Single-city mileage signs

[golden eagle]

On a mileage sign, you usually will see two or three upcoming cities/exits listed. On I-40 east of Jackson, TN, most, if not all, signs only have Nashville listed. Also on I-40, Memphis is only listed once past Shearerville (sp?), AR, despite that West Memphis is the next community of significant size.

In northern Hinds County, MS, Jackson is the only city listed on a mileage sign (9 miles away) on US 49.

In the case of Jackson, since no other significant communities are along the way, I can justify that. But only listing Nashville 100 miles away is another thing.

[sp_redelectric]

On I-84 (West) west of Cascade Locks there are several single-city mileage signs for Portland only - omitting Troutdale or Gresham (Troutdale being on I-84; Gresham being a city just off of I-84 with a population over 100,000). 

[Greybear]

On I-30 West of Royce City, Dallas is only listed once, despite that Rockwall is the next significant city.

[huskeroadgeek]

On a mileage sign, you usually will see two or three upcoming cities/exits listed. On I-40 east of Jackson, TN, most, if not all, signs only have Nashville listed. Also on I-40, Memphis is only listed once past Shearerville (sp?), AR, despite that West Memphis is the next community of significant size.

In northern Hinds County, MS, Jackson is the only city listed on a mileage sign (9 miles away) on US 49.

In the case of Jackson, since no other significant communities are along the way, I can justify that. But only listing Nashville 100 miles away is another thing.

Tennessee as a whole does seem to list fewer destinations on its interstate mileage signs. Whereas many, if not most states list the next exit or city and then the next major city, Tennessee only lists occasional intermediate destinations.

[The High Plains Traveler]

It isn't true on I-70 or I-76, but Colorado tends to avoid showing out-of-state cities on I-25. Nothing beyond Cheyenne is shown northbound, for instance, and I believe there is a Cheyenne-only sign north of Fort Collins. There is a Pueblo-only distance sign south of Colorado Springs and a Trinidad-only sign between Walsenburg and Trinidad. I think before the project on I-25 through Trinidad they had a Raton only sign just south of there (OK, we'll show something in New Mexico but only the next town!) but the new sign shows Las Vegas as well.

[vdeane]

I-81 north of Watertown only has Canada.

[golden eagle]

On a mileage sign, you usually will see two or three upcoming cities/exits listed. On I-40 east of Jackson, TN, most, if not all, signs only have Nashville listed. Also on I-40, Memphis is only listed once past Shearerville (sp?), AR, despite that West Memphis is the next community of significant size.

In northern Hinds County, MS, Jackson is the only city listed on a mileage sign (9 miles away) on US 49.

In the case of Jackson, since no other significant communities are along the way, I can justify that. But only listing Nashville 100 miles away is another thing.

Tennessee as a whole does seem to list fewer destinations on its interstate mileage signs. Whereas many, if not most states list the next exit or city and then the next major city, Tennessee only lists occasional intermediate destinations.

I-65 south of Nashville had other cities/destinations on its mileage signs, rather the way I-40 did.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

I-65 has a couple of cases I know about, both northbound:

Just outside Louisville Metro, Louisville is the only city mentioned on a mileage guidance sign; no Indiana cities are mentioned until after you cross the Ohio River.

There's one just 7 miles before the northern terminus, which only mentions Gary being 8 miles away. At that point, Chicago is mentioned in a sign about half a mile away in advance-exit style, placed on the median. There, it shows the two best routes available: I-80/94 west (2.5 miles from the sign), or I-90/Toll Road (5 miles from the sign).

An aside question: when Chicago is mentioned in the distance signs between Merrillville and Indianapolis, which route did they put under consideration when they posted the distances?

[tdindy88]

An aside question: when Chicago is mentioned in the distance signs between Merrillville and Indianapolis, which route did they put under consideration when they posted the distances?

Using pictures from the website, based at the mileage sign north of Exit 121 (71st Street) I used Google Maps to determine the distance. The sign reads 169 miles, the directions from Google Maps shows 171 miles using I-65, I-90 and the Dan Ryan. That goes up to 180 miles if you use I-94 from I-65 to the Loop.

I was going to mention the I-65 example up there near Gary, but I realized that there was another one, on I-74 west of Exit 119 that just lists the distance to Indianapolis. Though this is a bit odd because there are other communities that could be listed (Shelbyville, Fairland and Acton) and there are other communities further on I-74 as Crawfordsville gets a mention before the I-465 interchange. In the Gary example, there is really no where else for the highway to go, so it makes sense.

[roadman65]

I-78 has a mileage sign for Newark at the Somerset/ Union County Line, spite the fact that New York, the nation's largest city is just beyond that.  That is because, someone in NJDOT thinks that I-78 ends at the NJ Turnpike or if not is going by NJDOT maintained highways as east of there it is NJTA and PANYNJ who maintains I-78.

New Jersey, seems to have a new policy on mileage signs using communities that are only directly on the route, hence "Ewing" used for control point over Trenton along I-295 Northbound.  Ewing is not on I-295, but the freeway continues as I-95 a road that is still NJDOT and at one time considered to be a future extension of the highway.

Therefore, NYC is not on the state portion of I-78 and being Newark is where jurisdictions change, that is why Newark is last.

[hobsini2]

The stretch of I-94 between Milwaukee and Chicago is a bit of an odd ball.
Going North (WB), if I remembercorrectly, the first mileage sign for Milwaukee doesn't happen until after you cross the state line just north of WI 165. Nowhere in Illinois does it give a mileage for Milwaukee.
Going South (EB), Chicago is mentioned just after the Airport Exit and is mentioned a half dozen times in Wisconsin. Once you hit the state line, you don't see another Chicago mileage sign at all.

This may have something to do with IDOT and ISTHA producing their own signs/gantries but you would think there would be some mileage sign even if only for O'Hare. On other Illinois tollways, there are mileage signs sporadically even 355 has a couple.

[roadman65]

The stretch of I-94 between Milwaukee and Chicago is a bit of an odd ball.
Going North (WB), if I remembercorrectly, the first mileage sign for Milwaukee doesn't happen until after you cross the state line just north of WI 165. Nowhere in Illinois does it give a mileage for Milwaukee.
Going South (EB), Chicago is mentioned just after the Airport Exit and is mentioned a half dozen times in Wisconsin. Once you hit the state line, you don't see another Chicago mileage sign at all.

This may have something to do with IDOT and ISTHA producing their own signs/gantries but you would think there would be some mileage sign even if only for O'Hare. On other Illinois tollways, there are mileage signs sporadically even 355 has a couple.

The same going for New York.  If you are on the I-95 corridor north of Baltimore, you see mileage signs for New York quite frequently after each exit.  Into Delaware you see them, but not as frequent as the interchanges are closer together.  However, there a couple.  Then after exiting I-95 for I-295 where New York is directed for motorists you see a sign for "New York City 112" after I-295 begins to find none anymore along the New Jersey Turnpike.

The NJT used to sign single ones ever 10 miles using rounded ten numbers going downward until Newark.  I even wrote to the NJTA to suggest they put them back.  I was told by a Mr. Buckley, that demands on motorists have changed over the years that made these signs obsolete.  Better response then I got for the Garden State Parkway that has none except for the Atlantic City Expresssay south of the Raritan River and another in Brick Township both southbound.  The Parkway said that with exit numbers being mileage based, why would would they need them.

There is a few scattered signs around for single control points and one that denoted the Western Spur of the Turnpike was 16 miles to the George Washington Bridge, but that is all.  New Jersey is more worse than Illinois for freeway mileage signs.

[Alps]

There is a few scattered signs around for single control points and one that denoted the Western Spur of the Turnpike was 16 miles to the George Washington Bridge, but that is all.  New Jersey is more worse than Illinois for freeway mileage signs.

Ignoring the concept of "more worse", you're rating all of NJ based on your experiences on two toll roads (one agency) and one sign on I-80. Please don't.

[bassoon1986]

not 100% sure but I think on I-30 between the 2 cities, Dallas or Fort Worth are listed by themselves

[roadman65]

There is a few scattered signs around for single control points and one that denoted the Western Spur of the Turnpike was 16 miles to the George Washington Bridge, but that is all.  New Jersey is more worse than Illinois for freeway mileage signs.

Ignoring the concept of "more worse", you're rating all of NJ based on your experiences on two toll roads (one agency) and one sign on I-80. Please don't.

Oh to the contrary, I think that New Jersey has great mileage signs, but they could use some improving on the freeways though.  I was comparing to what hobsini2 stated about Illinois having no Chicago signs on I-94.  Not to say anything bad about New Jersey, just to say "that is not new" to the user.  \

However, it would be nice to erect mileage signs on both Parkway and Turnpike as both routes are used heavily by tourists, especially during beach season on the GSP.  Sorry if I offended you.  BTW, I lived in both Union and Middlesex counties for years of my life, and I was always into road signs there.

[Alps]

There is a few scattered signs around for single control points and one that denoted the Western Spur of the Turnpike was 16 miles to the George Washington Bridge, but that is all.  New Jersey is more worse than Illinois for freeway mileage signs.

Ignoring the concept of "more worse", you're rating all of NJ based on your experiences on two toll roads (one agency) and one sign on I-80. Please don't.

Oh to the contrary, I think that New Jersey has great mileage signs, but they could use some improving on the freeways though.  I was comparing to what hobsini2 stated about Illinois having no Chicago signs on I-94.  Not to say anything bad about New Jersey, just to say "that is not new" to the user.  \

However, it would be nice to erect mileage signs on both Parkway and Turnpike as both routes are used heavily by tourists, especially during beach season on the GSP.  Sorry if I offended you.  BTW, I lived in both Union and Middlesex counties for years of my life, and I was always into road signs there.

NJDOT doesn't control the Parkway and Turnpike. I could raise the idea next time I talk to the NJTA Operations dept. and see if they've considered it.

[ftballfan]

NB US-131 north of Reed City mentions only Cadillac

SB M-22 south of Onekama mentions only Manistee

NB US-31/M-37 south of Traverse City only mentions Traverse City

WB I-96 west of Walker mentions only Muskegon

EB I-96 near Nunica mentions only Grand Rapids

[roadman65]

There is a few scattered signs around for single control points and one that denoted the Western Spur of the Turnpike was 16 miles to the George Washington Bridge, but that is all.  New Jersey is more worse than Illinois for freeway mileage signs.

Ignoring the concept of "more worse", you're rating all of NJ based on your experiences on two toll roads (one agency) and one sign on I-80. Please don't.

Oh to the contrary, I think that New Jersey has great mileage signs, but they could use some improving on the freeways though.  I was comparing to what hobsini2 stated about Illinois having no Chicago signs on I-94.  Not to say anything bad about New Jersey, just to say "that is not new" to the user.  \

However, it would be nice to erect mileage signs on both Parkway and Turnpike as both routes are used heavily by tourists, especially during beach season on the GSP.  Sorry if I offended you.  BTW, I lived in both Union and Middlesex counties for years of my life, and I was always into road signs there.

NJDOT doesn't control the Parkway and Turnpike. I could raise the idea next time I talk to the NJTA Operations dept. and see if they've considered it.

The Parkway could use them after all numbered routes (State, US, Interstate) using select control cities of at least three.  The first two picked at first, and then New York, and NY Thruway for NB, and Atlantic City and Cape May for SB.

The NJ Turnpike should have them after each interchange with the city of the next interchange and New York (NB) and Trenton, Delaware, and Baltimore (SB).

NJDOT should redesign interstate signs to conform to interstate guide sign rules, and have the selected control cities on them instead of Ewing on I-295 and Bedminster on I-78 for an intermediate point.   I-287 should have mileage to every interstate junction along it at various points being a Beltway.  Like most bypass routes it is used for traffic traveling between different interstates, like EB I-80 to NB I-87, etc.

Anyway, ideas on that would help tourists.   For commuters its okay for what they have, but if you are visiting for the first time it can be in some areas gray.

[roadman65]

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Watertown,+NY&hl=en&ll=44.001019,-75.900233&spn=0.000976,0.002642&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=34.945679,86.572266&oq=watert&t=h&hnear=Watertown,+Jefferson,+New+York&z=19&layer=c&cbll=44.000837,-75.900345&panoid=6E2WgOL1zcuEM_NHZFpkTQ&cbp=12,210.81,,0,-22.5

One interesting sign in Watertown, NY on US 11 just south of NY 37.

[Snappyjack]

The NY Thruway(I-87) southbound between Albany and Harriman only list the mileage to New York City.

[gotwins76]

I've seen at least one mileage sign on US 15 heading south of the 11-15-581 interchange in Camp Hill, PA that only lists Gettysburg.

[US71]

EB I-44 just east of Rolla has a sign with just St Louis.

[Scott5114]

The Kansas Turnpike does this odd thing with Topeka... in addition to the regular mileage signs, which are posted after nearly every interchange, there are a few signs laid out like "Topeka / CAPITAL CITY / XXX MILES". These appear even when Topeka isn't the control city (e.g. they appear on NB I-35 between Braman, OK and Wichita).

[roadman65]

The Kansas Turnpike does this odd thing with Topeka... in addition to the regular mileage signs, which are posted after nearly every interchange, there are a few signs laid out like "Topeka / CAPITAL CITY / XXX MILES". These appear even when Topeka isn't the control city (e.g. they appear on NB I-35 between Braman, OK and Wichita).

Maybe that is why.  KTA probably uses the next exit and current control city on post interchange signs.  Topeka is not used at that particular point or points, so an additional sign is added in between.