Unique Public Roadway Types

[Dr Frankenstein]

Lafayette, LA has several "rues". I can't think of any of those elsewhere in the U.S., even in the northernmost parts.

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Lafayette,+Louisiane,+%C3%89tats-Unis&hl=fr&ie=UTF8&ll=30.190189,-92.009168&spn=0.012631,0.01929&sll=45.558042,-73.730303&sspn=0.677891,1.234589&oq=Lafa&hnear=Lafayette,+Louisiane,+%C3%89tats-Unis&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=30.190299,-92.009049&panoid=2TMUxHW_aBcGnDLyFOt7jQ&cbp=12,299.83,,0,10.01

EDIT: Right. Read too fast. Winchester, KY and Jackson, NJ. Very odd to see that generic there.

[cpzilliacus]

There's Calle Mayor that runs (roughly) east-west through Torrance, California, and intersects Ca. 1 (Pacific Coast Highway).

[1995hoo]

I live on a street that ends with 'Terrace', which I didn't think was terrible unusual until I tried telling people my street name and it throughly confuses them.  And I'm not sure what most people would define a Terrace as, but this one is exactly like every other street in the neighborhood that ends in 'Ave'.

I can think of a number of streets whose names end with "Terrace." I never thought it was unusual. Go figure. But on the other hand, I'm used to spelling street names that seem perfectly clear to me yet seem to confuse the heck out of people on the phone.

Another unusual one, a completely unique one as far as I know, is Queen's Stroll SE in Washington, DC. When HM the Queen visited the city in 1991 she toured a fairly rough neighborhood in far Southeast DC and the media, especially the British press, were shocked when a black lady named Alice Frazier hugged the Queen. The city renamed the part of the street the Queen walked to "Queen's Stroll," but most maps don't show it because the rest of the street is Drake Place (and indeed "Queen's Stroll" might be an "honorific name," although I don't know for sure as it's not in an area I've ever visited).

There are a number of streets ending in path in Suffolk County on Long Island.  There's Straight Path (CR 2), Hubbards Path, Old Willets Path, and Bicycle Path.  Yes, Bicycle Path is the name of a street for cars.

Also, in Upstate New York, there's the Northway and the Quickway.

A bunch of my relatives live in the Breezy Point neighborhood in Queens (site of the huge fire during Hurricane Sandy) and the majority of the streets there are named "Walk," such as "Fulton Walk" (devastated by the fire), "Suffolk Walk" (my great-grandparents had a house there), "Lincoln Walk," etc. I'm not sure these necessarily count for purposes of this thread because they're not vehicular streets–when they say "Walk," they mean the houses front on a "street" that consists of a sidewalk. You park your car in a community lot and walk to your house. They're also not technically "public" streets because the neighborhood is a co-op. But the Post Office recognizes all the addresses and the mailman has to walk down all the streets to get to the houses....anyway, outside of that neighborhood, I've never heard of an address that uses "Walk."

[InterstateNG]

Buffalo Speedway in Houston.

Speedway in Austin, which is anything but.

[Doctor Whom]

How about some towns and cities in Utah
2300 North
1100 South
6500 West
2200 East

For Example

Most numbered streets and avenues are based off of the address grid.  I think it makes sense and makes getting around town easier.  If you want to go to 5922 15th Ave NE (arbritrary address -- I have no idea what it really is...) in Seattle, you'll know it's along 15th Ave NE between NE 59th St. and NE 60th St. without looking at a map.  I guess Utah skips making it a street and avenue and just numbers the road off of the addresses.

Once, when I was in Salt Lake City, some people in my party said that they found that system confusing.  It immediately made perfect sense to me.

[CentralCAroadgeek]

North Hollywood has a Campo de Cahuenga leading to Universal City.

[Rick Powell]

When I formerly worked at IL DOT, a developer got so frustrated with me and my access permit review that he re-named a proposed street "Paper Chase".  The development was built and the street still remains with that name, on the north side of Normal, IL off of old US 66.

[cpzilliacus]

I live on a street that ends with 'Terrace', which I didn't think was terribly unusual until I tried telling people my street name and it throughly confuses them.  And I'm not sure what most people would define a Terrace as, but this one is exactly like every other street in the neighborhood that ends in 'Ave'.

I have lived on a Terrace for much of my life.

I have also lived on a Place and a Drive and an Avenue at varying points.  Never on a Street.

[theline]

Lafayette, LA has several "rues". I can't think of any of those elsewhere in the U.S., even in the northernmost parts.

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Lafayette,+Louisiane,+%C3%89tats-Unis&hl=fr&ie=UTF8&ll=30.190189,-92.009168&spn=0.012631,0.01929&sll=45.558042,-73.730303&sspn=0.677891,1.234589&oq=Lafa&hnear=Lafayette,+Louisiane,+%C3%89tats-Unis&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=30.190299,-92.009049&panoid=2TMUxHW_aBcGnDLyFOt7jQ&cbp=12,299.83,,0,10.01

EDIT: Right. Read too fast. Winchester, KY and Jackson, NJ. Very odd to see that generic there.

Rue is much more common than you think, even in the frozen north. Right here in South Bend, IN we have multiple Rues in the Park Jefferson Apartments: http://goo.gl/maps/3MyqC. For an even more faux French name, I lived years ago on N. Le Blvd. de la Paix, in the same complex. That was a huge pain in the ass to spell out over the phone.

Upthread I had mentioned Manhattan's Broadway as an example of the road without a type. I forgot all about Lincolnway in South Bend and nearby Mishawaka. It's often specified as Lincolnway East or Lincolnway West, but those are cardinal directions rather than types.

[cpzilliacus]

It's often specified as Lincolnway East or Lincolnway West, but those are cardinal directions rather than types.

Greenbelt, Maryland has a Southway and a Westway.

[empirestate]

Also in New York is an obscure street named Broadway:

Hardly unique, though, of course. It's not even the only one in the city.

And as for obscure, though you place tongue in cheek, it is in fact a much less whelming experience to encounter Broadway in parts of Midtown than it used to be, before all the pedestrianizations and whatnot. It functions much as a side street now, one that people cross freely without much regard for the signals.

[NE2]

more Boston: Central Artery, Northern Artery, Southern Artery

[roadman65]

Tuckers Grade near Punta Gorda, FL.

Deer Path in Mountainside, NJ.
The Esplanade in Orlando, FL.

[bassoon1986]

there are a few "Rows" in my neighborhood as well. I'd never heard of that one before I moved to Texas: Cobblestone Row, Kings Row. Also a Regal Row in Dallas and one called Empire Central.

Before I was on AA Roads, I'd never heard of Trafficway like the ones in Kansas City.

[Milepost61]

"Northstar Course" in Fort Collins, CO.

[Eth]

You can find "The Prado" in Atlanta near Piedmont Park.

[roadman65]

How about the Alligator Alley in Florida's Everglades?  Alley is not that common, especially among freeways.

Park Row in NYC.
Central Park N-S-W in NYC.
Lincoln Park for the east end of Clinton Avenue in Newark, NJ.

[Duke87]

A bunch of my relatives live in the Breezy Point neighborhood in Queens (site of the huge fire during Hurricane Sandy) and the majority of the streets there are named "Walk," such as "Fulton Walk" (devastated by the fire), "Suffolk Walk" (my great-grandparents had a house there), "Lincoln Walk," etc. I'm not sure these necessarily count for purposes of this thread because they're not vehicular streets—when they say "Walk," they mean the houses front on a "street" that consists of a sidewalk. You park your car in a community lot and walk to your house. They're also not technically "public" streets because the neighborhood is a co-op. But the Post Office recognizes all the addresses and the mailman has to walk down all the streets to get to the houses....anyway, outside of that neighborhood, I've never heard of an address that uses "Walk."

Pilgrim Walk, Stamford, CT. Only one house faces the street, but still.

For another one, try Ponus Ridge. Technically Ponus Ridge Road, but for whatever reason most signs omit the suffix.

And then for a Pass which isn't football related, Trinity Pass. Stamford, at least, knows the road officially as just "Trinity Pass". The suffix road apparently theoretically exists for New Canaan and Pound Ridge, but again, you won't find a sign that includes it. 

[Kacie Jane]

Central Park N-S-W in NYC.
Lincoln Park for the east end of Clinton Avenue in Newark, NJ.

Also various Squares in NYC.  Not terribly uncommon, but certainly less common than their circular brethren.

[cpzilliacus]

Central Park N-S-W in NYC.
Lincoln Park for the east end of Clinton Avenue in Newark, NJ.

Also various Squares in NYC.  Not terribly uncommon, but certainly less common than their circular brethren.

The District of Columbia has a fair number of squares, but buildings that face the squares usually have  street addresses of the streets that make up the squares, not the square itself.   One exception is Seward Square, S.E., which does have rowhouses facing it with street addresses on that square.

[deathtopumpkins]

Harlem River Driveway.

Fenway. Riverway. Arborway. Fellsway. Charlesgate.

Don't forget Jamaicaway!

I passed a "Townsend West" in Nashua, NH the other day.

There's also Park Plaza near Boston Common, which sounds like the name of a plaza, not of a street.

I've noticed a lot of downright strange names, and things like omitting suffixes, but I can't think of more off the top of my head.

[roadman65]

One thing about Central Park in NYC, it allows Fifth Avenue to retain its name along Central Park, but 59th Street and Eighth Avenue along with 110th Street (although it changes to Cathedral Parkway west of Central Park) have to be the side of the park.

Anyway, not unique, but rare. 

[kphoger]

There's also Park Plaza near Boston Common, which sounds like the name of a plaza, not of a street.

See Omaha for an abundance of Plazas.

[empirestate]

A bunch of my relatives live in the Breezy Point neighborhood in Queens (site of the huge fire during Hurricane Sandy) and the majority of the streets there are named "Walk," such as "Fulton Walk" (devastated by the fire), "Suffolk Walk" (my great-grandparents had a house there), "Lincoln Walk," etc. I'm not sure these necessarily count for purposes of this thread because they're not vehicular streets–when they say "Walk," they mean the houses front on a "street" that consists of a sidewalk. You park your car in a community lot and walk to your house. They're also not technically "public" streets because the neighborhood is a co-op. But the Post Office recognizes all the addresses and the mailman has to walk down all the streets to get to the houses....anyway, outside of that neighborhood, I've never heard of an address that uses "Walk."

Bunch more of those in Ocean Beach, on Fire Island: http://goo.gl/maps/JDwge (as well as in neighboring FI towns and probably not unique amongst barrier island communities)

One in a weird neighborhood of East Rochester, NY: http://goo.gl/maps/oxHSn

And in Mt. Gretna, PA there is a whole section of car-less streets like this, but which aren't actually called "walks" but rather "streets" and "avenues": http://goo.gl/maps/5U1Ji

[hm insulators]

Buffalo Speedway in Houston.

Speedway in Austin, which is anything but.

There's a Speedway in Tucson, too.

Southern California has a number of streets that start with the word "Via," as in "Via Verde' off the I-10 Freeway in the San Dimas area. The word "Paseo" shows up, as in "Paseo Del Mar" in Rancho Palos Verdes, I believe.

Long Beach, California has a street called "Los Coyotes Diagonal."