I made a post under Fictional Highways about Buffalo and Washington being somewhat out of the way, by a freeway.
What other cities/regions would fit this criteria, within reason?
To clarify, if a US/state route is in expressway format, like US 19 in WV, then that doesn't count as out of the way.
St. Louis and the Twin Cities: For an all freeway link, one would have to take I-55 North to I-39 North to I-90 West to I-94 West, or backtrack to Kansas City on I-70 West and take I-35 North. A third option is I-55 North to I-155 North to I-74 West to I-80 West to I-380 North to US 20 West to I-35 North. You would think there would be a more direct higher speed link than US 61 since both lie on the shores of the same river.
Boise (or Salt Lake)-Phoenix
The all-freeway route would be I-84 to I-15 to I-10, via Los Angeles
Salt Lake to Albuquerque -- east on I-80, south on I-25 -- but you have to make that big backtracking loop north (compass east) of Santa Fe, as well as the jog north into Wyoming on I-80.
Las Vegas-Bay Area, where the all-freeway option is to go south to LA and north from there.
Little Rock to Jackson or Mobile
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas to Denver, Colorado, a trip length of about 775 miles one-way.
The most direct path from Google is via U.S. 287 (mostly arterial, about 315 miles); then about 215 more miles via U.S. 87.
Balance of the trip is by Interstate highway, mostly I-25 with a short section of I-40 near Amarilo, Texas.
All-Interstate route is I-35 to I-135 to I-70, which is about 860 miles one-way.
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on August 04, 2017, 03:34:11 AM
Las Vegas-Bay Area, where the all-freeway option is to go south to LA and north from there.
You can bypass la with ca 58.
Quote from: Roadgeekteen on August 04, 2017, 10:34:32 AM
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on August 04, 2017, 03:34:11 AM
Las Vegas-Bay Area, where the all-freeway option is to go south to LA and north from there.
You can bypass la with ca 58.
You can, but CA 58 isn't a freeway for its entire length (yet, anyway).
Quote from: corco on August 04, 2017, 02:02:11 AM
Boise (or Salt Lake)-Phoenix
The all-freeway route would be I-84 to I-15 to I-10, via Los Angeles
You could also go only to Barstow, then east on I-40 to Flagstaff, then south on I-17.
Starting in Baltimore, take Route 2 to I-895 and then follow the 895 Spur to I-97. 97 all the way to U.S. 50 instead of exiting at Route 3 to go through Crofton, and then follow U.S. 50 through Bowie (including passing the other end of MD-3, which is also the U.S. 301 split) and the other P.G. County suburbs and into Washington, DC.
Birmingham to St. Louis. The logical routes would either be I-22/U.S. 78 to Memphis, I-240 around Memphis, then I-55; or, I-65 to Nashville, then I-24 to I-57, then I-64. The "scenic" or out of the way route would be I-65 to Louisville, then west on I-64 across Indiana and Illinois.
Quote from: Charles2 on August 04, 2017, 08:58:15 PM
Birmingham to St. Louis. The logical routes would either be I-22/U.S. 78 to Memphis, I-240 around Memphis, then I-55; or, I-65 to Nashville, then I-24 to I-57, then I-64. The "scenic" or out of the way route would be I-65 to Louisville, then west on I-64 across Indiana and Illinois.
Or 65-24-57-64.
There's a reason why at least part of I-69 makes perfect sense: Houston to anywhere in the Great Lakes portion of the Midwest. If one were to limit travel to freeways, that city to, say, Chicago -- you'd still need to do an acute-angle trip through Dallas (N 45 to E 30) or the right-angle boogie (E 10/12 to N 55) via Baton Rouge. It's more than likely that truckers in general are itching to get 69 (& 369, for that matter) done to Shreveport and/or Texarkana just for that purpose. And if & when the I-57 extension is completed from Little Rock to Sikeston, that'll just be icing on the cake!
Quote from: jp the roadgeek on August 04, 2017, 01:58:03 AM
St. Louis and the Twin Cities: For an all freeway link, one would have to take I-55 North to I-39 North to I-90 West to I-94 West, or backtrack to Kansas City on I-70 West and take I-35 North. A third option is I-55 North to I-155 North to I-74 West to I-80 West to I-380 North to US 20 West to I-35 North. You would think there would be a more direct higher speed link than US 61 since both lie on the shores of the same river.
Nope. The OP indicated if there's an expressway connecting them, it doesn't count. I offer the Avenue of the Saints as the route that exempts this combination from consideration.
However, there's Cincinnati to Huntington or Charleston, but the latter will be alleviated when US 35 is completed in West Virginia.
Quote from: roadguy2 on August 04, 2017, 11:39:41 AM
Quote from: corco on August 04, 2017, 02:02:11 AM
Boise (or Salt Lake)-Phoenix
The all-freeway route would be I-84 to I-15 to I-10, via Los Angeles
You could also go only to Barstow, then east on I-40 to Flagstaff, then south on I-17.
I don't know if you can even get from San Luis Obispo, Monterey/Salinas, or Santa Cruz/Watsonville, California to *any* other major metro area by any all freeway route, even in principle. This is despite all of the metro areas having at least one, if not two, freeways that go right through each of them. You can't even get from Monterey to Santa Cruz (about 50 km) via an all freeway route. I believe that the same is true with many Mexican and Central American megalopolises as well. It is also likely true of most of the major Canadian plains cities, too.
Quote from: michravera on August 05, 2017, 04:29:29 PM
Quote from: roadguy2 on August 04, 2017, 11:39:41 AM
Quote from: corco on August 04, 2017, 02:02:11 AM
Boise (or Salt Lake)-Phoenix
The all-freeway route would be I-84 to I-15 to I-10, via Los Angeles
You could also go only to Barstow, then east on I-40 to Flagstaff, then south on I-17.
I don't know if you can even get from San Luis Obispo, Monterey/Salinas, or Santa Cruz/Watsonville, California to *any* other major metro area by any all freeway route, even in principle. This is despite all of the metro areas having at least one, if not two, freeways that go right through each of them. You can't even get from Monterey to Santa Cruz (about 50 km) via an all freeway route. I believe that the same is true with many Mexican and Central American megalopolises as well. It is also likely true of most of the major Canadian plains cities, too.
And many african cities.
Hartford to Providence. Have to either go north via Worcester, south via New Haven & New London, or take US 6 which badly needs to be upgraded to a freeway but probably never will be. Of course, I may be a little biased living in the Willimantic area with no interstate access after the original I-84 route got changed. :-)
Can we count Augusta, Maine to Burlington, VT?
You have to take I-295 to I-95 to NH 101 to I-93 to I-89.
Quote from: The Nature Boy on August 07, 2017, 12:27:09 AM
Can we count Augusta, Maine to Burlington, VT?
You have to take I-295 to I-95 to NH 101 to I-93 to I-89.
Bangor is larger and even further out of the way.
Quote from: sharkyfour on August 06, 2017, 06:31:55 PM
Hartford to Providence. Have to either go north via Worcester, south via New Haven & New London, or take US 6 which badly needs to be upgraded to a freeway but probably never will be. Of course, I may be a little biased living in the Willimantic area with no interstate access after the original I-84 route got changed. :-)
From New Britain, CT, I've had friends drive CT 9 South to it's end in Old Saybrook, then take I-95 North into Rhode Island.
From Hartford, you could either travel:
Option A --- I-91 S>CT 9 S>I-95 N
Option B --- CT 2 E>I-395 S>CT 85 S>I-95 N
Many peninsulas are like this, but if you're going from Wilmington, Delaware to Cape May, you have to go ~30 miles Northbound on I-295, then ~44 miles Southeast via NJ 42 and Atlantic City Expressway, then take the Garden State Parkway South for 38 more miles. That's 112 miles by freeway. Google's suggested route, which involves only short pieces of freeway (I-295, NJ 55, Garden State Parkway) in addition to non-freeway US 40 and NJ 47, is 90 miles. It would be 65 miles as the crow flies.
Quote from: bzakharin on August 07, 2017, 12:02:47 PM
Many peninsulas are like this, but if you're going from Wilmington, Delaware to Cape May, you have to go ~30 miles Northbound on I-295, then ~44 miles Southeast via NJ 42 and Atlantic City Expressway, then take the Garden State Parkway South for 38 more miles. That's 112 miles by freeway. Google's suggested route, which involves only short pieces of freeway (I-295, NJ 55, Garden State Parkway) in addition to non-freeway US 40 and NJ 47, is 90 miles. It would be 65 miles as the crow flies.
What about the US 9 ferry across Delaware Bay?
Quote from: roadguy2 on August 07, 2017, 01:23:49 PM
Quote from: bzakharin on August 07, 2017, 12:02:47 PM
Many peninsulas are like this, but if you're going from Wilmington, Delaware to Cape May, you have to go ~30 miles Northbound on I-295, then ~44 miles Southeast via NJ 42 and Atlantic City Expressway, then take the Garden State Parkway South for 38 more miles. That's 112 miles by freeway. Google's suggested route, which involves only short pieces of freeway (I-295, NJ 55, Garden State Parkway) in addition to non-freeway US 40 and NJ 47, is 90 miles. It would be 65 miles as the crow flies.
What about the US 9 ferry across Delaware Bay?
That is 110 mostly non-freeway miles from Wilmington. Remember that Delmarva is itself a Peninsula. Thee Cape May - Lewis Ferry is well out of the way of the I-95 corridor.
I don't know if this counts as a major city but there is no direct connection by interstate between Roanoke and Hampton Roads. You have to go north on I-81 then take I-64 east which goes southeast. The most direct way is US 460 which is an ok road west of Petersburg but it's horrible east of there.
Quote from: 1 on August 07, 2017, 07:34:46 AM
Quote from: The Nature Boy on August 07, 2017, 12:27:09 AM
Can we count Augusta, Maine to Burlington, VT?
You have to take I-295 to I-95 to NH 101 to I-93 to I-89.
Bangor is larger and even further out of the way.
The funny thing is that Bangor is pretty much the same route, just with added I-95 north of Augusta.
Getting from Maine to the rest of Northern New England is a pain in the ass.
Huntsville to Atlanta doesn't have a direct connection. The preferred all four-lane route would be US 72 to I-24 to I-75, but the most direct route involves US 72, AL 35, then two lane AL 40/AL 117/GA 48/US 27/GA 140, then I-75. Slightly more out of the way but more four-lane would be US 72 to AL 35 to AL 9 to GA 20 to I-75.
Minot, ND to Amarillo, TX is almost all on country roads (save for a ~20mi stretch of I-90 in SD) due to the underlying horizontal interstate network in the Great Plains.
El Paso, TX to Witchita, KS is another good one. I've noticed that the lack of interstates around there give rise to more out-of-the-way routes. It passes through the Denver-Dallas route at Amarillo.
Portland to Las Vegas requires a lot of backroads out in Oregon and Nevada.
Quote from: sparker on August 04, 2017, 10:57:20 PM
There's a reason why at least part of I-69 makes perfect sense: Houston to anywhere in the Great Lakes portion of the Midwest. If one were to limit travel to freeways, that city to, say, Chicago -- you'd still need to do an acute-angle trip through Dallas (N 45 to E 30) or the right-angle boogie (E 10/12 to N 55) via Baton Rouge. It's more than likely that truckers in general are itching to get 69 (& 369, for that matter) done to Shreveport and/or Texarkana just for that purpose. And if & when the I-57 extension is completed from Little Rock to Sikeston, that'll just be icing on the cake!
Houston to anywhere northeast, really.
Milwaukee or Minneapolis to about any metro area in Michigan.
From New York City to Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo you really only have two options: Thruway (I-87 then I-90) all the way or NY 17/I-86 to:
I-81 (Syracuse)
I-390 (Rochester)
US 219 (Buffalo)
Going through the middle is tedious because of the Catskills.
Quote from: GaryV on August 09, 2017, 04:36:11 PM
Milwaukee or Minneapolis to about any metro area in Michigan.
What about the US 10 ferry?
Quote from: roadguy2 on August 09, 2017, 11:03:33 PM
Quote from: GaryV on August 09, 2017, 04:36:11 PM
Milwaukee or Minneapolis to about any metro area in Michigan.
What about the US 10 ferry?
If you don't mind paying through the nose, then sure.
I have a cousin who works on that ferry. He lives in Ludington, Mich. (His dad and my dad were first cousins). I need to see about getting a discount through him to ride that ferry sometime.
Quote from: roadguy2 on August 09, 2017, 11:03:33 PM
Quote from: GaryV on August 09, 2017, 04:36:11 PM
Milwaukee or Minneapolis to about any metro area in Michigan.
What about the US 10 ferry?
OP specified by freeway.
I'm going for Sikeston, MO and Paducah, KY. Just because I can.
No detour to Cairo, IL should be required
Or for the all freeway route, no Northern Detour up to Pulleys Mill, IL should be required -- that is a decent way out of the way
Quote from: ilpt4u on August 10, 2017, 07:11:33 PM
I'm going for Sikeston, MO and Paducah, KY. Just because I can.
No detour to Cairo, IL should be required
Both Paducah and Sikeston thank you for upgrading them to "major metro areas." :bigass:
I want to try Philadelphia to Baltimore. Interstate 76 (Schuykill Expressway, then the Pennsylvania Turnpike) to Interstate 83 just south of Harrisburg, then I-83 through York County, and into Maryland, through Baltimore County and into Baltimore city.
Quote from: epzik8 on August 10, 2017, 10:48:11 PM
I want to try Philadelphia to Baltimore. Interstate 76 (Schuykill Expressway, then the Pennsylvania Turnpike) to Interstate 83 just south of Harrisburg, then I-83 through York County, and into Maryland, through Baltimore County and into Baltimore city.
Why doesn't I-95 work?
Quote from: 1 on August 11, 2017, 08:01:01 AM
Quote from: epzik8 on August 10, 2017, 10:48:11 PM
I want to try Philadelphia to Baltimore. Interstate 76 (Schuykill Expressway, then the Pennsylvania Turnpike) to Interstate 83 just south of Harrisburg, then I-83 through York County, and into Maryland, through Baltimore County and into Baltimore city.
Why doesn't I-95 work?
I was wondering the same thing. I think the question is for cities that don't have a connection between them. I-95 connects Baltimore and Philly already.
Quote from: Buffaboy on August 04, 2017, 01:42:39 AM
I made a post under Fictional Highways about Buffalo and Washington being somewhat out of the way, by a freeway.
What other cities/regions would fit this criteria, within reason?
To clarify, if a US/state route is in expressway format, like US 19 in WV, then that doesn't count as out of the way.
It is less than 100 Nautical Miles (less than 115 Statute Miles) flying distance from San Jose International Airport to The Fresno-Yosemite International airport. I know this because you can't use the SJC-FYI leg as your long cross-country flight as required on for your private pilot's license.
The shortest all freeway route from San Jose to Fresno is I-680 north to I-580 east to I-205 east to I-5 north to CASR-120 east to CASR-99 south for a total distance of about 187 miles.
Define Major... :poke: :poke: :poke:
Lubbock to Midland Tx via the most direct non-interstate routing, US 87 and TX 349, is 117 miles.
Driving strictly interstate highways, there's I-27 to Amarillo, west on I-40 to Albuquerque, down I-25 Las Cruces, on to I-10, and on to Midland for a distance of 971 miles.
The other interstate-only option is I-27 North to I-40 East to Oklahoma City, south to Fort Worth on I-35, then back on I-20 to Midland for a distance of 881 miles.
I believe someone pointed out Las Vegas - Phoenix as part of a larger roadtrip, but for emphasis on the trip between those two particular cities:
Via US 93 and US 60, it's a 298 mile trip.
Taking I-15 to Barstow, to I-40 to Flagstaff, down I-17 to Phoenix, it's 642 miles.
Via 15 - I-215 - I-10 (San Bernadino) it's 549 miles.
Looking over the map of the USA, another glaring example is Fort Wayne, IN to Colombus, OH. I didn't check the mileage though.