There are plenty of what I call "Missouri Expressways," a 4 lane divided highway that was converted from a 2 lane. The old lanes are often hilly while the new lanes are flat. I've seen them on lots of expressways, but are there any actual freeways that are built like this?
The Pennsylvania Turnpike was briefly like this, where the new WB lanes twisted up a grade while the old EB lanes went through a tunnel on a different grade, but then the EB was built alongside the WB and the old lanes abandoned.
There are, but the divergence in standard between the old and new lanes tends to be less pronounced because Interstate standards are strict. Examples: I-5 Grapevine (older lanes are steeper than newer lanes); I-24 Monteagle; and (I think) I-40 down old Fort Mountain.
There's a brief section of I-95 in Stafford County, Virginia sort of like that. The southbound lanes are higher up than the northbound lanes.
Don't know about "flat versus hilly," but I can think of a couple of Interstates where one carriageway is located considerably higher up the side of a hill or mountain than the other side. The two that most readily come to mind are I-77 through the Fancy Gap area in Virginia and I-70 between the Mason-Dixon Line and Breezewood.
US-29 in Virginia has large portions that are not "freeway"-grade but are very good examples of a road that has frequent segments where one carriageway is flat and the other is hilly. The notorious speedtrap section just south of Madison is one such spot–the southbound lanes are a flat straightaway that encourages speeding, much to the delight of the local constabulary, while the northbound lanes are hilly.
Quote from: 1995hoo on August 04, 2012, 05:41:09 PM
Don't know about "flat versus hilly," but I can think of a couple of Interstates where one carriageway is located considerably higher up the side of a hill or mountain than the other side. The two that most readily come to mind are I-77 through the Fancy Gap area in Virginia and I-70 between the Mason-Dixon Line and Breezewood.
I-8 though the western part of Imperial County follows two different paths through the mountains. I-17 through a few of the mountain ranges also rides two different elevations at a few points.
It's not an Interstate, but AZ-87 goes so far as to have one carriageway cross over the other and ride on right of the other for a bit. It's also a very fun drive for a four-lane divided highway.
Quote from: 1995hoo on August 04, 2012, 05:41:09 PM
US-29 in Virginia has large portions that are not "freeway"-grade but are very good examples of a road that has frequent segments where one carriageway is flat and the other is hilly. The notorious speedtrap section just south of Madison is one such spot–the southbound lanes are a flat straightaway that encourages speeding, much to the delight of the local constabulary, while the northbound lanes are hilly.
Sections of Md. 4 in Calvert County are like that.
I-24 at Monteagle was "fixed" in the 1980's.
I-84/US 30 climbing Emigrant Hill east of Pendleton is a great example.
The eastbound lanes run through a number of switchbacks as it climbs the hill and is at a lower grade than the westbound lanes which essentially plow straight down.
As a bonus, Old Emigrant Hill Rd is US 30's former routing.
http://goo.gl/maps/jbHiB
I suppose that the I-5 north of Castaic would qualify. The northbound lanes follow the path of the prior highway and wind around a bit. I wouldn't really call it hilly though because the whole portion climbs a fairly steep a grade. Some parts of the grade are steeper than others.
The southbound lanes have much fewer curves and are cut out of the foothills, with a consistent downgrade and no changes in grade. This is the section that is known for the northbound lanes being on the west side of the southbound lanes.
Not a Interstate highway. US 20 near Galena IL. West bound has exit ramps on the new alignment while eastbound has an intersection eastbound. Further west eastbound has more curves and hills than the new alignment.
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=galena+il&ll=42.461555,-90.514083&spn=0.018078,0.03931&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&hnear=Galena,+Jo+Daviess,+Illinois&gl=us&t=h&z=15
There are sections of I-39/90 and I-94 in Wisconsin that are significantly separated grades. I-39/90 southeast of Hwy N near Stoughton is one. There is also a crossroad north of Tomah on I-94 that the NWB lanes go over and the SEB lanes go under if I remember the setup correctly.
Quote from: hobsini2 on August 04, 2012, 10:26:08 PM
There are sections of I-39/90 and I-94 in Wisconsin that are significantly separated grades. I-39/90 southeast of Hwy N near Stoughton is one. There is also a crossroad north of Tomah on I-94 that the NWB lanes go over and the SEB lanes go under if I remember the setup correctly.
That was just the two sides being engineered on separate routings, but as 'new' roadways that were both built at the same time. OTOH, A true I-route in Wisconsin like that is I-39 running northwards from Westfield. SB is the original mid-1960s US 51, highly engineered and very straight and level, while the NB side was built in the 1980s on a much hillier and curvier routing that much more closely follows the contours of the hills that it passes through.
Mike
There is also an 'over-under' pass on the Interstate triplex just east of the Wisconsin River. http://binged.it/PUDaRR
There's a section of I-44 in Missouri that kind of comes close, but both sides have a hill. EB (downhill) seems to be a bit more planned/straighter compared to the westbound (uphill) lanes:
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=37.901475,-92.005134&spn=0.02875,0.066047&t=p&z=15 (http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=37.901475,-92.005134&spn=0.02875,0.066047&t=p&z=15)
I recall a section of I-44 between MO 141 and MO 109 that used to meet the criteria, with the EB lanes staying flat while the WB lanes went up a hill, but the grade difference was removed back when that section was widened to six lanes. I haven't had luck determining where exactly it was on either Google Earth or historic aerials.
There's a section of I-65 north of Nashville that has the two carriageways on separate alignments, to the point where one interchange has the interstate going over the intersecting route on one side, and the intersecting route crossing over the interstate on the other side.
I-94 east of Jackson near Grass Lake has this feature; the WBD lanes are the improved, relocated 2-lane US-12 that bypassed Grass Lake, later 4-laned and converted to Interstate. This stretch goes up and down a lot of smaller hills. EBD was added later, and is on a more constant grade.
You'll note east of Jackson, the original US-12 (Michigan Ave) remains, as well as the upgraded version (Ann Arbor Rd). The original Michigan Ave was narrower and had a narrow, short underpass of the railroad west of Grass Lake (http://goo.gl/maps/piZDD).
You'll also see it farther east on I-94 just west of Chelsea, where it crosses the railroad. The original section (now WBD) has an underpass with a rather steep climb headed west. EBD has a couple sharp curves and an overpass of the railroad about 800 feet SW of the underpass.
Not an interstate in Illinois, but IL-53 is like that from Wilmington to Elwood. One side even has all the older bridges intact.
Quote from: mgk920 on August 04, 2012, 10:41:20 PM
That was just the two sides being engineered on separate routings, but as 'new' roadways that were both built at the same time. OTOH, A true I-route in Wisconsin like that is I-39 running northwards from Westfield. SB is the original mid-1960s US 51, highly engineered and very straight and level, while the NB side was built in the 1980s on a much hillier and curvier routing that much more closely follows the contours of the hills that it passes through.
Huh, I always assumed the flatter SB lanes were the newer ones. That's interesting. But I guess that makes sense now because there's a few spots on US 53 between Spooner and Solon Springs where the 'new' side is more hilly than the original. And it would be cheaper to build without flattening as many hills.
I-8 in Imperial County has a 1.5mi (2.4km) wide median at the In-Ko-Pah/Mountain Springs grade where it descends 4000ft (1200m) in 11 miles. There is also a brief section east of Yuma where the carriageway switches over (http://goo.gl/maps/weO5O).
Also here is a section of the Federal Hwy (NH23) between Goulburn and Canberra, the southbound carriageway is the original undulating highway. The northbound carriageway was constructed in the 1970s.
http://goo.gl/maps/fKLk5 (http://goo.gl/maps/fKLk5)
I-5 north of Shasta Lake and I-580 at Altamont Pass also qualify.
SR 37 in northern Monroe County in Indiana is like this with the northbound lanes following the original (but not the first) routing of SR 37 through generally wooded terrain and on relatively flat ground, while the southbound lanes (which were added when the highway was twinned) go up an incline and then back down to meet the northbound lanes, splitting the carriageways for about a mile. The southbound lanes also have more open space off the roads, indicating that these are the newer lanes. While this isn't an interstate, it may be part of one in the future as Interstate 69 will be routed up this way. Exactly how the highway will be configured through this area is still up for discussion however.
Quote from: bugo on August 04, 2012, 04:56:28 PM
There are plenty of what I call "Missouri Expressways," a 4 lane divided highway that was converted from a 2 lane. The old lanes are often hilly while the new lanes are flat. I've seen them on lots of expressways, but are there any actual freeways that are built like this?
In a variation on that theme, I-95 between Petersburg, Va. and Emporia, Va. was built next to U.S. 301, which was a four-land divided arterial. The southbound lanes of I-95 were once the northbound lanes of 301 (which is now a two-lane undivided highway running parallel to I-95 on its west side). Because this part of Virginia is pretty flat, I don't know how much reconstruction of former U.S. 301 was needed to convert it to the southbound lanes of I-95. I think this might have been the last segment of I-95 in Virginia to be completed.
^ It was, in the early 1980s. There are a few rolling hills along that section of US 301, but the main elevation changes are to accommodate for side roads that now have to go over I-95 to meet 301.
There are still a handful of state-name I-95 shields in this area as well. There were more until last year.
US422 between Warren and Parkman have stretches of this. WB is flat while EB is like a roller coaster.
M-121 (Chicago Dr) in Ottawa County is like that. Westbound is the original 1920s alignment, which is very bumpy and floods during heavy rain. Eastbound was built in the 1950s or 1960s and is at a higher elevation and at a higher grade.
Quote from: cpzilliacus on August 06, 2012, 01:28:59 PM
In a variation on that theme, I-95 between Petersburg, Va. and Emporia, Va. was built next to U.S. 301, which was a four-land divided arterial. The southbound lanes of I-95 were once the northbound lanes of 301 (which is now a two-lane undivided highway running parallel to I-95 on its west side). Because this part of Virginia is pretty flat, I don't know how much reconstruction of former U.S. 301 was needed to convert it to the southbound lanes of I-95. I think this might have been the last segment of I-95 in Virginia to be completed.
I-95 in Southside Virginia -- the last 28 miles was built 1977-1982. For 18 miles from VA-35 to just north of Jarratt, the existing 4-lane US-301 (4-laned in the late 1950s) was upgraded to Interstate standards. (The remaining 10 miles of I-95 from just north of Jarratt to just north of Emporia was built on new location). Since the US-301 median was only about 40 feet wide, a new I-95 northbound roadway was built, with service roads alongside much of it.
The US-301 northbound roadway (built in the late 1950s) was upgraded to Interstate standards, and then used for the southbound I-95 roadway. The US-301 southbound roadway (built in the 1930s) was restriped for 2-way traffic, and essentially became a service road, and retained the US-301 designation. Four interchanges were built, and two other overpasses, and these locations required relocating the US-301 service road. All existing mainline roadway bridges were replaced, since they didn't meet Interstate standards. A surprising amount of new right-of-way was needed on the easterly side of the highway. Finally, there was about 1.5 miles of I-95 full relocation at Carson where there is a major curve on US-301, and two other places (1/2 mile and 1/3 mile) where the I-95 southbound roadway was relocated to reduce curves on existing US-301.
Quote from: Sykotyk on August 06, 2012, 09:33:44 PM
US422 between Warren and Parkman have stretches of this. WB is flat while EB is like a roller coaster.
It also possesses no shoulders, has approx. 6-8 feet of median, and is posted for 45. Not to mention, occasionally traveled by Amish buggies.
MA-146 freeway from exit 2 in Uxbridge to near exit 7 in Sutton. Was originally built as a super-2 in the 50s, and then twinned in the early 80s. The original road is now the NB lanes and follows the contour of the land with more hills, the newer SB roadway is much straighter and flatter.
I-5 near Lake Shasta, Turntable Bay specifically, has the north and southbound lanes separated quite far, and at different elevations.
I-84 near Bonneville Dam has the eastbound lanes going through a tunnel while the westbound lanes are outside and on a bridge instead, I guess that counts.
US-80 wb between Montgomery, AL and Selma is pretty hilly tho they are small hills.
US-80 eb between Selma and Montgomery is leveler. IIRC there were no shoulders either.
US 301 between Bowling Green, VA and the Potomac River. I remember noticing the difference when i was like 11 years old on trips between NJ and FL
Quote from: jwolfer on August 08, 2012, 04:31:57 PM
US 301 between Bowling Green, VA and the Potomac River. I remember noticing the difference when i was like 11 years old on trips between NJ and FL
Not an Interstate highway.
Not a hilly vs. flat, but I-5 north of Marysville has a few places where the old US-99 bridge carries the lanes one direction with narrow or nonexistent shoulders while a new bridge carries the lanes the other direction with standard shoulders.
:hmmm:
Emphasis mine, since "Interstate" in the thread's title seems to have muddled matters:
Quote from: bugo on August 04, 2012, 04:56:28 PM
There are plenty of what I call "Missouri Expressways," a 4 lane divided highway that was converted from a 2 lane. The old lanes are often hilly while the new lanes are flat. I've seen them on lots of expressways, but are there any actual freeways that are built like this?
Many of the Interstate examples mentioned are good (and I've been to all of the mentioned West Coast examples!).. but I'm not sure that's what the OP had in mind. What I picture is the freeway within only one right-of-way: about 50 feet for lanes in one direction, 50 feet for the median, 50 feet for the other lanes.
If that is right.. My first encounter with an active "Mo Expy" in its more-or-less "native environment" was in Oklahoma on US-70 jwo Ardmore: http://goo.gl/maps/BFiYc (http://goo.gl/maps/BFiYc) At night it gets kind of annoying because opposing traffic is always bobbing up and down in your line of sight!
Also in OK: If they hadn't built the I-44 turnpikes, I'm sure US-66 would have looked like that for a time. (Maybe even did?) I recall seeing the old, abandoned lanes paralleling the new ones, barely 50 feet away, in several places for miles.
The only instance like that in California that comes to mind is US-101 in its rural course between Santa Barbara and San Jose, specifically jso King City. When I first drove it 15 years ago, you could clearly tell that one direction's lanes were an addition. Since then, I think Caltrans may have smoothed it out somewhat in the course of repaving and upgrading: http://goo.gl/maps/uIYNS (http://goo.gl/maps/uIYNS) You can barely even tell anymore.
Then there's the opposite, too, in which US-66 near Cajon Summit was twinned then totally replaced by I-15. At some point, they closed half the lanes (usually the northbound side but not always!): http://goo.gl/maps/nVdpC (http://goo.gl/maps/nVdpC)
All in all, roads like this fascinate me because you're actively seeing what highway departments do to gradually re-engineer a route.
Quote from: mp_quadrillion on August 18, 2012, 08:21:30 AM
Also in OK: If they hadn't built the I-44 turnpikes, I'm sure US-66 would have looked like that for a time. (Maybe even did?) I recall seeing the old, abandoned lanes paralleling the new ones, barely 50 feet away, in several places for miles.
I've been on most of the interstates in Oklahoma, and about 2/3 of the turnpikes. I hope to finish the system soon. I'm missing I-44 south of US 62/277, the Bailey Turnpike and spur, the Cimarron spur, and the Chickasaw. I could easily pick up the system in 1 day.
Both lanes of the Turner and Will Rogers Turnpikes are very hilly. They're quite dangerous because of this. The later turnpikes are flatter and not as straight (Look at the Turner Turnpike on an aerial photo...the road is perfectly straight for miles and miles, then there is a curve, and another long straight stretch. It was obviously built to early '50s specs.
I-80 in Pennsylvania between Scotrun and I-380 has the WB lanes higher than the EB lanes while climbing the hill. That is to allow a better climb for trucks as going downhill trucks really do not need a more gradual grade. The WB side is significantly higher than its eastbound counterpart as it climbs the Pocono Mountains.
Quote from: roadman65 on September 11, 2012, 09:16:09 PM
I-80 in Pennsylvania between Scotrun and I-380 has the WB lanes higher than the EB lanes while climbing the hill. That is to allow a better climb for trucks as going downhill trucks really do not need a more gradual grade. The WB side is significantly higher than its eastbound counterpart as it climbs the Pocono Mountains.
I-5 over the Grapevine is very similar, with a much less steep uphill grade heading north out of Castaic.
in order to make this happen, the southbound lanes are actually to the east of the northbound ones for a while - the opposite side of what is expected.
I-8 in Telegraph Pass, AZ has a similar crossover, but I don't recall one grade being particularly more ornery than the other.
I think we're drifting away again from the idea of a Missouri Expressway.
I believe what the OP was referring to was highways where this type of undulation is seen only on one carriageway:
http://goo.gl/maps/J7TQc (http://goo.gl/maps/J7TQc)
Quote from: kphoger on September 11, 2012, 09:30:07 PM
I think we're drifting away again from the idea of a Missouri Expressway.
I believe what the OP was referring to was highways where this type of undulation is seen only on one carriageway:
http://goo.gl/maps/J7TQc (http://goo.gl/maps/J7TQc)
The photo seems to appear that US 60 is NOT a freeway here. If that is the case, then go hundreds of miles to the east US 60 does the same near Williamsburg, VA. Heck, most Virginia divided highways are that way and so is US 278 near Cullman, AL and US 22 near Whitehouse, NJ.
It appears that the near side of US 60 in the photo caption was originally a two lane non super two as there are utility poles along the side of it. I have not seen a freeway with wooden poles along it except the TN 155 near the defunct Opryland themepark and the Garden State Parkway using wooden roadway lighting poles with the power supply cable draping between each one.
Quote from: roadman65 on September 11, 2012, 11:04:47 PM
The photo seems to appear that US 60 is NOT a freeway here.
Exactly. A Missouri Expressway, as defined in the OP, is not necessarily a freeway:
Quote from: bugo on August 04, 2012, 04:56:28 PM
There are plenty of what I call "Missouri Expressways," a 4 lane divided highway...
Quote from: roadman65 on September 11, 2012, 11:04:47 PM
It appears that the near side of US 60 in the photo caption was originally a two lane non super two as there are utility poles along the side of it.
That is precisely the case (though it may not have been an actual super two); most of US-60 in Missouri has been four-laned over the years. I believe it's exactly the kind of highway the OP was thinking of:
Quote from: bugo on August 04, 2012, 04:56:28 PM
...that was converted from a 2 lane.
Quote from: roadman65 on September 11, 2012, 11:04:47 PM
there are utility poles along the side of it. I have not seen a freeway with wooden poles along it except the TN 155 near the defunct Opryland themepark and the Garden State Parkway using wooden roadway lighting poles with the power supply cable draping between each one.
Wooden utility poles is not what makes a highway a Missouri Expressway. The question at hand from the OP is regarding a dual carriageway on which one side undulates with the hilly terrain, while the other side is noticeably more level–cutting through the hills instead of rising and falling with them:
Quote from: bugo on August 04, 2012, 04:56:28 PM
The old lanes are often hilly while the new lanes are flat. I've seen them on lots of expressways, but are there any actual freeways that are built like this?
I also note that on US 41(I-xx) in the rural parts of Washington County, WI, the southbound side of the highway, which is the original late 1940s-era two lane US 41 highway on that routing, is slightly hillier than the newer mid-late 1950s-era northbound side.
Mike
Another example:
US-65 south of Marshall, MO
http://goo.gl/maps/rHxjq