonville up towards a freeway segment in Leggett
Super two with some interchanges from there through Piercy
Short freeway bypass in Garberville, then super 2 through Myers Flat
Freeway near the redwoods with Avenue of the Giants as the old 2 lane US 101 path nearby
Freeway from Fortuna to Eureka
Urban boulevard/streets in Eureka
Freway from north Eureka through McKinleyville
Freeway north of Trinidad
Undivided road through Orick
Super 4 (undivided freeway) towards Klamath
Super 2 in Klamath
Two lane road leading to Crescent City, then semi-urban one-way pair in Crescent City itself
Freeway leading out of Crescent City, then two-lane road past Fort Dick leading out towards Smith River and to Oregon
Pretty sure there's a thread on this somewhere...something about routes that have the most drastic changes...
Yes, my submission in said thread was CA 4.
CA-299 is overlooked. Starts in redwood forest, winds through mountains, then agricultural plains, then passes by a volcano, then more mountains. Then finally winds down into the desert and literally over a dry alkaline lake.
Quote from: Quillz on April 05, 2024, 07:29:49 PMCA-299 is overlooked. Starts in redwood forest, winds through mountains, then agricultural plains, then passes by a volcano, then more mountains. Then finally winds down into the desert and literally over a dry alkaline lake.
Starts as a freeway and has a second segment around Redding.
TX 121 is an example I posted on that thread, as well as AR/MO/IA 5.
Quote from: TheStranger on April 03, 2024, 06:04:08 PMUS 101 in California alone is pretty wild:
Starts out at a massive interchange (East Los Angeles Interchange) as the northern segment of the freeway that goes to Disneyland on its other end
Continues as massive urban/suburban freeway for about 70 miles
Then rural beach freeway/expressway
Then narrower urban expressway in Santa Barbara
Then rural/semi-rural expressway/freeway for about 200 miles
Finally into larger suburban/urban freeway for 80 miles from Gilroy to San Francisco.
Then...surface boulevards along a busy municipal and commercial corridor in SF (Van Ness and Lombard)
Back to being freeway for another hour and a half, including the most iconic bridge in California
Then undivided four lane road in Hopland
Freeway again briefly in Ukiah
Mostly four-lane road north of there until a bit before Laytonville
Two-lane road in Laytonville up towards a freeway segment in Leggett
Super two with some interchanges from there through Piercy
Short freeway bypass in Garberville, then super 2 through Myers Flat
Freeway near the redwoods with Avenue of the Giants as the old 2 lane US 101 path nearby
Freeway from Fortuna to Eureka
Urban boulevard/streets in Eureka
Freway from north Eureka through McKinleyville
Freeway north of Trinidad
Undivided road through Orick
Super 4 (undivided freeway) towards Klamath
Super 2 in Klamath
Two lane road leading to Crescent City, then semi-urban one-way pair in Crescent City itself
Freeway leading out of Crescent City, then two-lane road past Fort Dick leading out towards Smith River and to Oregon
Isn't the section I bolded a Super-4?
At any rate, 101 through both Oregon and Washington also goes through quite the changes of character as well, from city arteries, one-way couplets, running along beaches, hugging hillsides, brief Super-2 sections, iconic bridges, cutting deep inland, and while I can't yet comment on how it is north of Aberdeen, it does finish how it starts -- as an urban freeway at a topographically impressive interchange... facing the 'wrong way'.
Quote from: Bickendan on April 07, 2024, 02:07:19 AMIsn't the section I bolded a Super-4?
Yep!
The freeway parallel to Avenue of the Giants is indeed a Super 4:
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.3967274,-123.9444209,3a,75y,280.32h,77.4t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipOl3KNMyDzWW4gbSWgxu2J4WiRv10gBhF12NPlc!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipOl3KNMyDzWW4gbSWgxu2J4WiRv10gBhF12NPlc%3Dw900-h600-k-no-pi12.601729533822876-ya352.4697257897085-ro3.405944824218807-fo90!7i5504!8i2752?coh=205410&entry=ttu
I haven't been there yet - but might be traversing a ton of 101 heading towards the fringes of the Orgeon Coast in about a month, if my travel plans hold up. Part of the reason listing all the different forms of 101 in California ended up being a fun exercise, I've driven on all of it from East Los Angeles to about Ukiah but not yet further north.
Quote from: OCGuy81 on April 03, 2024, 05:38:04 PMWhat are some highways that have the most "transformations" (for lack of a better term) throughout their length?
I'm going to use US-41 as an example.
From a rural highway in Michigan's upper peninsula
To an arterial in one of Wisconsin's larger cities (Green Bay)
To an Interstate for nearly 200 miles.
To Lake Shore Drive in Chicago
Once again to a rural highway in Kentucky and Tennessee.
To a parallel to I-75 on Florida's west coast
To the Tamiami Trail
To an arterial in downtown Miami.
US-41 is pretty rural in Indiana as well and runs parallel to I-75 in Georgia as well.
Quote from: Bickendan on April 07, 2024, 02:07:19 AMQuote from: TheStranger on April 03, 2024, 06:04:08 PMUS 101 in California alone is pretty wild:
Starts out at a massive interchange (East Los Angeles Interchange) as the northern segment of the freeway that goes to Disneyland on its other end
Continues as massive urban/suburban freeway for about 70 miles
Then rural beach freeway/expressway
Then narrower urban expressway in Santa Barbara
Then rural/semi-rural expressway/freeway for about 200 miles
Finally into larger suburban/urban freeway for 80 miles from Gilroy to San Francisco.
Then...surface boulevards along a busy municipal and commercial corridor in SF (Van Ness and Lombard)
Back to being freeway for another hour and a half, including the most iconic bridge in California
Then undivided four lane road in Hopland
Freeway again briefly in Ukiah
Mostly four-lane road north of there until a bit before Laytonville
Two-lane road in Laytonville up towards a freeway segment in Leggett
Super two with some interchanges from there through Piercy
Short freeway bypass in Garberville, then super 2 through Myers Flat
Freeway near the redwoods with Avenue of the Giants as the old 2 lane US 101 path nearby
Freeway from Fortuna to Eureka
Urban boulevard/streets in Eureka
Freway from north Eureka through McKinleyville
Freeway north of Trinidad
Undivided road through Orick
Super 4 (undivided freeway) towards Klamath
Super 2 in Klamath
Two lane road leading to Crescent City, then semi-urban one-way pair in Crescent City itself
Freeway leading out of Crescent City, then two-lane road past Fort Dick leading out towards Smith River and to Oregon
Isn't the section I bolded a Super-4?
At any rate, 101 through both Oregon and Washington also goes through quite the changes of character as well, from city arteries, one-way couplets, running along beaches, hugging hillsides, brief Super-2 sections, iconic bridges, cutting deep inland, and while I can't yet comment on how it is north of Aberdeen, it does finish how it starts -- as an urban freeway at a topographically impressive interchange... facing the 'wrong way'.
There is also a lot of fun to be had finding all the old sections of 101 in Del Norte, Curry, Coos and Douglas counties. Some sections like 42S got renumbered while other sections are tiny bits that are well-hidden. Making discoveries like the "Pair Of Bears" on what was the south end of the 101 bridge by Klamath, which got washed away in 1964, is pretty dang cool.
NY Route 17 used to transform from expressway to freeway several times and even a suburban arterial in Corning and Elmira before I-86. It even was interesting when you throw in the non freeway four lane arterial south of Woodbury to the NJ State Line back then.
Quote from: TheStranger on April 03, 2024, 06:04:08 PMUS 101 in California alone is pretty wild:
Starts out at a massive interchange (East Los Angeles Interchange) as the northern segment of the freeway that goes to Disneyland on its other end
Continues as massive urban/suburban freeway for about 70 miles
Then rural beach freeway/expressway
Then narrower urban expressway in Santa Barbara
Then rural/semi-rural expressway/freeway for about 200 miles
Finally into larger suburban/urban freeway for 80 miles from Gilroy to San Francisco.
Then...surface boulevards along a busy municipal and commercial corridor in SF (Van Ness and Lombard)
Back to being freeway for another hour and a half, including the most iconic bridge in California
Then undivided four lane road in Hopland
Freeway again briefly in Ukiah
Mostly four-lane road north of there until a bit before Laytonville
Two-lane road in Laytonville up towards a freeway segment in Leggett
Super two with some interchanges from there through Piercy
Short freeway bypass in Garberville, then super 2 through Myers Flat
Freeway near the redwoods with Avenue of the Giants as the old 2 lane US 101 path nearby
Freeway from Fortuna to Eureka
Urban boulevard/streets in Eureka
Freway from north Eureka through McKinleyville
Freeway north of Trinidad
Undivided road through Orick
Super 4 (undivided freeway) towards Klamath
Super 2 in Klamath
Two lane road leading to Crescent City, then semi-urban one-way pair in Crescent City itself
Freeway leading out of Crescent City, then two-lane road past Fort Dick leading out towards Smith River and to Oregon
... and that's just the California portion!
I just wanted to add CA-245. I know it doesn't really count due to its length, but it has a very jarring transformation the moment you pass the CA-216 junction. Previously you're on arrow straight farm roads, with hard curves because the route will physically move onto different roads. Then afterward, pretty much out of nowhere, you start to ascend the Sierra and there are sharp, dramatic curves. You gain a lot of elevation quickly, and so just a few miles after flat farmland, you're now on the western slopes of the Sierra. It's interesting because this is one of the few south-north routes in California to ascend the Sierra, most others move west-east. I have driven CA-245 a few times and every time it's still amazing how abrupt the character shift is.
Probably even more historically impressive because this used to be part of CA-65, which was longer so had more time spent in the farmlands. Must have been a fun drive for the smaller cars of the 1930s on narrower roads ascending into the mountains.
US 169 in MN:
Rural 2-lane road through farmland from Iowa to TH 60
Aging urban freeway through Mankato
Rural 4-lane expressway along Minnesota River (except for city street section in St. Peter)
Major urban freeway through Twin Cities suburbs
4-lane arterial through Champlin and Anoka
4-lane expressway/freeway from Anoka to Lake Mille Lacs
2-lane road on Mille Lacs shore with heavy resort/casino traffic
2-lane rural northwoods road to Grand Rapids
4-lane expressway through Iron Range to terminus
US 6, in MA alone, goes from four-lane major surface arterial, to urban streets (Fall River and New Bedford), to quasi freeway/parkway on Upper and Mid Cape, then to Super 2 on the lower Cape, back to four-lane surface arterial for the heart of the Outer Cape, then to a quasi Super 2 with one proper interchange through Truro, finally ending in Provincetown as a divided four-lane at its old alignment.