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Mileage distance signs in Ohio and a Columbus question

Started by jecht, June 28, 2015, 12:05:41 PM

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jecht

Hello! my name is Josh and I'm a new member. I've been a road geek since forever and have viewed these threads for awhile without joining.
:)

I have two questions, so I'll make them short.

1) Whatever happened to those mega-distance mileage signs on Ohio interstates? I know that outside of CLE on the Turnpike it used to say Chicago 320 miles/600 km (metric) but that's no longer there. It was at MM 144 or so. It makes sense because at MM 64 near Toledo it says 240 miles to Chicago, the first mile indication sign of a distance to Chicago. (In Columbus, there used to be a distance marker to Cleveland (126 miles) by the now-abandoned weigh station between Delaware exit (131) and Polaris (121).

2) I moved to Columbus and recently discovered that there is a LONG exit ramp to US 33 off of I-670. I saw an old map that said it was US 33F--was that off-ramp part of US 33 at some point? It runs parallel to the Olentangy River and it's beautiful. I always thought Dublin Road was US 33. I'm originally from CLE and apparently the F designation was for uncompleted roads--I-480 used to be called 480F and then later was called Alt 422 until it opened fully in 1992.

thank you all! :)


noelbotevera

For #1, those signs still exist. On I-80's free section, there is a sign to an entrance ramp saying "New York City 396".
For the Ohio Turnpike, I really think that South Bend, Indiana is better than Chicago.
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name

(Recently hacked. A human operates this account now!)

cl94

Welcome to the forums.

1) They're still out there. Just have to look for them.

2) With US 33F, the original plan was (supposedly) to reroute US 33 onto the expressway between Spring-Sandusky and where the Exit 1A ramp intersects US 33, with the bypassed portion of Dublin Road (which appears to be state-maintained) likely being turned over to Columbus. US 33F was renamed to US 33T and still exists, following I-670 along the route that would have been used for US 33, although it is unsigned.
Please note: All posts represent my personal opinions and do not represent those of my employer or any of its partner agencies.

6a


Quote from: jecht on June 28, 2015, 12:05:41 PM

2) I moved to Columbus and recently discovered that there is a LONG exit ramp to US 33 off of I-670. I saw an old map that said it was US 33F--was that off-ramp part of US 33 at some point? It runs parallel to the Olentangy River and it's beautiful. I always thought Dublin Road was US 33. I'm originally from CLE and apparently the F designation was for uncompleted roads--I-480 used to be called 480F and then later was called Alt 422 until it opened fully in 1992.

thank you all! :)

33 was always Dublin Rd, that ramp dates from the original interstate construction. They had to work around the river and lake - at the time of construction that may have been an active quarry. Fun fact - until around 2000 or so that was basically a road to nowhere, as 670 stopped at Grandview Ave! To get to downtown from the west you'd take 70 to 670 and were forced to exit and go up to Dublin Rd. Thinking back, I can't remember if that ramp was even open or not, since it was basically useless.

GCrites

I honestly don't think it was open in the '80s. And I don't think the one for 33 to 670-W was open either. Also, I don't think the quarry was full of water then, either. I could be wrong; it's been a long time and I was in elementary school.

jecht

Quote from: cl94 on June 28, 2015, 04:52:25 PM
Welcome to the forums.

1) They're still out there. Just have to look for them.

2) With US 33F, the original plan was (supposedly) to reroute US 33 onto the expressway between Spring-Sandusky and where the Exit 1A ramp intersects US 33, with the bypassed portion of Dublin Road (which appears to be state-maintained) likely being turned over to Columbus. US 33F was renamed to US 33T and still exists, following I-670 along the route that would have been used for US 33, although it is unsigned.

Thanks so much!

I wonder why they took down the old mileage signs...

As I type this I remember driving out today to Delaware--they have a NEW sign that has electronic distances to US 30 (47 miles) and US 224/I-76 (80 miles) as well as the minutes to travel, based on 65 mph steady rate.

That being said it was always neat seeing the "CHICAGO 320 MILES" sign when headed west...you got the gravity of the situation.

thenetwork

Quote from: jecht on June 30, 2015, 11:55:24 PM
Quote from: cl94 on June 28, 2015, 04:52:25 PM
Welcome to the forums.

1) They're still out there. Just have to look for them.

2) With US 33F, the original plan was (supposedly) to reroute US 33 onto the expressway between Spring-Sandusky and where the Exit 1A ramp intersects US 33, with the bypassed portion of Dublin Road (which appears to be state-maintained) likely being turned over to Columbus. US 33F was renamed to US 33T and still exists, following I-670 along the route that would have been used for US 33, although it is unsigned.

Thanks so much!

I wonder why they took down the old mileage signs...

As I type this I remember driving out today to Delaware--they have a NEW sign that has electronic distances to US 30 (47 miles) and US 224/I-76 (80 miles) as well as the minutes to travel, based on 65 mph steady rate.

That being said it was always neat seeing the "CHICAGO 320 MILES" sign when headed west...you got the gravity of the situation.

The Turnpike used to have a lot of gimmicky signs -- from little messages on the overhead bridges -- "STAY AWAKE - STAY ALIVE" -- to the mileage of distant cities.  In fact, in the Lorain County area, there used to be a distance sign for New York City which based the mileage on using all 3 Toll Roads (OH/PA/NJ) to the Big Apple.

As far as the "metric" signs "CLEVELAND -- 100 MILES / 161 KILOMETERS ", I'm not sure if those are still in existence. 

ISTR a set of Cincinnati/Cleveland signs that marked the midpoint of I-71 in Ohio (more or less).  Those are probably the signs you spoke of by the old weigh station.

jecht

Quote from: thenetwork on July 01, 2015, 10:28:49 AM
Quote from: jecht on June 30, 2015, 11:55:24 PM
Quote from: cl94 on June 28, 2015, 04:52:25 PM
Welcome to the forums.

1) They're still out there. Just have to look for them.

2) With US 33F, the original plan was (supposedly) to reroute US 33 onto the expressway between Spring-Sandusky and where the Exit 1A ramp intersects US 33, with the bypassed portion of Dublin Road (which appears to be state-maintained) likely being turned over to Columbus. US 33F was renamed to US 33T and still exists, following I-670 along the route that would have been used for US 33, although it is unsigned.

Thanks so much!

I wonder why they took down the old mileage signs...

As I type this I remember driving out today to Delaware--they have a NEW sign that has electronic distances to US 30 (47 miles) and US 224/I-76 (80 miles) as well as the minutes to travel, based on 65 mph steady rate.

That being said it was always neat seeing the "CHICAGO 320 MILES" sign when headed west...you got the gravity of the situation.

The Turnpike used to have a lot of gimmicky signs -- from little messages on the overhead bridges -- "STAY AWAKE - STAY ALIVE" -- to the mileage of distant cities.  In fact, in the Lorain County area, there used to be a distance sign for New York City which based the mileage on using all 3 Toll Roads (OH/PA/NJ) to the Big Apple.

As far as the "metric" signs "CLEVELAND -- 100 MILES / 161 KILOMETERS ", I'm not sure if those are still in existence. 

ISTR a set of Cincinnati/Cleveland signs that marked the midpoint of I-71 in Ohio (more or less).  Those are probably the signs you spoke of by the old weigh station.
There used to be one on 71 near Mansfield that said 181 miles to Cinci and they took it down. They still have the 113 miles to buffalo sign on I-90 outside of Erie. In ny state they have a sign that says 150 miles to Syracuse and 342 miles to Albany right outside of Buffalo :)

Mr_Northside

I-71 has (had?) a sign indicating 200 miles to Louisville (I think with the mileage to Cincy above it).
I don't have opinions anymore. All I know is that no one is better than anyone else, and everyone is the best at everything

keithvh

Quote from: Mr_Northside on July 01, 2015, 03:22:11 PM
I-71 has (had?) a sign indicating 200 miles to Louisville (I think with the mileage to Cincy above it).

As of 2 months ago (when I last passed by that area), that sign is still there.

The weird thing is it does NOT say Cincinnati at all.  It only gives the mileage to I-275 and Louisville.  The latter, as you said, exactly 200 miles.

jecht

Quote from: keithvh on July 02, 2015, 10:18:26 PM
Quote from: Mr_Northside on July 01, 2015, 03:22:11 PM
I-71 has (had?) a sign indicating 200 miles to Louisville (I think with the mileage to Cincy above it).

As of 2 months ago (when I last passed by that area), that sign is still there.

The weird thing is it does NOT say Cincinnati at all.  It only gives the mileage to I-275 and Louisville.  The latter, as you said, exactly 200 miles.

My guess is that I-275 is a massive regional beltway and it's assumed it's *for* Cinci...at 83 miles it's the longest in the U.S. For comparison, the M25 Orbital in London is 120 miles around!
72 miles to I-275
200 miles to Louisville

(On the other side, a few miles but going in the other direction, you get your first Cleveland sign--170 miles, somewhere around MM 76, right after the OH-38 diamond ramp--that's my shortcut to Court House instead of being slow on US 62/OH 3). They are consistent on 71--anything from the 245-249 mile endpoint is "CLE"

Random OT fact: In the '80s the street racing scene had races where you'd have to average 120mph around the Orbital to "win" the race.

vtk

The river alongside those 33F ramps is the Scioto, not the Olentangy.

Those ramps were always open when I was growing up (90s).  They were closed and reconstructed in 2001 or 2002 in conjunction with the reconstruction and widening of I-670 between there and Grandview Ave, just before the 2002 opening of 670 between Grandview and OH 315.

The last button copy signage to be installed in central Ohio was for these projects.

One of the first metric road signs in the country was on I-71 southbound. It read, Cincinnati / 100 KILOMETERS / 62 MILES. It wasn't placed right after an interchange, where distance signs are normally found. I remember seeing it as a kid, though by then it may have been the second incarnation of that sign. Sometime in the early 00s, it was replaced with one that skipped the metric line. It still had the destination and distance on two lines. It still gave the unit (miles) rather than a simple number. Its placement was still unusual, though its purpose had become less clear (and, if thought about, apparently the opposite of the purpose of the original). By 2011 or 12, the sign was gone entirely.
Wait, it's all Ohio? Always has been.

jecht

Quote from: vtk on July 02, 2015, 11:04:32 PM
The river alongside those 33F ramps is the Scioto, not the Olentangy.

Those ramps were always open when I was growing up (90s).  They were closed and reconstructed in 2001 or 2002 in conjunction with the reconstruction and widening of I-670 between there and Grandview Ave, just before the 2002 opening of 670 between Grandview and OH 315.

The last button copy signage to be installed in central Ohio was for these projects.

One of the first metric road signs in the country was on I-71 southbound. It read, Cincinnati / 100 KILOMETERS / 62 MILES. It wasn't placed right after an interchange, where distance signs are normally found. I remember seeing it as a kid, though by then it may have been the second incarnation of that sign. Sometime in the early 00s, it was replaced with one that skipped the metric line. It still had the destination and distance on two lines. It still gave the unit (miles) rather than a simple number. Its placement was still unusual, though its purpose had become less clear (and, if thought about, apparently the opposite of the purpose of the original). By 2011 or 12, the sign was gone entirely.

Thank you! It seemed like such a long long ramp when I moved to CBus that I thought it may have been an actual ALT route at some point.

For you Cleveland peeps: Does anyone remember the 480F signs? In the late '80s it became US ALT 422 before it ended at OH-91.

I am actually old enough to remember 480 ending at Brook Park and not being complete; you had to get off at Brook Park and drive a bit before getting back on.

thenetwork

Quote from: jecht on July 02, 2015, 11:34:37 PM
Quote from: vtk on July 02, 2015, 11:04:32 PM
The river alongside those 33F ramps is the Scioto, not the Olentangy.

Those ramps were always open when I was growing up (90s).  They were closed and reconstructed in 2001 or 2002 in conjunction with the reconstruction and widening of I-670 between there and Grandview Ave, just before the 2002 opening of 670 between Grandview and OH 315.

The last button copy signage to be installed in central Ohio was for these projects.

One of the first metric road signs in the country was on I-71 southbound. It read, Cincinnati / 100 KILOMETERS / 62 MILES. It wasn't placed right after an interchange, where distance signs are normally found. I remember seeing it as a kid, though by then it may have been the second incarnation of that sign. Sometime in the early 00s, it was replaced with one that skipped the metric line. It still had the destination and distance on two lines. It still gave the unit (miles) rather than a simple number. Its placement was still unusual, though its purpose had become less clear (and, if thought about, apparently the opposite of the purpose of the original). By 2011 or 12, the sign was gone entirely.

Thank you! It seemed like such a long long ramp when I moved to CBus that I thought it may have been an actual ALT route at some point.

For you Cleveland peeps: Does anyone remember the 480F signs? In the late '80s it became US ALT 422 before it ended at OH-91.

I am actually old enough to remember 480 ending at Brook Park and not being complete; you had to get off at Brook Park and drive a bit before getting back on.

Prior to the current US-422 freeway being briefly named ALT-422, the stretch was listed as TO SR-91/Solon, when the freeway ended at SOM Center Road/91.

I remember when I-77 northbound first ended at Pleasant Valley Road, later ending at Rockside Road, before the missing link was completed near the Cloverleaf area.

I also remember when the I-90 West freeway off the Innerbelt ended at W. 41st / W. 44th St. then continued from Crocker/Bassett to Elyria. Then the freeway was opened from Crocker/Bassett east to W. 117th St, before that missing link to W. 44th was completed. Meanwhile, I remember some of the overheads on I-71 Southbound were co-signed with "TO I-90" from downtown to the Turnpike.

I also remember when I-77 North out of Akron ended at Ridgewood Rd / Miller Rd, and you had to use surface streets through Fairlawn to return to the I-77 freeway at Ghent Road.

Good Times.

jecht

Quote from: thenetwork on July 03, 2015, 10:54:35 AM
Quote from: jecht on July 02, 2015, 11:34:37 PM
Quote from: vtk on July 02, 2015, 11:04:32 PM
The river alongside those 33F ramps is the Scioto, not the Olentangy.

Those ramps were always open when I was growing up (90s).  They were closed and reconstructed in 2001 or 2002 in conjunction with the reconstruction and widening of I-670 between there and Grandview Ave, just before the 2002 opening of 670 between Grandview and OH 315.

The last button copy signage to be installed in central Ohio was for these projects.

One of the first metric road signs in the country was on I-71 southbound. It read, Cincinnati / 100 KILOMETERS / 62 MILES. It wasn't placed right after an interchange, where distance signs are normally found. I remember seeing it as a kid, though by then it may have been the second incarnation of that sign. Sometime in the early 00s, it was replaced with one that skipped the metric line. It still had the destination and distance on two lines. It still gave the unit (miles) rather than a simple number. Its placement was still unusual, though its purpose had become less clear (and, if thought about, apparently the opposite of the purpose of the original). By 2011 or 12, the sign was gone entirely.

Thank you! It seemed like such a long long ramp when I moved to CBus that I thought it may have been an actual ALT route at some point.

For you Cleveland peeps: Does anyone remember the 480F signs? In the late '80s it became US ALT 422 before it ended at OH-91.

I am actually old enough to remember 480 ending at Brook Park and not being complete; you had to get off at Brook Park and drive a bit before getting back on.

Prior to the current US-422 freeway being briefly named ALT-422, the stretch was listed as TO SR-91/Solon, when the freeway ended at SOM Center Road/91.


I remember when I-77 northbound first ended at Pleasant Valley Road, later ending at Rockside Road, before the missing link was completed near the Cloverleaf area.

I also remember when the I-90 West freeway off the Innerbelt ended at W. 41st / W. 44th St. then continued from Crocker/Bassett to Elyria. Then the freeway was opened from Crocker/Bassett east to W. 117th St, before that missing link to W. 44th was completed. Meanwhile, I remember some of the overheads on I-71 Southbound were co-signed with "TO I-90" from downtown to the Turnpike.

I also remember when I-77 North out of Akron ended at Ridgewood Rd / Miller Rd, and you had to use surface streets through Fairlawn to return to the I-77 freeway at Ghent Road.

Good Times.

So was it ever 480F? I had seen it on roadfan.com and kurumi.com awhile back.

Another interesting CLE moment--the Clark Freeway would have been a nice cut-through for East-Siders trying to get downtown w/o having to go on 480 or up to 90 and over. But that's another thread. :)

thenetwork

Quote from: jecht on July 03, 2015, 12:32:06 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on July 03, 2015, 10:54:35 AM
Quote from: jecht on July 02, 2015, 11:34:37 PM
Quote from: vtk on July 02, 2015, 11:04:32 PM
The river alongside those 33F ramps is the Scioto, not the Olentangy.

Those ramps were always open when I was growing up (90s).  They were closed and reconstructed in 2001 or 2002 in conjunction with the reconstruction and widening of I-670 between there and Grandview Ave, just before the 2002 opening of 670 between Grandview and OH 315.

The last button copy signage to be installed in central Ohio was for these projects.

One of the first metric road signs in the country was on I-71 southbound. It read, Cincinnati / 100 KILOMETERS / 62 MILES. It wasn't placed right after an interchange, where distance signs are normally found. I remember seeing it as a kid, though by then it may have been the second incarnation of that sign. Sometime in the early 00s, it was replaced with one that skipped the metric line. It still had the destination and distance on two lines. It still gave the unit (miles) rather than a simple number. Its placement was still unusual, though its purpose had become less clear (and, if thought about, apparently the opposite of the purpose of the original). By 2011 or 12, the sign was gone entirely.

Thank you! It seemed like such a long long ramp when I moved to CBus that I thought it may have been an actual ALT route at some point.

For you Cleveland peeps: Does anyone remember the 480F signs? In the late '80s it became US ALT 422 before it ended at OH-91.

I am actually old enough to remember 480 ending at Brook Park and not being complete; you had to get off at Brook Park and drive a bit before getting back on.

Prior to the current US-422 freeway being briefly named ALT-422, the stretch was listed as TO SR-91/Solon, when the freeway ended at SOM Center Road/91.


I remember when I-77 northbound first ended at Pleasant Valley Road, later ending at Rockside Road, before the missing link was completed near the Cloverleaf area.

I also remember when the I-90 West freeway off the Innerbelt ended at W. 41st / W. 44th St. then continued from Crocker/Bassett to Elyria. Then the freeway was opened from Crocker/Bassett east to W. 117th St, before that missing link to W. 44th was completed. Meanwhile, I remember some of the overheads on I-71 Southbound were co-signed with "TO I-90" from downtown to the Turnpike.

I also remember when I-77 North out of Akron ended at Ridgewood Rd / Miller Rd, and you had to use surface streets through Fairlawn to return to the I-77 freeway at Ghent Road.

Good Times.

So was it ever 480F? I had seen it on roadfan.com and kurumi.com awhile back.



Never on a shield.  It may be listed in internal ODOT records as such.  The only unusual I-480 markings is the connector freeway between I-480 West and I-271 North / US-422 East.  And that is only on the blue 2/10th mile reference markers (those reference markers call that connector freeway I-480N, not F).

jecht

I had an old Rand McNally ('80) the full-sized atlas--it was really neat seeing the roads and proposed roads around CLE. At one time the Jennings was supposed to actually go south of its current terminus and go through a few neighborhoods.

If you want old photos there is a good repository at the Cleveland State University memory project. There is a photo of a 480 road opening ceremony in Dec '81--this was the segment on the western edge by North Olmsted.



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