Insane Intersections

[inkyatari]

Arnold, Oak, & Division, Plainfield, IL.

When did they get rid of the Eternal Flame in the little park on the triangle?

[inkyatari]

Since No one has shut me down, OR 18/OR 99W in Dundee OR.

Ehh, there's something similar on US 1 south of the Quantico Marine Base. If you want insane, try New York State Route 112 at Roosevelt Avenue, State Street and Scranton Road, all converging on the old Port Jefferson-Patchogue Highway in Port Jefferson Station.

I didn't know there was another one that existed that was like that. That's the first and only one I was aware of.

Similar intersection in Nogales, Arizona at 82 and Grand Ave:

https://goo.gl/maps/UrVChhSeo782

Due to terrain and adjacent railroad.

Here's another, also to clear a parallel railroad (Butler, IN, US-6 at CR 61).

https://goo.gl/maps/XTpHWvCkVpq

And another, built basically to service a casino that was wedged in between the tracks and Lake Michigan, in Hammond, IN

https://goo.gl/maps/zzW91gxVnV22

[jeffandnicole]

When the built US 130 thru NJ, and especially in Camden County, they simply built the road without any care of how the intersecting streets would mesh with it.  In this example, kinda like another one pictured above, there are multiple side streets that meet US 130 at varying angles.  https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  This occurs multiple times.

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

This final one here isn't truly insane...it's just unusual, even for NJ standards: https://goo.gl/maps/1ZjLGa5kuin  Traffic on 130 South (going from the top of the screen to the bottom) can make a left turn onto Market Street...OR...use the jughandle to make the left turn onto Market Street!  This is mostly due to the off-ramp from I-76 East to US 130 South, and they don't want traffic forced to cross 3 lanes either way.  However, if you want to make a right onto Market Street, US 130 South traffic does have to merge over 2 lanes (and across a solid white line) to do so.  There is a left-sided U-turn available just slightly south of this intersection, which would allow traffic to continue thru this intersection on 130 South, U-turn onto 130 North, then left on Market to complete that right turn via 3 lefts (sorta like the 141 North to 95 North left to left entry in Delaware) but it's not signed to do that.  Maybe it was decades ago though, which would kinda make sense.

Edited due to bad GSV link.

[inkyatari]

When the built US 130 thru NJ, and especially in Camden County, they simply built the road without any care of how the intersecting streets would mesh with it.  In this example, kinda like another one pictured above, there are multiple side streets that meet US 130 at varying angles.  https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  This occurs multiple times.

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

Did you mean to post the same link twice?

[jwolfer]

Since No one has shut me down, OR 18/OR 99W in Dundee OR.

Ehh, there's something similar on US 1 south of the Quantico Marine Base. If you want insane, try New York State Route 112 at Roosevelt Avenue, State Street and Scranton Road, all converging on the old Port Jefferson-Patchogue Highway in Port Jefferson Station.

Florida SR100 at the junction with US 1 in Bunnell.. the NW junction to be precise.. there are a few of these in FL and like another be posted wrote... It's when railroad is adjacent to roadway

Z981

[kphoger]

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.5113134,-90.1787283,18.21z

This intersection isn't really insane, it's just weird.

Thanks for sharing.  You'll see that "splitting" of opposite directions where frontage roads and ramps intersect.  The idea is to prevent people from turning the wrong way down a ramp (and have a high speed head-on crash).  Here's a drawing from TxDOT (see the bottom intersection):

Why not have a left-turn lane?

Amen.   

In a sense, it is a left-turn lane.  With no other lane.

[jeffandnicole]

When the built US 130 thru NJ, and especially in Camden County, they simply built the road without any care of how the intersecting streets would mesh with it.  In this example, kinda like another one pictured above, there are multiple side streets that meet US 130 at varying angles.  https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  This occurs multiple times.

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

Did you mean to post the same link twice?

Thanks - here's the correct link to the 130/168 intersection that weaves the left turns thru opposing traffic: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62

I'll modify my original post as well.

[cl94]

When the built US 130 thru NJ, and especially in Camden County, they simply built the road without any care of how the intersecting streets would mesh with it.  In this example, kinda like another one pictured above, there are multiple side streets that meet US 130 at varying angles.  https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  This occurs multiple times.

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/PXFpsb43LhE2  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

Did you mean to post the same link twice?

Thanks - here's the correct link to the 130/168 intersection that weaves the left turns thru opposing traffic: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62

I'll modify my original post as well.

Of all the strange roads in NJ (and there are a lot), US 130 is one of the strangest. There's that pseudo-continuous flow intersection at NJ 168, those intersections that have become pseudo-circles for the side streets (such as this), the weird grade separations, the "circle" in Cranbury, the list goes on. Plus, the section north of NJ 33 is one of the few divided highways in NJ that allows left turns without jughandles.

[kphoger]

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

It looks similar to a parallel-flow intersection, but I'm not certain it's exactly the same beast.

[jakeroot]

All things considered, this is probably one of Seattle's most bizarre (not really insane) intersections: https://goo.gl/sDhRS1

Queen Anne's 7-way stop-controlled intersection (6-way stop). No idea how it ended up like this, but drivers are so confused about who arrived first, they usually fail to notice pedestrians and cyclists (so I've heard).

No idea if there's any improvements in the works, but trimming back some of the greenery would be a nice start. The angle of the intersection makes it hard to see other cars.

[cl94]

All things considered, this is probably one of Seattle's most bizarre (not really insane) intersections: https://goo.gl/sDhRS1

Queen Anne's 7-way stop-controlled intersection. No idea how it ended up like this, but drivers are so confused about who arrived first, they usually fail to notice pedestrians and cyclists (so I've heard).

No idea if there's any improvements in the works, but trimming back some of the greenery would be a nice start.

The absolute f@ck? No, that's insane. One of those is already an exit only and you could realistically make one more exit only, but that still leaves 5 entrances.

[jakeroot]

All things considered, this is probably one of Seattle's most bizarre (not really insane) intersections: https://goo.gl/sDhRS1

Queen Anne's 7-way stop-controlled intersection. No idea how it ended up like this, but drivers are so confused about who arrived first, they usually fail to notice pedestrians and cyclists (so I've heard).

No idea if there's any improvements in the works, but trimming back some of the greenery would be a nice start.

The absolute f@ck? No, that's insane. One of those is already an exit only and you could realistically make one more exit only, but that still leaves 5 entrances.

Very well, I will consider it insane.

Forgot that Raye Street was one-way. Swear it had a stop-sign at one point. I have adjusted the OP.

[D-Dey65]

Florida SR100 at the junction with US 1 in Bunnell.. the NW junction to be precise.. there are a few of these in FL and like another be posted wrote... It's when railroad is adjacent to roadway.

But there's no railroad adjacent to US 1 at Virginia Secondary Route 8900 (Centerport Parkway). Just a steep hill for US 1 and a short approach between there and I-95.

Thanks for sharing.  You'll see that "splitting" of opposite directions where frontage roads and ramps intersect.  The idea is to prevent people from turning the wrong way down a ramp (and have a high speed head-on crash).  Here's a drawing from TxDOT (see the bottom intersection):

You've got plenty of these along I-95 in North Carolina too... and from what I've seen on Google Street View in the Rockies and Great Plains too.

[UCFKnights]

I always thought this one on UCF's campus was a bit crazy:
https://www.google.com/maps/@28.6034852,-81.1956179,3a,78.2y,310.07h,84.49t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sbdrDKCskifqjbsO4qzsIjw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DbdrDKCskifqjbsO4qzsIjw%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dsearch.TACTILE.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D96%26h%3D64%26yaw%3D219.95671%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

When they initially installed it, it entirely relied on the no right turn blankout sign to prevent vehicles from turning into the vehicles as oncoming traffic. They added a permanent no turn on red sign at that corner as well, which helped a little bit. I also wish they would give the traffic exiting the garage a green whenever the crossroad doesn't have it, since that causes huge backups into the garage being so close to it.

[johndoe]

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

It looks similar to a parallel-flow intersection, but I'm not certain it's exactly the same beast.

You're right, that is (partial) "PFI".  According to historicaerials.com this intersection has been in place since at least 1956.  The PFI was patented in 2006.  I'm no lawyer but I don't understand how you can patent something that's been in place 50 years before you "invented" it.

[formulanone]

Another one was truly first in the nation, although it's been duplicated on a few occasions, almost each time claiming it's first in the nation: https://goo.gl/maps/BaTNnxjvmF62  Left turning traffic snakes thru opposing traffic (I forget the exact name right now given to this style intersection). 

It looks similar to a parallel-flow intersection, but I'm not certain it's exactly the same beast.

You're right, that is (partial) "PFI".  According to historicaerials.com this intersection has been in place since at least 1956.  The PFI was patented in 2006.  I'm no lawyer but I don't understand how you can patent something that's been in place 50 years before you "invented" it.

Eh, there's a lot of intersections out there...hard to keep a file on all of them.

That said, here's a similar one in Baton Rouge (Siegen Lane, Airline Highway, Jefferson Highway) with that kind of PFI set up.

[MNHighwayMan]

This five-way stop intersection is pretty tame compared to many of them ITT, but it's the most fitting example I can think of locally here in Des Moines. Traffic on Clark St can't even see anyone at the north leg of 60th St. The only positive of this is that it's a low-speed residential intersection.

More interesting might be the intersection of Cummins Pkwy and University Ave south of the above one. North of University, Cummins is a standard divided parkway with a pair of one-ways. South of University, Cummins becomes a pair of two-way streets, and the only way you can really tell this is by the subtle fact that the south side of the intersection has two stop signs, while the north side has only one.

[bzakharin]

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.5113134,-90.1787283,18.21z

This intersection isn't really insane, it's just weird.

That one is pretty strange. I don't think I've ever seen a state highway end at an exit ramp off an Interstate highway before this one.

There are plenty, though the ones I can think of are all freeways. NJ 24 westbound terminus is I-287 and eastbound terminus is I-78. PA 63's eastern terminus is I-95.

Plus, the section north of NJ 33 is one of the few divided highways in NJ that allows left turns without jughandles.

There are plenty of left turns on NJ divided highways interspersed with jughandles, sometimes even at the same intersection like here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@39.8747551,-74.9222296,232m/data=!3m1!1e3
73 North has a left turn onto Evesham Road, while 73 South uses a jughandle.

[kphoger]

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.5113134,-90.1787283,18.21z

This intersection isn't really insane, it's just weird.

That one is pretty strange. I don't think I've ever seen a state highway end at an exit ramp off an Interstate highway before this one.

There are plenty, though the ones I can think of are all freeways. NJ 24 westbound terminus is I-287 and eastbound terminus is I-78. PA 63's eastern terminus is I-95.

Plus, the section north of NJ 33 is one of the few divided highways in NJ that allows left turns without jughandles.

There are plenty of left turns on NJ divided highways interspersed with jughandles, sometimes even at the same intersection like here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@39.8747551,-74.9222296,232m/data=!3m1!1e3
73 North has a left turn onto Evesham Road, while 73 South uses a jughandle.

I think you missed it.  It's not that a state highway ends at an Interstate highway, but that a state highway ends at an Interstate ramp (at least, it would if CR-297 were a state highway).  PA-63 has ramps that simply transition onto NB or SB I-95.  But, in the example TBKS1 linked to, CR-297 terminates at the ramp between NB I-55 and AR-118–similar to what happens to SB FM-1223 near San Angelo, Texas (except that FM-1223 actually multiplexes and then continues).

[bzakharin]

I think you missed it.  It's not that a state highway ends at an Interstate highway, but that a state highway ends at an Interstate ramp (at least, it would if CR-297 were a state highway).  PA-63 has ramps that simply transition onto NB or SB I-95.  But, in the example TBKS1 linked to, CR-297 terminates at the ramp between NB I-55 and AR-118–similar to what happens to SB FM-1223 near San Angelo, Texas (except that FM-1223 actually multiplexes and then continues).

Oh, I get it. No, I can't think of any examples then

[dvferyance]

Prior to 1997 in New Berlin WI Moorland Small and Grange all came together at a crazy intersection where 2 of the roads ended and one came though diagonally. Small rd the diagonal one was rerouted when Moorland was extended.

[Flint1979]

I see on street view that it is a County highway now.

[US 89]

Off the top of my head, here's a 5-way stop in Salt Lake. Not too weird, but the problem with intersections like this is that people often forget about that fifth angle road (Gilmer Dr).

I'm not actually sure whether this intersection should be treated as a 5-way stop or as a 4-way with a separate intersection just to the north.

[jakeroot]

I'm not actually sure whether this intersection should be treated as a 5-way stop or as a 4-way with a separate intersection just to the north.

The stop sign for the NW approach has no supplemental plaque, so I would guess the latter. But the layout of the intersection would certainly suggest the former.

[froggie]

I see on street view that it is a County highway now.

It was never a state highway to begin with.