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Why isn't I-41 just I-243?

Started by silverback1065, November 13, 2017, 06:12:06 PM

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silverback1065

I mean it makes sense, why didn't they consider this?  43 has no child routes, and it doesn't have a conflict with US 41. 


SEWIGuy

How many times are we going to have this debate?  It was "Highway 41" before.  It is "Highway 41" now.  No one is confused.  It's just fine the way it is.

GeekJedi

^ This. They considered an x43 designation, and decided that I-41 made more sense. For someone that uses it all the time, I agree!
"Wisconsin - The Concurrency State!"

bessertc

As often as I visit Wisconsin, I guess the portion of my gas tax dollars that went to pay for all those new signs was relatively small, so I feel sorriest for those who live in Wisconsin for having to fund them all. I'd be curious to know how much it cost the taxpayers of Wisconsin for thousands and thousands of new signs for the route between the Illinois state line and Howard, all for the net gain of... thousands and thousands of new signs. Any of the perceived benefits the communities along the "I-41" corridor have now, they've actually had for years.

US-41 was a fully-limited-access freeway prior to it becoming an Interstate and it's a fully-limited-access freeway after. Yes, I'm sure there may be an additional "funding pot" of federal dollars now available for that corridor, but how many years will it be until it makes up for "needing" to change the black-and-white "41" signs to red-white-and-blue "41" signs? And if the civic leaders along the corridor feel their cities now have the cachet of "being on an Interstate," I don't think it should be up to ALL of the taxpayers and motorists of Wisconsin just to pay for shiny new signs to get them what they already had, minus the two red and the blue on those signs. I wonder if those civic leaders and economic development folks would've been so geeked about US-41's Interstate designation if all the money for the conversion had to come from their city budgets instead of making everyone across the state from Dodgeville to Hurley and from Lake Geneva to Rice Lake pay for them? Just some questions that I'm sure most of those who were pushing for "I-41" hadn't considered.

BTW, the same goes for I-39, too, just to be fair.
Drive right. Pass Left. Please!

Big John


bessertc

Quote from: Big John on November 13, 2017, 07:36:47 PM
^^ cost was $5-7 million: http://wisconsindot.gov/Pages/projects/by-region/ne/us41interstate/faqs.aspx

I knew I'd read that somewhere, but I couldn't remember where.

So, I guess my (somewhat rhetorical) question would be: Were all those new signs worth $5—7 million?

I know so many major road projects cost so much more than that, but I wonder if there might have been something more "worthwhile" that money could have been spent on rather than some shiny new signs with different colors on them.

Drive right. Pass Left. Please!

GeekJedi

That's a question for the cities along the route that requested the designation. They felt that having an "I" route would benefit the region financially.

Is there something more worthwhile? Perhaps, but that's totally a judgement call. It was worthwhile enough for them to lobby to have it done.
"Wisconsin - The Concurrency State!"

ilpt4u

Alas, it is done, for better or for worse

I-41 is here to stay

hbelkins

Quote from: silverback1065 on November 13, 2017, 06:12:06 PM
I mean it makes sense, why didn't they consider this?  43 has no child routes, and it doesn't have a conflict with US 41.

Because when North Carolina finished hitting the crack pipe re: US 74/I-74, they sent it to Wisconsin.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

oscar

Quote from: hbelkins on November 13, 2017, 10:04:36 PM
Quote from: silverback1065 on November 13, 2017, 06:12:06 PM
I mean it makes sense, why didn't they consider this?  43 has no child routes, and it doesn't have a conflict with US 41.

Because when North Carolina finished hitting the crack pipe re: US 74/I-74, they sent it to Wisconsin.

Unlike in NC, nowhere do I-41 and US 41 split and go off in different directions. So little danger of motorist confusion.

I-41/US 41 follow California's approach to route numbering. There is in theory one California route per number (some numbered routes are broken up by never-built and relinquished segments, or national parks), and it doesn't matter whether individual segments are marked with Interstate, US, or state shields. Thus, I-15 and CA 15 are both parts of "route 15", I-110 and CA 110 are both parts of "route 110", I-210 and CA 210 are both parts of "route 210", and I-238 and CA 238 are both parts of "route 238".
my Hot Springs and Highways pages, with links to my roads sites:
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ilpt4u

Quote from: Avalanchez71 on November 14, 2017, 12:54:48 AM
It should be I-55.
I'd have preferred I-65, but I-55 would have been fine, as would have I-57

But again, I-41 is done. It is not going away. It is here to stay

sparker

Look....WIDOT screwed the pooch back in '74 when they opted for I-43 for the original Milwaukee-Green Bay Interstate corridor authorized in the '68 legislation, rather than the more grid-appropriate I-47 or I-49 (which was still available back then).  FUBAR'd the entire upper Midwest "grid" in the process.  40 years later, I-41 was about the best they could do for the 2nd corridor.   

SEWIGuy

Quote from: sparker on November 14, 2017, 03:31:18 AM
Look....WIDOT screwed the pooch back in '74 when they opted for I-43 for the original Milwaukee-Green Bay Interstate corridor authorized in the '68 legislation, rather than the more grid-appropriate I-47 or I-49 (which was still available back then).  FUBAR'd the entire upper Midwest "grid" in the process.  40 years later, I-41 was about the best they could do for the 2nd corridor.   


Don't be a slave to the grid.

NWI_Irish96

I think back when most people used maps to travel long distances, having an interstate designation was actually worth something financially to a city/area.  Now that more people use GPS, I think people are going to use expressways if they are the fastest route regardless of whether or not they carry an interstate designation.
Indiana: counties 100%, highways 100%
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Michigan: counties 100%, highways 56%
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silverback1065

Quote from: SEWIGuy on November 13, 2017, 06:13:16 PM
How many times are we going to have this debate?  It was "Highway 41" before.  It is "Highway 41" now.  No one is confused.  It's just fine the way it is.

until they change it  :bigass:

invincor

There was a lot of reconstruction along this corridor recently anyway, wasn't there?  My original hometown's main street was redone this summer, and all of the US highway signs through the town were replaced with new ones as part of the reconstruction, and I notice their reflective paint for night driving behaves slightly differently than the old ones did.
If signs like this usually get replaced alongside reconstruction anyway, was it really that much of an extra cost to add I-41 to them?  Was that number quoted above bound to get spent anyway even if it had remained simply US 41?


SEWIGuy

Quote from: cabiness42 on November 14, 2017, 09:08:15 AM
I think back when most people used maps to travel long distances, having an interstate designation was actually worth something financially to a city/area.  Now that more people use GPS, I think people are going to use expressways if they are the fastest route regardless of whether or not they carry an interstate designation.

I agree.  I also think that's why any sort of "grid" is useless now too.

Brandon

Quote from: sparker on November 14, 2017, 03:31:18 AM
Look....WIDOT screwed the pooch back in '74 when they opted for I-43 for the original Milwaukee-Green Bay Interstate corridor authorized in the '68 legislation, rather than the more grid-appropriate I-47 or I-49 (which was still available back then).  FUBAR'd the entire upper Midwest "grid" in the process.  40 years later, I-41 was about the best they could do for the 2nd corridor.   

WisDOT screwed nothing.  IDOT screwed WisDOT by deciding initially not to extend I-57 north.  Put the blame where it belongs.
"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg

english si

Quote from: oscar on November 13, 2017, 10:37:43 PMUnlike in NC, nowhere do I-41 and US 41 split and go off in different directions. So little danger of motorist confusion.
And even with the NC example - that can be construed as confusing - you have to be a dangerously unobservant driver to confuse the shields with their different colour and shape: the problem is ignorance as to which shield design is which type of road rather than inability to tell them apart!

I mean, clearly this ought not be a problem, else Business Interstates, especially spurs, would be considered confusing because it's merely the same number on a different coloured shield.

And then there's bannered US routes...

hbelkins

It really should have been a three-digit route.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

kphoger

Quote from: SEWIGuy on November 13, 2017, 06:13:16 PM
How many times are we going to have this debate?

Until everyone is convinced that I'm right!




Quote from: english si on November 14, 2017, 09:36:16 AM
Quote from: oscar on November 13, 2017, 10:37:43 PMUnlike in NC, nowhere do I-41 and US 41 split and go off in different directions. So little danger of motorist confusion.
And even with the NC example - that can be construed as confusing - you have to be a dangerously unobservant driver to confuse the shields with their different colour and shape: the problem is ignorance as to which shield design is which type of road rather than inability to tell them apart!

I mean, clearly this ought not be a problem, else Business Interstates, especially spurs, would be considered confusing because it's merely the same number on a different coloured shield.

And then there's bannered US routes...

I think you're underestimating the number of people who don't really know the difference between route shields.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
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Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.

TheHighwayMan3561

Quote from: SEWIGuy on November 13, 2017, 06:13:16 PM
How many times are we going to have this debate?  It was "Highway 41" before.  It is "Highway 41" now.  No one is confused.  It's just fine the way it is.

I guess when non-residents finally accept some states do stuff they don't like?
self-certified as the dumbest person on this board for 5 years running

Brandon

One could ask what was wrong with US-41...
"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg

GeekJedi

Quote from: Brandon on November 14, 2017, 01:20:18 PM
One could ask what was wrong with US-41...

One could, but it was asked and answered! ;-)

The respective chambers-of-commerce and gov leaders from several Fox Valley cities requested an "I" designation. They felt it held more "prestige" than the US route designation.
"Wisconsin - The Concurrency State!"



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