What highway deserves the title "Main Street of [state?]" Among the things to factor in are how important it is, it's history, and whatever else you'd like to come up with.
Michigan: Grand River Avenue. It runs from downtown Detroit to Fulton St on the east side of Grand Rapids (although it changes names to Cascade Rd at the Kent-Ionia county line). It was US-16 prior to the coming of the interstates
Illinois: US 66, or if excluding decommissioned routes, Interstate 55.
-They connect the two biggest urban areas in Illinois: Chicago and St. Louis.
-They run through the capital, Springfield.
-US 66 has a ton of history behind it and there are plenty of places it is commemorated. Pontiac even has a museum for it.
If an Interstate doesn't qualify, then Old US 66 it is.
Arkansas: State Highway 7 for sure.
Quote from: ftballfan on June 20, 2018, 10:42:38 PM
Michigan: Grand River Avenue. It runs from downtown Detroit to Fulton St on the east side of Grand Rapids (although it changes names to Cascade Rd at the Kent-Ionia county line). It was US-16 prior to the coming of the interstates
No, I say it should be I-75, running north through Detroit, Flint, the Tri Cities, and up through the Northern Lower to the Straits of Mackinac where it crosses into the Upper Peninsula. In fact, the
Detroit Free Press agrees with me on that assessment.
If we count decommissioned routes, then Utah's would almost certainly be US 91. The only two cities of any importance that it didn't go through were Price and Vernal.
US 91 was replaced by I-15 south of Brigham City, so I-15 probably took over as Utah's Main Street. But if we don't allow interstates (which I don't think we should), then it would be US 89.
In CA it would most likely be the original alignment of US 99 from Los Angeles to at least Manteca, where the "Main St." concept would split west (on CA 120 and the final US 50 alignment to Oakland/San Francisco), or north on US 99 to Sacramento. Today, of course, that's I-5 up to Wheeler Ridge and CA 99 to Manteca, with a CA 120/I-205/I-580/I-80 routing on the west branch to S.F., and CA 99 continuing north to Sacramento. I suppose some might argue that once I-5 was completed in the Valley, the "main street" concept should be shifted there. My counterargument is that CA 99 continues to be the primary connector between the various metro areas strung out along its length, serving a significantly larger population base than the Westside/I-5 alignment. Maybe CA 99 could be considered the "main street", while I-5 is the corresponding metro bypass!
I-75 is Michigan's Main Street. It runs the length of the state north to south and connects Detroit to Up North. It's not uncommon for I-75 to backup with traffic going northbound on Friday's and southbound on Sunday's even in the stretch where it's eight lanes between Flint and Saginaw.
ND, MN, WI: I-94
North Carolina is most certainly US 64
NY 5 goes through the following cities, in most cases through the middle of downtown: Albany, Schenectady, Amsterdam, Little Falls, Utica, Oneida, Syracuse, Auburn, Geneva, Canandaigua, Batavia, Buffalo, Lackawanna, and Dunkirk, en route to Erie PA.
The New York Thruway has billed itself "Main Street of the Empire State" , but at least for Upstate, I'd go with NY 5.
Quote from: sparker on June 21, 2018, 12:29:22 AM
In CA it would most likely be the original alignment of US 99 from Los Angeles to at least Manteca, where the "Main St." concept would split west (on CA 120 and the final US 50 alignment to Oakland/San Francisco), or north on US 99 to Sacramento. Today, of course, that's I-5 up to Wheeler Ridge and CA 99 to Manteca, with a CA 120/I-205/I-580/I-80 routing on the west branch to S.F., and CA 99 continuing north to Sacramento. I suppose some might argue that once I-5 was completed in the Valley, the "main street" concept should be shifted there. My counterargument is that CA 99 continues to be the primary connector between the various metro areas strung out along its length, serving a significantly larger population base than the Westside/I-5 alignment. Maybe CA 99 could be considered the "main street", while I-5 is the corresponding metro bypass!
I'll second 99 for California. US 99 had such an impact on the state that it literally refused to die and lives on the longest non-Interstate Freeway. I-5 definitely bypasses way too many important cities in Central California to take the title away. I'd argue US 101 is even more of a Main Street than I-5.
For Arizona it's defiitely I-10 considering it goes through Tucson and Phoenix. I-40 is mainly oriented for commerce crossing the country.
Washington: I-5 / US 99.
About 5 million people live on the corridor, which is over two-thirds of the state's population. Serves the Seattle metro area and three of its anchor suburbs, the state capital, and some major regional centers (Mount Vernon-Burlington, Bellingham, Chehalis-Centralia, Kelso-Longview, Vancouver).
Probably US 322 for Pennsylvania.
Quote from: TBKS1 on June 20, 2018, 11:29:58 PM
Arkansas: State Highway 7 for sure.
No way. The only decent sized towns it goes through are Harrison, Russellville, Hot Springs, Arkadephia, Camden and El Dorado. I would nominate I-30. It serves Fort Smith, Conway, Little Rock and West Memphis. (It doesn't actually go through Fort Smith or Little Rock but it goes through Van Buren and North Little Rock.) Future I-49 will go through Bentonville-Rogers-Springdale-Fayetteville, Fort Smith and Texarkana. AR 7 is a major tourist route but it isn't a major route for regular travel. The only long 4 lane stretch is from Camden to El Dorado. The rest of it is mostly 2 lanes with a few 4 lane sections in cities. US 65 and 67 are two other fairly important routes. But AR 7? No. Just no.
If I had to pick for NC, I'd say I-40. It traverses the state from mountains to coast, and is in or within close proximity to most of our major cities. Think Piedmont Triad, Research Triangle, Wilmington, Asheville, etc. Which are all cities with historical significance. Overall, its geographic diversity, service to our cities, and history along it qualifies it for a "Main Street" of North Carolina.
If I had to pick a US route, I'd do 64. It does the same thing as I-40, traversing the entire state, east-west, while providing a good look at almost everything big we've got. US 70 could also meet this criteria.
There isn't really a state route, in my opinion, that could be deemed a main street.
Massachusetts: US 20. Goes through Boston and reaches the Berkshires. I chose US 20 over I-90 and MA 2 because "Main Street" normally isn't a freeway.
I originally said MA 9, but I think US 20 is a better choice.
I-71 for Ohio
Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati
Quote from: US 89 on June 20, 2018, 11:58:58 PM
But if we don't allow interstates (which I don't think we should)
Second that. In fact, it should really be the most significant non-freeway corridor in the state.
Taking a shot at my southern neighbor, which isn't too far away from me, I'd have to say US 176 for South Carolina. It doesn't quite go into Charleston, and it misses Greenville, going for Spartanburg instead, but going by proximity, it services everything big the state has to offer. US 178 is similar. If Interstates are allowed, I-26. These seem like the more obvious go-to choices.
There's a few options for NJ: US 1 may seem fairly obvious, but it only covers the northern part of the state. US 130 covers about 3/4 of the state and US 9 covers the enter state. If I had to pick one, I'd go with US 9.
Delaware: US 13.
Since nobody here lives in New Hampshire, I'll do New Hampshire. US 3, no contest.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on June 21, 2018, 09:00:02 AM
There's a few options for NJ: US 1 may seem fairly obvious, but it only covers the northern part of the state. US 130 covers about 3/4 of the state and US 9 covers the enter state. If I had to pick one, I'd go with US 9.
Delaware: US 13.
Alternatively for Delaware, there's also DE 1, although if we don't want freeways/tollways, that may have to be excluded due to the fact that quite a bit of it is a tollway. DE 1 shows off other things the state has to offer, such as its coast, which US 13 doesn't.
Another New England state, Maine's main non interstate would probably be US 1 since it goes all the way from York to Fort Kent. Maine's main interstate would be I-95 because it connects many of the major cities to the capital and traverses the state from York to Houlton. Many trucks from Canada use these routes to get to the northeast too.
Kentucky's would be US 60. Paducah, Owensboro, Louisville, Frankfort (state capital), Lexington, Ashland.
Quote from: Buck87 on June 21, 2018, 08:49:28 AM
I-71 for Ohio
Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati
Not a street.
Either US 42 (Cincy, skirts Cols, CLE) or US 40/National Rd for Ohio.
If the criteria is non-Interstate then I revise my Arizona pick to US 60.
Second the US 99 sentiment for CA, OR and WA, because the most populous cities are on that route. An alternative would be US 101, since it has access to those same large cities in some form.
For Florida I think that I'd pick US 27. US 1 is too tied to I-95 and the Atlantic Corridor and the Turnpike is essentially is an express corridor. US 27 is in pretty every part of the state aside from the Keys.
I'd have a hard time choosing for West Virginia. I'm leaning toward US 19 (Bluefield, Princeton, Beckley, Clarksburg, Fairmont, Morgantown) although a lot of the importance of that route, aside from the Corridor L portion, has been supplanted by I-77 and I-79.
Another possibility is WV 2, since it runs along the river and serves a handful of important cities/towns (Huntington, Parkersburg, Wheeling and Weirton).
For Virginia, how about US 460? It runs through Bluefield, Blacksburg/Christiansburg, Roanoke/Salem, Lynchburg, Richmond/Petersburg and the Hampton Roads area.
Tennessee's is obviously the mostly unsigned TN 1.
for PA, I'd say you could go either way with US 322 or US 30
I don't know why freeways wouldn't count. I-75 is the busiest highway in the state of Michigan and called Michigan's Main Street for good reason. At 396 miles it is by far the longest highway in Michigan.
Michigan is also home to the most dangerous section of all of I-75 the stretch from Rochester Road to 14 Mile Road in Troy is the most dangerous stretch of the almost 1,800 miles of I-75.
Alabama's is most likely US 31.
I think it has to be US 95 in Idaho, since that's the only road that connects north to south
Quote from: jeffandnicole on June 21, 2018, 09:00:02 AM
There's a few options for NJ: US 1 may seem fairly obvious, but it only covers the northern part of the state. US 130 covers about 3/4 of the state and US 9 covers the enter state. If I had to pick one, I'd go with US 9.
US 9 isn't perfect either, seeing how its standalone portion only covers the shore, missing the bigger cities of central and south Jersey. The Turnpike is of course an option if freeways are acceptable. It misses Trenton, but so do all the other options save for US 1. If not, I'd vote for US 1, even though I live in South Jersey right now. You could also go with a "corridor" of US 130 to US 206 to US 1, then you've got the whole state, Camden, Trenton, New Brunswick, Edison, Newark, etc. Atlantic City misses out, but it's completely out of the way of all the other larger cities.
Quote from: Flint1979 on June 21, 2018, 12:25:06 PM
I don't know why freeways wouldn't count. I-75 is the busiest highway in the state of Michigan and called Michigan's Main Street for good reason. At 396 miles it is by far the longest highway in Michigan.
Michigan is also home to the most dangerous section of all of I-75 the stretch from Rochester Road to 14 Mile Road in Troy is the most dangerous stretch of the almost 1,800 miles of I-75.
When most people think of "Main Street", they think of the street lined with businesses through their town's downtown, not the freeway they commute on to work. I would think generalizing that concept to an entire state would yield the same assumption.
Quote from: Roadsguy on June 21, 2018, 03:02:31 AM
Probably US 322 for Pennsylvania.
Why this instead of U.S. 30?
Quote from: sparker on June 21, 2018, 12:29:22 AM
In CA it would most likely be the original alignment of US 99 from Los Angeles to at least Manteca, where the "Main St." concept would split west (on CA 120 and the final US 50 alignment to Oakland/San Francisco), or north on US 99 to Sacramento. Today, of course, that's I-5 up to Wheeler Ridge and CA 99 to Manteca, with a CA 120/I-205/I-580/I-80 routing on the west branch to S.F., and CA 99 continuing north to Sacramento. I suppose some might argue that once I-5 was completed in the Valley, the "main street" concept should be shifted there. My counterargument is that CA 99 continues to be the primary connector between the various metro areas strung out along its length, serving a significantly larger population base than the Westside/I-5 alignment. Maybe CA 99 could be considered the "main street", while I-5 is the corresponding metro bypass!
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 01:27:05 AM
I'll second 99 for California. US 99 had such an impact on the state that it literally refused to die and lives on the longest non-Interstate Freeway. I-5 definitely bypasses way too many important cities in Central California to take the title away. I'd argue US 101 is even more of a Main Street than I-5.
I wouldn't quibble with 99, but here's my case for US-101 (in both cases, I'm considering their "glory days" when they both ran border to border):
-US-101 approximates the route of the El Camino Real, which (for better or worse) precipitated Western settlement of the state via the Spanish missions;
-US-101 directly connects the two most historically significant (and best known) cities in the state - Los Angeles and San Francisco;
-US-101 directly connects the two industries most identified with California - Hollywood and Silicon Valley;
-At its peak, US-99 connected San Bernardino, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Fresno, Sacramento, and Redding. At its peak, US-101 connected San Diego, Anaheim/Santa Ana, Long Beach (via US-101A), Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland (via US-101E or Alt), and Eureka. I'd argue the second list of cities carries more historical and cultural significance than the first list.
-When thinking of the physical features of California, US-101 has the Southern California beaches, spitting distance to the Big Sur coast, the Wine Country and the Redwoods. US-99 has the Mojave Desert, the Central Valley, and the Cascades (including Mt. Shasta). I'd argue the US-101 list is more "iconic" in this regard.
Again, I would be fine with 99, but if the stripped down argument is 101 hits San Diego and San Francisco, and 99 hits Sacramento, then I'll take 101.
Quote from: DTComposer on June 21, 2018, 03:53:03 PM
Quote from: sparker on June 21, 2018, 12:29:22 AM
In CA it would most likely be the original alignment of US 99 from Los Angeles to at least Manteca, where the "Main St." concept would split west (on CA 120 and the final US 50 alignment to Oakland/San Francisco), or north on US 99 to Sacramento. Today, of course, that's I-5 up to Wheeler Ridge and CA 99 to Manteca, with a CA 120/I-205/I-580/I-80 routing on the west branch to S.F., and CA 99 continuing north to Sacramento. I suppose some might argue that once I-5 was completed in the Valley, the "main street" concept should be shifted there. My counterargument is that CA 99 continues to be the primary connector between the various metro areas strung out along its length, serving a significantly larger population base than the Westside/I-5 alignment. Maybe CA 99 could be considered the "main street", while I-5 is the corresponding metro bypass!
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 01:27:05 AM
I'll second 99 for California. US 99 had such an impact on the state that it literally refused to die and lives on the longest non-Interstate Freeway. I-5 definitely bypasses way too many important cities in Central California to take the title away. I'd argue US 101 is even more of a Main Street than I-5.
I wouldn't quibble with 99, but here's my case for US-101 (in both cases, I'm considering their "glory days" when they both ran border to border):
-US-101 approximates the route of the El Camino Real, which (for better or worse) precipitated Western settlement of the state via the Spanish missions;
-US-101 directly connects the two most historically significant (and best known) cities in the state - Los Angeles and San Francisco;
-US-101 directly connects the two industries most identified with California - Hollywood and Silicon Valley;
-At its peak, US-99 connected San Bernardino, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Fresno, Sacramento, and Redding. At its peak, US-101 connected San Diego, Anaheim/Santa Ana, Long Beach (via US-101A), Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland (via US-101E or Alt), and Eureka. I'd argue the second list of cities carries more historical and cultural significance than the first list.
-When thinking of the physical features of California, US-101 has the Southern California beaches, spitting distance to the Big Sur coast, the Wine Country and the Redwoods. US-99 has the Mojave Desert, the Central Valley, and the Cascades (including Mt. Shasta). I'd argue the US-101 list is more "iconic" in this regard.
Again, I would be fine with 99, but if the stripped down argument is 101 hits San Diego and San Francisco, and 99 hits Sacramento, then I'll take 101.
As they stand now US 101 definitely has the leg up. 101 even surpasses 99 IMO given you still get Los Angeles and San Francisco on the modern alignment. US 101 north of San Francisco is totally underrated and goes through a beautiful part of the state.
Iowa: US 6/I-80
While 99 has been mentioned for Oregon, the northern split has to be factored in.
I'd wager that 99E (Junction City-Harrisburg-Albany-[formerly]Jefferson-Salem-Woodburn-Aurora-Canby-Oregon City-Gladstone-Milwaukie-Portland) is more important than 99W (Junction City-Corvallis-Monmouth-McMinnville-Lafayette-Dundee-Newberg-Sherwood-King City-Tigard-Portland).
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 01:13:39 PM
Quote from: Flint1979 on June 21, 2018, 12:25:06 PM
I don't know why freeways wouldn't count. I-75 is the busiest highway in the state of Michigan and called Michigan's Main Street for good reason. At 396 miles it is by far the longest highway in Michigan.
Michigan is also home to the most dangerous section of all of I-75 the stretch from Rochester Road to 14 Mile Road in Troy is the most dangerous stretch of the almost 1,800 miles of I-75.
When most people think of "Main Street", they think of the street lined with businesses through their town's downtown, not the freeway they commute on to work. I would think generalizing that concept to an entire state would yield the same assumption.
I-75 is actually called Michigan's Main Street. If we're talking about an actual street with businesses on it going through a downtown then that's more difficult to do since all cities downtowns are pretty much the same way. So I guess Woodward Avenue would be Michigan's Main Street if you want an actual street with businesses on it since it runs from downtown Detroit through some of the more populated areas of the Metro area to downtown Pontiac. I think Woodward would win over Grand River since the length of Grand River parallels I-96 and everyone would use I-96 for longer distance travel.
Northern Michigan is a summer getaway and people from Detroit have vacation houses in Northern Michigan making I-75 an extremely important highway in the state. When I'm traveling southbound on a Friday afternoon in the summer looking at the backup on the other side it goes on for miles and then breaks up and then a few more miles down the highway your looking at another backup of traffic. It's insane I worked at the Tony's in Birch Run for 15 years and just for where that restaurant is located it has lines out the door for hours on Friday and Sunday nights because of the traffic on I-75 I could tell how busy it was going to be. It's hard not to call I-75 Michigan's Main Drag.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 10:29:50 AM
If the criteria is non-Interstate then I revise my Arizona pick to US 60.
I'd say US 89 was far more of a Main Street to Arizona than US 60 (well, before 89 was truncated to Flagstaff). The only city of any real significance that US 60 goes through in Arizona is Phoenix. Whereas, at its full pre-1992 length, US 89 connected Phoenix and Tucson (the state's two largest cities) as well as Nogales, Prescott, and Flagstaff.
Quote from: hbelkins on June 21, 2018, 11:52:43 AM
For Virginia, how about US 460? It runs through Bluefield, Blacksburg/Christiansburg, Roanoke/Salem, Lynchburg, Richmond/Petersburg and the Hampton Roads area.
When I saw this thread I was torn between US 1 (which would've been the traditional answer but it's completely overtaken by interstates), US 29 or US 58. You're right, US 460 makes the most since it connects 4 of the 5 largest metros in Virginia.
Quote from: US 89 on June 21, 2018, 06:47:13 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 10:29:50 AM
If the criteria is non-Interstate then I revise my Arizona pick to US 60.
I'd say US 89 was far more of a Main Street to Arizona than US 60 (well, before 89 was truncated to Flagstaff). The only city of any real significance that US 60 goes through in Arizona is Phoenix. Whereas, at its full pre-1992 length, US 89 connected Phoenix and Tucson (the state's two largest cities) as well as Nogales, Prescott, and Flagstaff.
That's the tricky thing, I would certainly say the same thing if US 89 was in it's prime. But even then the full scope of US 80 probably still had it beat with having Phoenix, Tucscon, Yuma and even the southeastern mining districts on it's alignment. Granted I know US 60/70/89 all shared Grand Avenue but US 60 is the only still there today.
Arkansas: N-S, maybe US 67 / AR 367 since it's the Southwest Trail / Old Military Rd
E-W maybe US 70 since it was a branch of the Bankhead Highway.
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
That's why I'm looking away from interstate corridors to find good candidates. US 20 has potential to qualify for NY, especially if you consider upstate and downstate separately. :-P
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
Historically, US 41 would have been the obvious choice for Georgia, but outside of local traffic it's been completely supplanted by I-75. As for today...I don't think I can come up with a single clear winner. Arguments could probably be made for US 19, US 80, US 23, US 27, maybe even US 129.
I'll go with US 80, the east-west route crossing the state at its widest point linking Columbus, Macon, and Savannah. Even the Macon-to-Savannah portion is reasonably independent of I-16.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 07:24:22 PM
Quote from: US 89 on June 21, 2018, 06:47:13 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 10:29:50 AM
If the criteria is non-Interstate then I revise my Arizona pick to US 60.
I'd say US 89 was far more of a Main Street to Arizona than US 60 (well, before 89 was truncated to Flagstaff). The only city of any real significance that US 60 goes through in Arizona is Phoenix. Whereas, at its full pre-1992 length, US 89 connected Phoenix and Tucson (the state's two largest cities) as well as Nogales, Prescott, and Flagstaff.
That's the tricky thing, I would certainly say the same thing if US 89 was in it's prime. But even then the full scope of US 80 probably still had it beat with having Phoenix, Tucscon, Yuma and even the southeastern mining districts on it's alignment. Granted I know US 60/70/89 all shared Grand Avenue but US 60 is the only still there today.
Pre-Interstate years, both US 80 (E-W) and US 89 (N-S)
did manage to connect most of the populated areas of the state -- so a case could conceivably be made for one or the other being the equivalent of a "main street". However, historic AZ practice, generally due to topology, seemed to produce highly convoluted pathways for their U.S. highways; the US 89 "detours" via Williams and Prescott and the tortured path of US 80, in order to serve Yuma, Phoenix, Tucson, and Douglas with a single designation, function as prime examples of the state's roadway priorities. But they seemed to take great pains to provide state highways that "cut off" the more significant of these, such as the relative "straightlining" of AZ 84 and AZ 86 in the case of US 80 and AZ 69 and the original proposed AZ 79 for US 89 (both of which were, of course, later subsumed by I-17). Development along the state "cutoffs" came somewhat later than that on the original U.S. alignments, particularly between Phoenix and Tucson -- but in that particular case, once it did it outstripped that along the original U.S. routes, at least until the massive Phoenix suburbs pushed east to Apache Junction. Nevertheless, given all that, IMO there's only a scant case for any E-W "main street" -- but a composite equivalent on the N-S axis could be considered, from south to north, the original southern reaches of AZ 93 from Nogales through Tucson, Pichaco, and north to Mesa before jogging west into Phoenix on the "fearsome foursome" of 60/70/80/89. I'd give the AZ planners the benefit of the doubt here, and continue the concept north on AZ 69 and the planned AZ 79, simply because the focal point of Northern AZ has been and will likely always be Flagstaff, and the most direct route between Phoenix and there would be the likely candidate. They were trying to effect this with the 69/79 continuum pre-Interstate years -- but who could turn down the Feds' offer of 90% financing of your dream corridor! -- so I-17 it became! North from there, historically the combination of US 89 and its original US 89A alignment would likely be the most likely to assume the "main street" label, since the later Page routing was prompted by Glen Canyon construction.
Quote from: index on June 21, 2018, 08:44:27 AM
If I had to pick for NC, I'd say I-40. It traverses the state from mountains to coast, and is in or within close proximity to most of our major cities. Think Piedmont Triad, Research Triangle, Wilmington, Asheville, etc. Which are all cities with historical significance. Overall, its geographic diversity, service to our cities, and history along it qualifies it for a "Main Street" of North Carolina.
If I had to pick a US route, I'd do 64. It does the same thing as I-40, traversing the entire state, east-west, while providing a good look at almost everything big we've got. US 70 could also meet this criteria.
There isn't really a state route, in my opinion, that could be deemed a main street.
Closest state route in NC that could be a Main Street would be NC 24. I would pick US 70 myself or I-85 which IIRC has actually been called that.
I concur with US 460 for Virginia.
South Carolina I would pick US 76.
West Virginia is not easy to single out a particular current route. How about the WV 4 from the late 1930s to the 1970s that ran from Huntington through Charleston then over to Elkins and over to Romney near the panhandle? Current WV 2 does go to 5 of the 10 largest cities by population in West Virginia.
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 09:15:22 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
We've established that one feature of a main street is that it is, well, an actual street, with at grade intersections and adjacent businesses and such.
Another feature of a main street is that it's busy/heavily used. Any roadway paralleled by an interstate probably met that criteria once upon a time (pre-interstate), but no longer does, due to all the traffic using the interstate. US 11 is a good example, as is US 20 west of Buffalo.
I'm guessing the Berlin Turnpike in CT. (US-5/CT-15.) A lot of retail and motels on that stretch.
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 10:07:52 PM
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 09:15:22 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
We've established that one feature of a main street is that it is, well, an actual street, with at grade intersections and adjacent businesses and such.
Another feature of a main street is that it's busy/heavily used. Any roadway paralleled by an interstate probably met that criteria once upon a time (pre-interstate), but no longer does, due to all the traffic using the interstate. US 11 is a good example, as is US 20 west of Buffalo.
Trouble is, with corridors that don't have a nearby interstate, there's usually a reason
why there isn't a nearby interstate. Take US 20, for example: throughout NY, with the exception of Avon-Skaneateles (so basically the long overlap with NY 5 to a little bit east) it's either near I-90 or passing through the middle of nowhere.
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 10:07:52 PM
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 09:15:22 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
We've established that one feature of a main street is that it is, well, an actual street, with at grade intersections and adjacent businesses and such.
Another feature of a main street is that it's busy/heavily used. Any roadway paralleled by an interstate probably met that criteria once upon a time (pre-interstate), but no longer does, due to all the traffic using the interstate. US 11 is a good example, as is US 20 west of Buffalo.
Those two features make picking one in Indiana difficult. The three best candidates are the Old Michigan Road from Madison to Michigan City, the Old National Road from Richmond to Terre Haute, and US 31 from Jeffersonville to South Bend. However, all three have had at least part of them paralleled by an interstate.
One that hasn't is the Lincoln Highway from Fort Wayne to Dyer, but it's hard to think of the Main Street of Indiana not passing through Indianapolis.
Quote from: vdeane on June 22, 2018, 12:40:43 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 10:07:52 PM
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 09:15:22 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
We've established that one feature of a main street is that it is, well, an actual street, with at grade intersections and adjacent businesses and such.
Another feature of a main street is that it's busy/heavily used. Any roadway paralleled by an interstate probably met that criteria once upon a time (pre-interstate), but no longer does, due to all the traffic using the interstate. US 11 is a good example, as is US 20 west of Buffalo.
Trouble is, with corridors that don't have a nearby interstate, there's usually a reason why there isn't a nearby interstate. Take US 20, for example: throughout NY, with the exception of Avon-Skaneateles (so basically the long overlap with NY 5 to a little bit east) it's either near I-90 or passing through the middle of nowhere.
Also, usually the most important routes before 1956 were the ones that had the interstates built along their corridors. For example, before the interstates, Utah's main street was almost certainly US 91. But that corridor was important enough that I-15 was built, resulting in the decommissioning of most of 91. So I'd think that Utah's main street today is the historic US 91 corridor.
If we don't count routes paralleled or replaced by interstates, then the main street would be the US route that was just barely not important enough to get a parallel interstate, which doesn't seem fair.
Quote from: US 89 on June 22, 2018, 01:22:38 PM
Also, usually the most important routes before 1956 were the ones that had the interstates built along their corridors. For example, before the interstates, Utah's main street was almost certainly US 91. But that corridor was important enough that I-15 was built, resulting in the decommissioning of most of 91. So I'd think that Utah's main street today is the historic US 91 corridor.
If we don't count routes paralleled or replaced by interstates, then the main street would be the US route that was just barely not important enough to get a parallel interstate, which doesn't seem fair.
Agreed. Come to think of it, the "no freeways" assumption may need to be relaxed out west where interstates were more likely to be built right on top of the original route.
Quote from: corco on June 21, 2018, 12:36:29 PM
I think it has to be US 95 in Idaho, since that's the only road that connects north to south
I almost agree, and that was my first thought too, but I'd be a lot more inclined to agree if US-95 directly served Boise (like if it followed ID-55). Having the "main street" skirt around the capital and largest city, and also the 2nd and 3rd largest cities, feels a bit off. Which is why I'm possibly more inclined to say US-30. Sure, it does nothing for Northern Idaho (but US-95 does nothing for Eastern Idaho), but it serves Caldwell, Nampa, Meridian, Boise, Twin Falls, and Pocatello, which is a lot more noteworthy cities than US-95 serves (just Lewiston, Moscow, and Coeur d'Alene, if we set the population cut off to 20,000).
Quote from: index on June 21, 2018, 08:44:27 AM
If I had to pick for NC, I'd say I-40. It traverses the state from mountains to coast, and is in or within close proximity to most of our major cities. Think Piedmont Triad, Research Triangle, Wilmington, Asheville, etc. Which are all cities with historical significance. Overall, its geographic diversity, service to our cities, and history along it qualifies it for a "Main Street" of North Carolina.
If I had to pick a US route, I'd do 64. It does the same thing as I-40, traversing the entire state, east-west, while providing a good look at almost everything big we've got. US 70 could also meet this criteria.
There isn't really a state route, in my opinion, that could be deemed a main street.
I'm more inclined to agree with you here. Not because it's an interstate, either. But because it's general routing was US-70 and before that NC-10. It ties Asheville to Winston Salem, Greensboro, Durham, and Raleigh and even though the final I-40 east routing takes it to the larger port at Wilmington, US-70 continues east to Goldsboro (Seymour Johnson AFB), Kinston, New Bern (the colonial capitol) Havelock (MCAS Cherry Point) and lastly the smaller port at Morehead City.
Shoot, forget I-40-I think I just made a case for US-70!
Without Interstates
MN: US 52
ND: US 10
WI is hard for this. US 41 doesn't go to Madison. US 12 doesn't go to Milwaukee. US 51 doesn't go anywhere north of Madison (Wausau doesn't count). Maybe US 18 or the historic WIS 30, but that ignores almost the whole state.
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on June 22, 2018, 03:16:55 PM
Without Interstates
MN: US 52
ND: US 10
WI is hard for this. US 41 doesn't go to Madison. US 12 doesn't go to Milwaukee. US 51 doesn't go anywhere north of Madison (Wausau doesn't count). Maybe US 18 or the historic WIS 30, but that ignores almost the whole state.
Maybe I-94? Hits Milwaukee and Madison, the Dells, and Eau Claire
Quote from: ET21 on June 22, 2018, 04:40:10 PM
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on June 22, 2018, 03:16:55 PM
Without Interstates
MN: US 52
ND: US 10
WI is hard for this. US 41 doesn't go to Madison. US 12 doesn't go to Milwaukee. US 51 doesn't go anywhere north of Madison (Wausau doesn't count). Maybe US 18 or the historic WIS 30, but that ignores almost the whole state.
Maybe I-94? Hits Milwaukee and Madison, the Dells, and Eau Claire
That's my answer, but then there was an addendum about excluding Interstates.
Quote from: westerninterloper on June 21, 2018, 10:22:57 AM
Quote from: Buck87 on June 21, 2018, 08:49:28 AM
I-71 for Ohio
Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati
Not a street.
Either US 42 (Cincy, skirts Cols, CLE) or US 40/National Rd for Ohio.
I didn't see anything in the OP disqualifying freeways and other people ahead of me in the thread had brought up interstates
...but anyway, if we have to pick a street level route then it's pretty much gotta be OH 3, for the exact same reason I picked 71:
Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati
Quote from: US 89If we don't count routes paralleled or replaced by interstates, then the main street would be the US route that was just barely not important enough to get a parallel interstate, which doesn't seem fair.
Which is why I said that US routes paralleled by interstates can count historically, but not currently.
I think as far as the spirit of the thread goes, high traffic volumes are by far the more important of my two criteria. I'd rather start nominating freeways than nominating little-used US routes just because they used to be important. Although the historical nods are always interesting, I think high traffic volumes should be the number one pre-requisite.
Texas: Interstate -- I-35
Non-Interstate -- US90
For Illinois, I consider IL-1 to be the state's "main street".
Quote from: cabiness42 on June 22, 2018, 12:58:49 PM
Those two features make picking one in Indiana difficult. The three best candidates are the Old Michigan Road from Madison to Michigan City, the Old National Road from Richmond to Terre Haute, and US 31 from Jeffersonville to South Bend. However, all three have had at least part of them paralleled by an interstate.
One that hasn't is the Lincoln Highway from Fort Wayne to Dyer, but it's hard to think of the Main Street of Indiana not passing through Indianapolis.
Our state is particularly difficult due to it's shape, long in a N-S sense and narrow in an E-W direction. That being said, I would concur with your choices, but would add a couple more to make it a "Top 5": The US 50 corridor in southern IN (metro Cincy to Vincennes) and the US 41 corridor from "da Region" to Evansville via Terre Haute.
BTW, there were TWO routes for the Lincoln Highway in the Hoosier State, the one you mentioned on US 30 from east of Ft. Wayne to Dyer, and the one that ran along US 33 from Ft. Wayne up to Elkhart & South Bend, then along US 20 to Lake County.
But if I had to choose only one, it would be the "REAL Mother Road": the National Road along what is now US 40. That route met both the US 31 and US 421/Michigan Road corridors in downtown Indy, giving my city its nickname as the "Crossroads of America".
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on June 22, 2018, 04:40:57 PM
Quote from: ET21 on June 22, 2018, 04:40:10 PM
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on June 22, 2018, 03:16:55 PM
Without Interstates
MN: US 52
ND: US 10
WI is hard for this. US 41 doesn't go to Madison. US 12 doesn't go to Milwaukee. US 51 doesn't go anywhere north of Madison (Wausau doesn't count). Maybe US 18 or the historic WIS 30, but that ignores almost the whole state.
Maybe I-94? Hits Milwaukee and Madison, the Dells, and Eau Claire
That's my answer, but then there was an addendum about excluding Interstates.
The addendum didn't come from the OP, so based on the OP I'd say you're good.
That said, I'd make an argument for either US 10 or US 61 in Minnesota. Both may miss Minneapolis proper, but 10 does hit the suburbs (and actually did go through Minneapolis prior to 1934) and goes through more in central and northern Minnesota than US 52 does. US 52 might as well end at St. Paul these days. 61, meanwhile, goes through Duluth, which until recently was the largest city in the state outside the Metro. 61 also largely follows Constitutional Route 1, at least north of the Metro...one could argue that C.R. 1 was the state's original "main street".
For Vermont, I'd go with US 2 historically...since it's the route connecting the state capitol and largest city and went beyond in both cases. Today, it's clearly I-89.
Quote from: froggie on June 22, 2018, 06:20:19 PM
Today, it's clearly I-89.
Clearly? I could see a case for US 7. Rutland and Bennington have population over 10k, but nothing on I-89 does except Burlington and its immediate suburbs.
Quote from: Aaron Camp on June 22, 2018, 06:04:23 PM
For Illinois, I consider IL-1 to be the state's "main street".
Excluding Interstate Corridors, IL 1 is a contender...US 51 also, but that is also I-39 North of the Blo-No, so it's not a "street" the whole route, from Cairo to South Beloit
IL 1 is not a freeway, from Cave in Rock to Chicago
For Pennsylvania, I'm going to choose US 30. US 322 doesn't do much in the western part of the state, and only becomes important when it reaches State College. Further east, it misses on cities such as Lancaster and Reading, instead marching straight towards Philadelphia. Thus, it provides the fastest route from Harrisburg to Philadelphia, going between cities instead of through them.
Which was only true for about 25 years. In 1951, the Pennsylvania Turnpike opened east of Harrisburg to Philadelphia, effectively making this corridor obsolete. Nowadays, US 322 goes through nowhere (Ohio State Line to State College), provides a quick way to the capital (State College to Harrisburg), and then doesn't do much again (Harrisburg to the Philadelphia area). Even within the Philadelphia area, I can't think of a reason why you'd use it, aside from the free entry into New Jersey.
US 30 on the other hand, could be used as a long distance route. It services a fair amount of people - Pittsburgh and Philadelphia namely - and hasn't been supplanted by many Interstates (only the Pennsylvania Turnpike from Pittsburgh to Breezewood). Even nowadays, US 30 is still used around my area as the fastest way to head west. The only areas it misses are the northern part of the state; which isn't much of a big deal.
Quote from: 1 on June 22, 2018, 06:33:21 PM
Quote from: froggie on June 22, 2018, 06:20:19 PM
Today, it's clearly I-89.
Clearly? I could see a case for US 7. Rutland and Bennington have population over 10k, but nothing on I-89 does except Burlington and its immediate suburbs.
I-89 is the main road that connects the largest city and state capitol these days, nevermind being the one that the majority of you southern New Englanders use to get to/from Vermont and some of the more popular locations in the state. It is by far the busiest roadway in the state.
Quote from: noelbotevera on June 22, 2018, 10:46:35 PM
...I can't think of a reason why you'd use it (US 322) aside from the free entry into New Jersey.
Just a side note: ALL roads from PA are free into NJ. The toll is only collected Westbound into PA.
Quote from: Bruce on June 21, 2018, 01:29:03 AM
Washington: I-5 / US 99.
About 5 million people live on the corridor, which is over two-thirds of the state's population. Serves the Seattle metro area and three of its anchor suburbs, the state capital, and some major regional centers (Mount Vernon-Burlington, Bellingham, Chehalis-Centralia, Kelso-Longview, Vancouver).
I would say that if I-90 is not Washington's "Main Street" then it is a definite runner up to I-5 since it connects Western Washington to Eastern Washington, it is slightly longer than I-5 (299 vs 275 miles), it serves three major population centers (Seattle, Bellevue, and Spokane), and it is used to connect the Seattle-Tacoma metro area to other major population centers like Yakima and the Tri-Cities. Also it is a major connection from Washington to the rest of the USA.
iPhone
For Ontario, I would say the 401 (freeway) or Highway 2 before the late 90's downloading* (non-freeway) would be the best options. Even though the 401 is a lot busier and it goes through the KW area (hometown bias), I would give the edge to Highway 2 since it has a more "main street" feel and it goes through the heart of the GTHA.
A case could be made for Highway 11 (again, pre-downloading) as "the longest street in the world" (i.e. Yonge St), but most Ontarians live in the south of the province, so Highway 2 passes through a lot more civilization :).
* Here's a map of the old Highway 2
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Highway2-1996.PNG)
CA-1 should also be nominated for California's main street though given the coastal scenic routes though that people ideally think of the Golden State.
Quote from: bing101 on June 23, 2018, 12:07:51 PM
CA-1 should also be nominated for California's main street though given the coastal scenic routes though that people ideally think of the Golden State.
See the trouble is with 1 is that it isn't a viable transportation corridor generally for commerce. Typically I would associate Calfornia not only with the Coast but he Gold Rush Country in the Sierras hence part of the reason I leaned more towards 99 since it is literally the middle ground of everything.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 23, 2018, 01:47:58 PM
Quote from: bing101 on June 23, 2018, 12:07:51 PM
CA-1 should also be nominated for California's main street though given the coastal scenic routes though that people ideally think of the Golden State.
See the trouble is with 1 is that it isn't a viable transportation corridor generally for commerce. Typically I would associate Calfornia not only with the Coast but he Gold Rush Country in the Sierras hence part of the reason I leaned more towards 99 since it is literally the middle ground of everything.
True though
Louisiana is a tough one, too, due to its shape. Arguments could be made for I-10 or US 90 for hitting the largest cities (outside of Shreveport) and being the most traveled.
My vote goes to LA 1. Longest route in Louisiana by far. It runs from the northwestern border (a tripoint) to one of the most southern points in the gulf. It serves north, central, and southern Louisiana, it just doesn't cross the Mississippi River. It doesn't quite get to Baton Rouge, but you can see the State Capitol, bridges, and LSU stadium.
The old Jefferson Highway May also be a good argument here. With that you get the entire state including NO, BR and Shreveport.
iPhone
Quote from: Eth on June 21, 2018, 09:27:37 PM
Historically, US 41 would have been the obvious choice for Georgia, but outside of local traffic it's been completely supplanted by I-75. As for today...I don't think I can come up with a single clear winner. Arguments could probably be made for US 19, US 80, US 23, US 27, maybe even US 129.
I'll go with US 80, the east-west route crossing the state at its widest point linking Columbus, Macon, and Savannah. Even the Macon-to-Savannah portion is reasonably independent of I-16.
If you're going to go with an east-west route, I think State Route 520 is the choice. Like US 80, it connects Columbus all the way to the beaches of the Atlantic, and its traffic hasn't been supplanted by interstates or state routes like US 80 has.
Nevada is difficult to answer, given the way the population and travel patterns are spread out.
You could give it to US 40 historically. It literally was the main street for many northern Nevada towns until replaced by I-80 (the I-80 business route in many of these towns is historic US 40).
In a similar historical fashion, you could consider US 395 in western Nevada (which is mostly freeway alignment now and overlaps with I-580) and US 91 in southern Nevada (Las Vegas Blvd in the Las Vegas area, with the highway corridor being supplanted by I-15), but both of these only clip corners of the state.
If you consider only non-Interstates/Interstate-parallel routes and non-freeways, I think I'd have to give it to US 50 (the 4-ish miles overlapped on I-580 in Carson City not withstanding). It reaches across the state and is a main street in every town it traverses.
Quote from: TBKS1 on June 20, 2018, 11:29:58 PM
Arkansas: State Highway 7 for sure.
AR 10 - in Greenwood is fastly becoming the strip of the city in the near future.
Quote from: DTComposer on June 21, 2018, 03:53:03 PM
Quote from: sparker on June 21, 2018, 12:29:22 AM
In CA it would most likely be the original alignment of US 99 from Los Angeles to at least Manteca, where the "Main St." concept would split west (on CA 120 and the final US 50 alignment to Oakland/San Francisco), or north on US 99 to Sacramento. Today, of course, that's I-5 up to Wheeler Ridge and CA 99 to Manteca, with a CA 120/I-205/I-580/I-80 routing on the west branch to S.F., and CA 99 continuing north to Sacramento. I suppose some might argue that once I-5 was completed in the Valley, the "main street" concept should be shifted there. My counterargument is that CA 99 continues to be the primary connector between the various metro areas strung out along its length, serving a significantly larger population base than the Westside/I-5 alignment. Maybe CA 99 could be considered the "main street", while I-5 is the corresponding metro bypass!
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 21, 2018, 01:27:05 AM
I'll second 99 for California. US 99 had such an impact on the state that it literally refused to die and lives on the longest non-Interstate Freeway. I-5 definitely bypasses way too many important cities in Central California to take the title away. I'd argue US 101 is even more of a Main Street than I-5.
I wouldn't quibble with 99, but here's my case for US-101 (in both cases, I'm considering their "glory days" when they both ran border to border):
-US-101 approximates the route of the El Camino Real, which (for better or worse) precipitated Western settlement of the state via the Spanish missions;
-US-101 directly connects the two most historically significant (and best known) cities in the state - Los Angeles and San Francisco;
-US-101 directly connects the two industries most identified with California - Hollywood and Silicon Valley;
-At its peak, US-99 connected San Bernardino, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Fresno, Sacramento, and Redding. At its peak, US-101 connected San Diego, Anaheim/Santa Ana, Long Beach (via US-101A), Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland (via US-101E or Alt), and Eureka. I'd argue the second list of cities carries more historical and cultural significance than the first list.
-When thinking of the physical features of California, US-101 has the Southern California beaches, spitting distance to the Big Sur coast, the Wine Country and the Redwoods. US-99 has the Mojave Desert, the Central Valley, and the Cascades (including Mt. Shasta). I'd argue the US-101 list is more "iconic" in this regard.
Again, I would be fine with 99, but if the stripped down argument is 101 hits San Diego and San Francisco, and 99 hits Sacramento, then I'll take 101.
I would support 101 over 99 as well. 99 is important, but 101 hits (and historically hit) more important cities. A lot of what made 99 important was long-distance travel, especially trucking, which isn't really the main street's function.
Quote from: cabiness42 on June 22, 2018, 12:58:49 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 10:07:52 PM
Quote from: vdeane on June 21, 2018, 09:15:22 PM
Quote from: webny99 on June 21, 2018, 09:04:29 PM
I think anything paralleled by an interstate can qualify historically, but not currently.
Any particular reason why?
We've established that one feature of a main street is that it is, well, an actual street, with at grade intersections and adjacent businesses and such.
Another feature of a main street is that it's busy/heavily used. Any roadway paralleled by an interstate probably met that criteria once upon a time (pre-interstate), but no longer does, due to all the traffic using the interstate. US 11 is a good example, as is US 20 west of Buffalo.
Those two features make picking one in Indiana difficult. The three best candidates are the Old Michigan Road from Madison to Michigan City, the Old National Road from Richmond to Terre Haute, and US 31 from Jeffersonville to South Bend. However, all three have had at least part of them paralleled by an interstate.
One that hasn't is the Lincoln Highway from Fort Wayne to Dyer, but it's hard to think of the Main Street of Indiana not passing through Indianapolis.
Indiana is tough. Any one of US 30, 40, or 50 are reasonable for an east-west road. North-south, US 31 or 41. As far as state routes go, I would pick IN 37 or 67. It's difficult because just about every US or state highway that connects major cities in Indiana has been made obsolete by an interstate.
For South Dakota it used to be US 16, but now that doesn't hit the boring part of the state. Now maybe US 14? I don't even know if we have a "Main Street" anymore since everyone uses I-90 and I-29 to get anywhere.
For Wisconsin I'd go with US 41 - freeway for much of its length, and a very busy one at that. It connects "up north" and cities like Green Bay and Appleton with Milwaukee and, past the border, Chicago and points farther south, intersects many other important highways of note, and doesn't seem to truly have a section where traffic is never an issue.
Florida it is technically Florida's Turnpike. However, though for the Atlantic Coastal Region from Miami to Jacksonville its I-95. Then through SW Florida its I-75 serving Naples, Fort Myers, Punta Gorda, and Sarasota. Central Florida its I-4.
In NJ it would be the Turnpike for through N-S Eastern Seaboard Traffic, but locally its the Parkway serving the North Jersey metro area and the shore regions. For businesses its I-287 as from its southern terminus to Parsippany- Troy Hills the roadway has many corporate business parks along the freeway being homes to many large and regional corporations including companies like AT & T and others that make it a commuter highway for thousands of employees.
I don't think anyone has mentioned MD yet:
US 40 is the clear winner. It follows the main routing from Baltimore to Philadelphia that I-95 now parallels. Old sections of old US 40 are known as Philadelphia Rd - MD 7. It passes through Aberdeen, Perryville, and Elkton, which are bigger than the cities US 1 passes through. US 40 is generally 4 lanes, while US 1 is generally 2 lanes.
To the west of Baltimore, it also forms part of the National Road and passes through the entire length of the state to western Maryland. Frederick, Hagerstown, Cumberland are all along the way here. I-70 basically parallels the route, and some portions they are routed together. The old sections are MD 144.