Roads You've Used More In One Direction Than The Other

[webny99]

It occurred to me the other day that on my commute, which passes through a rectangle of roads from bottom left to top right, I generally use different sides of the rectangle depending on which direction I'm traveling (the west and north sides in the morning, and the east and south sides in the afternoon). This is due to the signal configurations being more favorable for those turn movements in their respective directions.

Similarly on my previous commute there was a mostly freeway alternate that was longer mileage that I would often take home in the afternoon, but almost never took in the morning, because traffic on the regular route was predictably light enough in the morning that freeway route usually took a bit longer and I didn't want to risk being late (plus I would often stop for breakfast somewhere that would have required backtracking from the freeway route).

All that is to say... I have used those road segments a lot more in one direction in the other, such that my usage of the opposite direction is unlikely to ever catch up, even years from now. I also know more about traffic in the direction/time of day that I've used it more. Has anyone else experienced this type of thing? I'm sure in larger metros it's quite common to regularly take different routes to avoid congestion. I realize it is kind of a rabbit hole but figured it might be an interesting cause and effect to discuss.

[JayhawkCO]

E-470 between I-25 (on the north side) and Peña Boulevard I really only use if I'm coming back from Fort Collins and it saves me a bunch of time, so I really only ever take that southbound. When I go to up that way, I'm always leaving early before there's any traffic, so no need to take the tollway.

I-10 through the panhandle of Florida I've taken eastbound 5 or 6 times but only westbound once. When I used to drive between KC and Jacksonville (and vice versa) a few times a year and always tried to go a different way, I guess it just always happened that I ventured off the quickest route earlier in the day and then beelined it to my destination later in the trip.

[pderocco]

Since I'm more in a hurry going to work than coming home, I favor the freeways in the morning and back roads on the way back.

More interesting perhaps: I'm not sure why, but I've driven US-191, US-163, and US-160 from Moab to Flagstaff a whole bunch of times, but rarely northbound. Somehow, it's often after dark when I'm going south, so I just want a fast road. In the other direction, it's usually daytime, and I go further afield to explore, so I've probably only driven it in that direction a couple of times.

One really nice mountain ride in California's coast range is Nacimiento-Fergusson Rd. I've driven it seven times, always westbound, because that's the direction you get better views from. Also, there are better restaurants coming home to Los Angeles along the coast than there are inland. I haven't driven it since I moved to San Diego, but then neither has anyone else since 2021.

Another such ride is the Figueroa Mountain Rd and Happy Canyon Rd loop in Los Olivos. I've driven it 13 times, but only once going up Happy Canyon and down Figueroa.

I've also driven Ortega Highway from San Juan Capistrano to Lake Elsinore a dozens of times, but only a few times in the other direction.

I guess it really boils down to a correlation between time of day and which routes I'm likely to take.

[Max Rockatansky]

Westbound CA 152 is substantially less annoying over Pacheco Pass than eastbound.  This largely is due to the fact that the westbound climb has a dedicated climbing lane.  I usually try to dip back east on CA 198.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I-494 NB between Valley View Road and TH 62 in Eden Prairie just because of the circumstances of where I work and where I live. (Trying not to say too much in order to avoid drawing the ire of people who get upset at self-doxxing.)

[Bruce]

SR 99 over the Aurora Bridge in Seattle: far, far more times southbound than northbound. I often use it to get into downtown during the afternoons, when the I-5 express lanes have switched northbound and thus the southbound freeway is super congested. Taking a shortcut through Green Lake to Aurora shaves off a precious few minutes and usually lands me closer to my preferred parking spots.

I-405 southbound through Kirkland and Bellevue for similar reasons, and I-90 westbound into Seattle.

[Dirt Roads]

I worked a couple of summers in Ashland, Kentucky.  The normal morning commute for most folks from West Virginia is to use US-52 through South Point, Ohio using Old Ben to cross the Ohio River into downtown Ashland.  From downtown Ashland (which sits east of Old Ben), most folks used US-60 through Catlettsburg to return to I-64 on the Kentucky side to get back to West Virginia.

I've used US-52 eastbound along the Ohio many times from Cincinnati or Portsmouth, but the first time that I ever used US-52 to get back from Ashland was last fall.  And that was over Simeon Willis Bridge, which was still being constructed back then.  (The only time that I ever used Old Ben to cross into Ohio, I was headed from Ashland -to- Portsmouth; of course, you usually can't do that now because of the bridge twinning).

[webny99]

I worked a couple of summers in Ashland, Kentucky.  The normal morning commute for most folks from West Virginia is to use US-52 through South Point, Ohio using Old Ben to cross the Ohio River into downtown Ashland.  From downtown Ashland (which sits east of Old Ben), most folks used US-60 through Catlettsburg to return to I-64 on the Kentucky side to get back to West Virginia.

Is there anything specific that makes US 52 a better route in the morning and US 23 better in the afternoon, or is it just personal preference? I could possibly see afternoon traffic being an issue on US 52 through Burlington or US 23 through Cattlesburg, but otherwise both look like decent quality routes.

[Dirt Roads]

I'm risking starting an MTR-style flaming war with this one, but it is true:

I've used I-70 into Baltimore from either Frederick -or- Ellicott City hundreds of times, and most of those times I was taking the Baltimore Beltway northeastward to I-95.  But I've only been on I-70 westbound from the Baltimore Beltway a couple of times.  I have gotten onto I-70 westbound from MD-32 at West Friendship a few times, as well.

[webny99]

Another one that came to mind, not in terms of personal experience, but in terms of Google Maps suggested routing: the US 15 corridor between Shamokin Dam and Williamsport. Prior to the CSVT river bridge opening, Google was extremely averse to I-180 in both directions.

Now, it will reliably route via PA 147/I-180 for northbound traffic, but still almost always routes via US 15 through South Williamsport to I-80 to PA 147 for southbound traffic. The latter route is 8 miles shorter, but is mostly a three-lane road (1 per direction + TWLTL), is still heavily used by truck traffic, and has a few stoplights that can snag traffic plus a mile long slog on one-way streets through South Williamsport.

The only real difference by direction is that northbound through traffic has to turn left to get onto I-180/stay on US 15, whereas southbound traffic exiting has a right hand turn. Although the left turn is somewhat prone to backups, it doesn't seem like much of a difference, but it's clearly enough to tip the northbound scales in favor of I-180 according to Google. Personally I regard it as a toss up in both directions. I'd lean towards the more consistent I-180 between 8AM and 6PM and towards the shorter/more efficient US 15 during the non-peak hours (especially near sunset/after dark for the great views from Bald Eagle Mountain).

Anyone blinding following GPS in both directions, however, would end up with a northbound-only clinch of I-180.

[Dirt Roads]

I worked a couple of summers in Ashland, Kentucky.  The normal morning commute for most folks from West Virginia is to use US-52 through South Point, Ohio using Old Ben to cross the Ohio River into downtown Ashland.  From downtown Ashland (which sits east of Old Ben), most folks used US-60 through Catlettsburg to return to I-64 on the Kentucky side to get back to West Virginia.

Is there anything specific that makes US 52 a better route in the morning and US 23 better in the afternoon, or is it just personal preference? I could possibly see afternoon traffic being an issue on US 52 through Burlington or US 23 through Cattlesburg, but otherwise both look like decent quality routes.

Back then, you could spend 20 minutes trying to get from downtown Ashland across Old Ben into Ohio.  Even with all the stop lights along US-60, you could get back to the West 17th Street exit on I-64 in about the same time.  Even today, it looks like you could get tangled up in some traffic trying to get to the Simeon Willis Bridge, but I'm sure that is not much of a problem today (especially since the area population is much less than back then).

[roadman65]

I've used US 301 more times northbound between Ocala, FL and Baldwin, FL than Southbound.

I've used the Verrazano Bridge Eastbound but never drove it Westbound. That's because it was free going into Brooklyn and heavily tolled going back to Staten Island. That is before I left the north in 1990 and way before the two way tolls were reinstated.  I would return to New Jersey via Manhattan. Plus my trips were for clinching Long Island highways anyway.

[Bitmapped]

There are some roads I drive on trips that I use in the daytime because they are shorter, more direct, and/or slightly faster, but that I avoid at night because they are curvy, hilly or prone to deer.

For example, when I'm heading from home in Morgantown, WV to the northern part of the Virginia Shenandoah Valley, I take MD 51/WV 9/WV 29/WV 127/VA 127/US 522 between Cumberland and Winchester. This route is about 18 miles shorter and 10 miles faster than I-68 to US 522, but it's twisty, hilly, and through lots of woods. I take this corridor eastbound during the day, but go the longer way at night so I rarely go westbound.

Same thing when I'm heading towards Elkins. I'll take WV 7/WV 92 heading due south from Morgantown during the day, but because of deer, I favor US 33 to I-79 northbound at night. In this situation, WV 92 is a couple minutes faster but about 26 miles shorter than I-79/US 33.

[epzik8]

I've used MD 222 (Conowingo-Perryville) south more times than I can count, but north only once.

[MATraveler128]

I've used I-81 southbound from Pennsylvania to Virginia more than I've gone north.

[ran4sh]

My brother and his wife often visit family in both the Middle TN and North GA areas for Christmas. But since they prefer being in GA for New Year's Eve, they always go to TN first and then GA. So they have used I-24 EB and I-75 SB more often than the reverse.

[drebbin37]

Most of mine are due to the one-way tolls over the Hudson River and cashless tolling in general.  I used to be fine with driving toll roads and bridges when they accepted cash, but now I look for ways to support cashless tolling as little as possible. 

I definitely use I-287 and the Tappan Zee Bridge more frequently in the westbound direction, so that means the same for the Merritt and Hutchinson Parkways.  Coming back to CT, I'll use the northbound Palisades Parkway to the Bear Mountain Bridge (although cashless, at least it's cheaper than the Tappan Zee), US202, and NY35 more often than I do going the other way.  I-84 is probably a wash, since it's cheaper than I-287 but more expensive than the free I-90.  I would always use I-90 East and the various roads to Canaan, CT from there if this detour weren't so far north.  Still, I do use each of I-90, US9, US20, NY203, NY22, MA102, MA41, NY71, MA71, and US7 more frequently east/southbound than west/northbound.

I've driven the GW, Mid-Hudson, Kingston-Rhinecliff, and Rip Van Winkle Bridges (and the connecting roads) more frequently westbound than eastbound.  I also tend to cross the Delaware Memorial Bridge southbound more than north, since I plan many of my southern and western trips in a clockwise route, thanks to the cashless tolls over the Hudson.  This means I generally drive south/west more in NJ/DE/MD and east more in PA/NY.

[Buck87]

I-75 in Kentucky, Tennessee and northern Georgia - almost always southbound

US 23 in Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky - almost always northbound
I-77 in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia - almost always southbound

My sister lives in Georgia and trips to and from there are usually south on 75 and north on one of the other two (with several other routes involved depending on what other sightseeing stops, visits or clinches I may be doing on any given trip)

[pianocello]

On a micro-scale, I imagine many people who don't have a driveway will drive their own street more often in one direction than the other - at least everyone who has a consistent place to park on the street. That was my situation in high school.

On a larger scale, I think I've traveled I-75 between the Florida's Turnpike split and Ocala more northbound than southbound. I've traveled between Orlando and Gainesville a lot, and it was usually timed in a way that the southbound traffic was ridiculous enough for me to find an alternate route.

[Dirt Roads]

On a micro-scale, I imagine many people who don't have a driveway will drive their own street more often in one direction than the other - at least everyone who has a consistent place to park on the street. <snipped>

Or moreso, using the admonition of "Never make Left Turns" to create left-hand running fake "one-way" pairs in urban areas:

• Jacksonville, Florida (Acosta Bridge northbound, Main Street Bridge southbound)
• Richmond, Virginia (Main Street westward, Broad Street eastward)
• more Richmond (Old Manchester) (Semmes Avenue eastward, Hull Street westward)
• Washington, D.C. (Capitol Street northbound, North Dakota Avenue southeastward to Rhode Island Avenue southwestward)
• more Washington (Constitution Avenue eastbound, Independence Avenue westbound)
• even more Washington (Rhode Island Avenue northeastward, New York Avenue southwestward)
• Baltimore, Maryland (Greene Street/Paca Street northbound, Howard Street southbound)
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Chestnut Street westbound, Market Street eastbound - this one is fairly common)
• more Philly (John F. Kennedy Boulevard westbound, Vine Street eastbound)
• even more Philly, sometimes walking (Ben Franklin Parkway/Kelly Drive northwestward, Pennsylvania Avenue southeastward)
• Newark, New Jersey (Broad Street northbound, McCarter Highway southbound)
• New York City (mostly walking, but a few times driving as well) (Sixth Avenue northbound, Fifth Avenue southbound)
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Liberty Avenue northbound, Bigelow Boulevard southbound)
• more Pittsburgh (Smithfield Street Bridge northbound, Liberty Bridge southbound)
• Cumberland, Maryland (Queen City Drive westbound, National Pike eastbound)
• Uniontown, Pennsylvania (Fayette Street westbound, Main Street eastbound)
• Morgantown, West Virginia (University Avenue northbound, High Street southbound)

Oh yeah, let me add this one after it was finally made possible when the one-way pair was eliminated (yes, I've done this numerous times since):

• Lynchburg, Virginia (Church Street westbound, Main Street eastbound)

[dantheman]

Getting on and off Cape Cod in Massachusetts can be like this. If you're going between I-195/I-495/MA 25 on the mainland and US 6 on the Cape, there are two choices: the Bourne Bridge (MA 28) and Sandwich Road, or the Sagamore Bridge (US 6) and staying on US 6 on the north side of the canal. I find it's usually a toss-up going onto the Cape, but the Sagamore/6 choice is better going back to the mainland.

There are a few reasons for this:
- On summer weekends when bridge traffic is backed up, it's usually advantageous to take the first bridge you get to. Otherwise, you're waiting in traffic for miles to get to one bridge, not crossing the canal, and then waiting in more traffic to get onto the other bridge.
- Leaving the Cape, the offramp from US 6 WB to Sandwich Road wanders really far east before you can cut over to Sandwich Road, since the most convenient cross-street nearest to US 6 is one-way in the wrong direction to cut down on through traffic. The left turn from the offramp onto Ben Abbey Road to cut over to Sandwich Road can be tough on summer weekends, too. This adds about a mile to the Sandwich/Bourne Bridge route off the Cape.
- Less critical, but going onto the Cape, the ramp from MA 25 to US 6 leaves you going around 3/4 of a traffic circle that can be crowded.

(One recent mitigating factor: a new gas station on 6 is usually the cheapest around, so that has pulled me onto Sagamore/6 more often!)

I am probably 50/50 on these two routes EB, but virtually always use the Sagamore/6 option WB. So, I've probably driven the piece of 6 between the two bridges twice as many times WB as EB.

[DandyDan]

I know when I visit my relatives in SW Minnesota, I generally drive I-90 west to go there and take various back roads back. I'm usually in a hurry to get there, but not as big a hurry to get back.

[thspfc]

US-51 between Portage and Madison. Much more southbound than northbound, due to Sunday afternoon traffic on 39/90/94.

[wanderer2575]

When I drive between home (Detroit north suburbs) and northwest lower peninsula, I almost always drive US-23 and I-75 north to Bay City and then US-10 west to Clare, but coming home I drive US-127 south to Lansing and then I-96 east to home.

When I drive to the Baltimore cruise port, it's all freeways and turnpikes from home to the parking lot.  I don't have time to meander.  I can take more time on the return trip so I try to find a routing to give me at least some break.  One year I detoured a little south from Frederick MD to drive US-48 between Strasburg VA and Weston WV.  Last year I did I-99 north from Bedford and then US-22 west back to the turnpike in Pittsburgh.  So in all I've definitely used the OH and PA turnpikes more ebd than wbd.

[CapeCodder]

The route I take to get to my friends' house on the outer part of Cape Cod is much the same the closer I get to their house, but on the outbound my route differs thus:

#1 I use Route 28 to Route 134 and take that to Airline Road, which feeds into Setucket/Stony Brook Roads. These ultimately feed into Route 6A in Brewster, which I take to Orleans and go up the western shore of Eastham into Wellfleet, where I rejoin Route 6. More often than not it's faster than the main highway from the rotary.

Now on the inbound, it differs here:

#2 Once I get into Brewster I make a left onto Route 124 which I take until I reach Queen Anne Road. From there I take that to reach its end at Depot Street. From Depot, it's a quick jog to Center Street, which puts me within eyesight of my driveway (with a few other jogs, of course.)

I can't stand Suicide Alley in the summer. I'd rather have my patience than cause a potential chain reaction accident.