In my area:
Very easy
NH 84, NH 97, MA 108, I-190 MA, MA 213, MA/NH 286, I-290 MA, I-393 NH
Can be done without trying, but not as easy as the first group
NH 33, NH 38, MA 40, NH 88, MA 99, MA 127A, MA 128, MA 129A, MA/NH 150, NH 151, I-293 NH, I-495 MA
Routes in italics are routes I have clinched.
WA 519 if you use I-90 to get to downtown Seattle
I-190 (IL) if you go to O'Hare from Chicago Loop via Kennedy Expwy
NY 419 if you enter Watkins Glen SP from NY 329
I-495 (DE) if you follow signs for Philadelphia to bypass Wilmington (and countless other bypasses like I-276)
MT 40 if you're going from Whitefish to Glacier NP
I-370 (MD) if you go from I-270 to the ICC/MD 200 or Shady Grove Metro
NJ 81 if you take Exit 13A from the NJTP
ND 91 if you take 7th St from US 52 into Harvey
Nexus 6P
CT 11, CT 40, CT 43, CT 55, CT 78, CT 120, CT 125, CT 131, CT 135, CT 139, CT 152, CT 155, CT 166, CT 343
I-878.
I-395 (MD)
IA-165
Quote from: 1 on May 14, 2017, 10:55:23 AM
In my area:
Very easy
NH 84, NH 97, MA 108, I-190 MA, MA 213, MA/NH 286, I-290 MA, I-393 NH
Can be done without trying, but not as easy as the first group
NH 33, NH 38, MA 40, NH 88, MA 99, MA 127A, MA 128, MA 129A, MA/NH 150, NH 151, I-293 NH, I-495 MA
Routes in italics are routes I have clinched.
Certainly, I-980 through Oakland. You can almost do it without knowing that you are driving on it.
I-305 in Sacramento. It's unsigned and probably goes where you want to go.
CASR-244 in Sacramento. It only has one exit in one directions, so you either take the exit or you clinch it. In the other direction it has no exits, so, if you drive on it, you either clinch it or you break down. The route is either completely unsigned or very poorly marked (only shown on the postmiles).
I-205 in California's Central Valley. It's built to get you from WB I-580 to NB I-5.
I-215 near San Bernardino often looks like a shortcut and, if memory serves, it requires a right exit in order to stay on I-15.
I-380 near San Francisco Airport. It has a couple of exits, but you could easily take a wrong turn out of the airport and be on I-280 before you know that you have done wrong.
I feel like a majority of the under 5-10 mile 3di's would count, and same goes for the shorter state routes. That being said, I-189 in Vermont is easy because once you take the exit for it off of I-89, you're committed to clinching it as there are no exits on it until you hit its other end at US 7.
In Maine, I-195 in Saco/Old Orchard Beach is an easy clinch since it's under 3 miles long. I-395 is also fairly easy, but it's a bit longer (just under 5 miles) and has more exits. The Millbridge to Harrison section of US 1A is an easy clinch, because it's actually the shorter route for US 1 through traffic since US 1 detours inland to hit Cherryfield. Same goes for ME 90 between Warren and Rockport, because it by-passes US 1 through the traffic-clogged Thomaston and Rockland.
You also have your pick of the litter for short and easy Maine state route clinches, since a lot are short connector routes or short routes that end at the coast. Ones that immediately come to mind are 73, 98, 185, 207, 216, (Formerly) 217, 233, and 238. Unsigned ME 701 (Scarborough Connector) and 703 (Maine Turnpike Approach Road) south of Portland are also easy clinches.
Around here, the first one I thought of is VA-400. It's about 1.8 miles long, maybe a little less, and it connects the two separate segments of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, running through Alexandria as Washington Street. It's one numbered route I've never heard anybody refer to by its number, and I'd guess most people don't know it's a numbered state route (although the number is posted). Very easy to clinch it without knowing it, and certainly a lot of people do so twice daily because it's a commuter route.
I-381 belongs to the group of "cannot legally drive without clinching"
Also NY 314, ever since it was truncated to US 9.
I-295 Maine.
Twin Cities: MN 280 might be the only real example of this. It serves as a cutoff between 94 and 35W along the M-SP city line.
Duluth/Superior: I-535. It's a bridge with one useless mainline exit. Easy clueless clinch.
Others: MN 45 (connector between Duluth-based traffic and the extremely popular Jay Cooke State Park), MN 33 (shortcut between Twin Cities and eastern Iron Range cities), MN 371 (entire route is part of the Twin Cities-Bemidji route)
The exit on I-535 is great for July 4th festivities. Watch the fireworks from between the grain elevators.
MD's I-595 is probably clinched by hundreds if not thousands every day who have no clue they're actually on that route. However, it shouldn't be clinched "by accident" by anybody who follows this forum.
Here in the Appleton, WI area, that would be WI 125. Its entire length is straight shot on College Ave between I-41 on the area's west side and downtown Appleton.
Elsewhere, a couple of ones that I can think of right away include WI 30 (a freeway spur that runs between the I-39/90/94 Badger Interchange and Johnson St/US 151 in Madison) and WI 119 (fly into or out of MKE, you'll almost certainly clinch it). Also, except on Brewers' home game days, WI 341 is a certain clinch for all of its users.
Mike
Apparently FL 393....did that one yesterday and it didn't occur to me until I finished it, very short route.
In Alabama, SR-151 can be clinched in roughly two minutes, less if there's no traffic. It's a 1/2-mile long connector in northeast Jefferson County between SR-75 and SR-79.
I-475 for anyone in the Atlanta area bound for Florida, and if you live in the eastern part of the metro, throw in I-675 also.
People living in certain parts of Gwinnett County can probably clinch either GA 84 or GA 264 without any effort (probably not both, though).
I also wouldn't be that surprised if a number of people clinch I-575 on the way to work every morning.
In Detroit, BS-375 would fit the bill, as it is only 2 blocks from the end of I-375 to the end of M-10 and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. BS-375 is also unsigned.
Quote from: Eth on May 14, 2017, 09:29:33 PM
I also wouldn't be that surprised if a number of people clinch I-575 on the way to work every morning.
Or heading to North Carolina...like today:
https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=20228.msg2226795#new
I-175 and I-375 in St. Pete. They are both glorified off ramps rather than freeway.
Also, how about I-587 in NY? It has no interchanges so you have to drive its entirety especially using NY 28 east of I-87.
Quote from: Roadgeekteen on May 14, 2017, 06:22:41 PM
I-295 Maine.
Not necessarily. A lot of traffic diverts at US 1 in Bath. Now, silent I-495 (Falmouth Spur) is easy.
Since Caltrans has decommissioned the surface-street Hollywood section, CA 170 is a relatively easy clinch, as it simply connects two principal arterial freeways (US 101, I-5, with CA 134 as a feeder as well). As the 101 shift to the Ventura Freeway involves a TOTSO, it's likely that it's been clinched unknowingly more than once!
Quote from: jp the roadgeek on May 15, 2017, 12:59:04 AM
Quote from: Roadgeekteen on May 14, 2017, 06:22:41 PM
I-295 Maine.
Not necessarily. A lot of traffic diverts at US 1 in Bath. Now, silent I-495 (Falmouth Spur) is easy.
I-395 in Maine to.
NJ Route 59 in Cranford, NJ. Its route is not only short, but is mostly under the NJ Transit Raritan Valley Line just connecting NJ 28 to parallel South Avenue and continuing Lincoln Avenue.
Quote from: roadman65 on May 15, 2017, 08:40:57 AM
NJ Route 59 in Cranford, NJ. Its route is not only short, but is mostly under the NJ Transit Raritan Valley Line just connecting NJ 28 to parallel South Avenue and continuing Lincoln Avenue.
Also NJ 62 and NJ 64. Over on Long Island, Port Washington Boulevard (NY 101) is only a few miles, so it's pretty easy to do.
NJ 32 is short enough that most people taking the NJ Turnpike to/from exit 8A have clinched it. And the NJ Turnpike itself, not because it's short, but because it's the through route for long distance traffic on the northeast corridor.
I got some more
- Airport Connector (Harrisburg) (Internally signed as PA-3032)
- I-283
- I-176 (PA)
While I'm not sure these and previous ones are clinched
by accident per say, but rather clinched
without even trying or much effort.
Off the top of my head (& ones I don't believe were yet mentioned):
I-76 (NJ only)
I-291 (both CT & MA)
I-579 (PA)
I-676 (in either NJ and/or PA)
I-691 (CT)
MA 25
Lowell Connector
NJ 19
NJ 83
NJ 347
PA 581
Quote from: 1 on May 14, 2017, 10:55:23 AMCan be done without trying, but not as easy as the first group
NH 33, NH 38, MA 40, NH 88, MA 99, MA 127A, MA 128, MA 129A, MA/NH 150, NH 151, I-293 NH, I-495 MA
Routes in italics are routes I have clinched.
I don't believe that either MA 128 or I-495 in MA falls within the OP's criteria. Sure, those routes can be clinched within a 2-hour period; but I believe the OP's calling for routes that are clinched on a more frequent basis. That said, most regular users of I-495 in MA (& even MA 128) are not on it for its entire length.
VA 132Y as it connects the Colonial Williamsburg Official Information Center with the rest of the world.
FL 681 in Venice, FL. Its only a elongated ramp between I-75 and US 41 as the two are parallel routes. It serves no other purpose except maybe now with it being allowed to front development it may be used for local use. However, to go between I-75 SB and US 41 to Venice and Laurel you will have to clinch it.
A couple on the top of my head . . .
Truck U.S. 1&9 in New Jersey, especially northbound (official detour during Skyway closure)
PA 213 (Bucks Co. PA): I routinely take it from the Feasterville area to the Langhorne area.
AC Expressway
Quote from: akotchi on May 16, 2017, 10:17:15 AM
AC Expressway
True, but here's a tip. If you want quicker access to more beaches and cheaper parking, take Exit 2. Heck, if it's off-peak you just follow Albany Ave all the way to the boardwalk, park at a parking meter and go right in, with a bathroom facility right there too.
Quote from: kurumi on May 14, 2017, 03:28:30 PM
I-381 belongs to the group of "cannot legally drive without clinching"
Also I-865 in Indiana...and I-189 in Vermont, but clinching I-189 would have to be more deliberate.
I'd also consider adding I-294 to this list for anyone trying to get around Lake Michigan and bypass Chicago.
I-865 is a good one.
I'm not sure if these are "by accident" - because people intend to drive there, they don't just find themselves on the roads - but there are several Michigan highways that are quite easy to clinch.
M-14 - if you're going from the northern Detroit suburbs to anywhere west of Ann Arbor.
M-117 - because if you get on it, you're probably headed all the way to the other end of it.
Highways like M-116, that exist only to get to a State Park.
AL 759 and AL 291 are a curious pair that fall into this group. One is an extension of I-759, and the other just connects it back to US 278/411 in Gadsden.
CA 153 if you ever happen to be traveling to Gold Rush County...only .55 miles.
NJ 165 in Lambertville, NJ. Is not NJ 29 a one way SB only street south of NJ 179 so you must use NJ 165 NB and NJ 179 SB to circumnavigate around it? Anyway, NJ 165 has always been a short route after NJ 29 got rerouted to end in Frenchtown once upon a time.
In Nebraska, in general, a lot of the spur routes can be clinched without trying. Of course, you'd have to have a reason to go to whatever town you were going to. The same goes for a lot of the link routes off of I-80. As far as numbered highways go there, I suspect a lot of people who live in my old hometown of Papillion can clinch NE 85 without knowing it. I also think NE 110 would fit, as that is the route from US 20 to NE 35 for the Sioux City to Norfolk traffic.
As far as Iowa goes, the best one I can think of besides IA 165 is IA 160, with IA 81 also easy to clinch.
Four of them I have done in Minnesota are MN 20, MN 80, MN 269, and MN 316.
How about the Throgs Neck Expressway (I-695) going between the Throgs Neck Bridge (I-295) and I-95?
Quote from: dgolub on May 17, 2017, 08:57:16 AM
How about the Throgs Neck Expressway (I-695) going between the Throgs Neck Bridge (I-295) and I-95?
And for that matter, I-478 (Battery Park Tunnel)
VA 73. No Brainer.
Quote from: GaryV on May 16, 2017, 04:40:01 PM
I'm not sure if these are "by accident" - because people intend to drive there, they don't just find themselves on the roads - but there are several Michigan highways that are quite easy to clinch.
M-14 - if you're going from the northern Detroit suburbs to anywhere west of Ann Arbor.
M-117 - because if you get on it, you're probably headed all the way to the other end of it.
Highways like M-116, that exist only to get to a State Park.
M-231 is very easy as well. Only one intersection between its ends. Unsigned I-296 is an easy one as it's just a three mile section of US-131.
NJ/NY 495. Basically just the Lincoln Tunnel and a connector to the NJ Turnpike.
Quote from: webny99 on May 17, 2017, 11:43:00 PM
I 590 is pretty much impossible NOT to clinch. Only around 4 miles with 4 (relatively) insignificant exits.
I-590 is probably the interstate I travel on most often after I-87 and I-90, and yet I almost never clinch it all the way when I travel on it (in fact, the only time I have in recent memory is when I was taking pictures of some new signs on it). In fact, for me, traveling the portion between exits 1 and 3 is quite rare, and always has been. And I'd hardly call Monroe Avenue "insignificant", especially since it has the flagship Wegmans.