Route 66

[SkyPesos]

I live in a US 66 town, and I agree that it is completely overrated. There are other highways that are just as interesting, with smaller crowds and less faux-retro kitschy tackiness. I don't get why they get so excited about 1 single highway, but don't care about any others. In some states, there are thousands of abandoned highways that have often survived and are in better shape than much of 66. There are cool things along 66, but it isn't the be all end all of US routes.

Same here. Used to live in a Route 66 city (St Louis), and it was a unit in my 4th grade history class for some reason, though I find both 40 and 61 to be more interesting than 66. I already mentioned the reasons for 40 upthread, and 61 have its music roots. Now in Cincinnati, the old Dixie Hwy (US 25) interests me the most.

[Avalanchez71]

US 41 and US 27 should be just as celebrated. US 31 just doesn't seem to have the same catchiness. 

[JoePCool14]

US 41 and US 27 should be just as celebrated. US 31 just doesn't seem to have the same catchiness.

IMHO, US-630 should be the most celebrated US Route.

[ozarkman417]

I see that Oklahoma is funding new US-66 signage in preparation for 2026 and the centennial of route 66. It would be great that other states would follow that lead.

Looks like they've already started! 

[Max Rockatansky]

Have we ever come up with a group consensus on what the most globally celebrated US Routes are aside from US 66?  Here are some the frequently cited routes that I see in no particular order:

-  101
-  99
-  40
-  50
-  20
-  395
-  6
-  80
-  191
-  163
-  550
-  212
-  61
-  1
-  41
-  2
-  441
-  27

[skluth]

I live in a US 66 town, and I agree that it is completely overrated. There are other highways that are just as interesting, with smaller crowds and less faux-retro kitschy tackiness. I don't get why they get so excited about 1 single highway, but don't care about any others. In some states, there are thousands of abandoned highways that have often survived and are in better shape than much of 66. There are cool things along 66, but it isn't the be all end all of US routes.

Same here. Used to live in a Route 66 city (St Louis), and it was a unit in my 4th grade history class for some reason, though I find both 40 and 61 to be more interesting than 66. I already mentioned the reasons for 40 upthread, and 61 have its music roots. Now in Cincinnati, the old Dixie Hwy (US 25) interests me the most.

You're both looking at it from a road geek perspective. The appeal of Route 66 isn't so much east of OK City, though there is some, but going west through the small towns bypassed by the interstate. These towns often had no raison d'etre other than the highway, as shown in Pixar's Cars. Tourists can feel the melancholia in these towns as they observe the skeletons of old garages and drug stores that were frequently some of the kitschiest roadside attractions ever built. Motels with each room an individual teepee. Giant pieces of folk art. And lots of classic post-WWII architecture, often neon-lit. Some maintained, but often in ruins. Ghost towns like Oatman and Calico. It ends at the Santa Monica Pier (emotionally, if not in reality) and you can end your trip at Disneyland and Universal. They all make great vacation photos.

Does this stuff exist elsewhere? Yes, in places from Lucy the elephant in Atlantic City to Carhenge in Nebraska to the Cabazon dinosaurs featured in Pee Wee's Big Adventure. But the kitsch is concentrated along Steinbeck's Mother Road. Europeans often visit other sites near the highway that are quintessentially American like the Grand Canyon, the Arch, Petrified Forest, and Las Vegas. Finally, most Europeans have never seen openness like the American West. You see this openness on most any highway west of the 100th meridian. But there's more to see along the old US 66 than most of the other highways. It's a good way for Europeans to say they've seen a lot of the US in a way Europeans understand. Or even most Americans.

[HighwayStar]

I live in a US 66 town, and I agree that it is completely overrated. There are other highways that are just as interesting, with smaller crowds and less faux-retro kitschy tackiness. I don't get why they get so excited about 1 single highway, but don't care about any others. In some states, there are thousands of abandoned highways that have often survived and are in better shape than much of 66. There are cool things along 66, but it isn't the be all end all of US routes.

Same here. Used to live in a Route 66 city (St Louis), and it was a unit in my 4th grade history class for some reason, though I find both 40 and 61 to be more interesting than 66. I already mentioned the reasons for 40 upthread, and 61 have its music roots. Now in Cincinnati, the old Dixie Hwy (US 25) interests me the most.

You're both looking at it from a road geek perspective. The appeal of Route 66 isn't so much east of OK City, though there is some, but going west through the small towns bypassed by the interstate. These towns often had no raison d'etre other than the highway, as shown in Pixar's Cars. Tourists can feel the melancholia in these towns as they observe the skeletons of old garages and drug stores that were frequently some of the kitschiest roadside attractions ever built. Motels with each room an individual teepee. Giant pieces of folk art. And lots of classic post-WWII architecture, often neon-lit. Some maintained, but often in ruins. Ghost towns like Oatman and Calico. It ends at the Santa Monica Pier (emotionally, if not in reality) and you can end your trip at Disneyland and Universal. They all make great vacation photos.

Does this stuff exist elsewhere? Yes, in places from Lucy the elephant in Atlantic City to Carhenge in Nebraska to the Cabazon dinosaurs featured in Pee Wee's Big Adventure. But the kitsch is concentrated along Steinbeck's Mother Road. Europeans often visit other sites near the highway that are quintessentially American like the Grand Canyon, the Arch, Petrified Forest, and Las Vegas. Finally, most Europeans have never seen openness like the American West. You see this openness on most any highway west of the 100th meridian. But there's more to see along the old US 66 than most of the other highways. It's a good way for Europeans to say they've seen a lot of the US in a way Europeans understand. Or even most Americans.

Its an obnoxious tourist trap for people who could care less where they have been relative to where they can say they have been. Go, take a picture to prove to your insta friends you were there, and leave. Comprehending it is not part of the experience. Then have busloads of those people being dumped out someplace and you ruin it for everyone.

[Max Rockatansky]

Didn't Steinbeck incorrectly attribute Tehachapi Pass to US 66 when it should've been US 466?  I haven't read Grapes of Wrath in years but I could swear that was a thing.

[SkyPesos]

I see that Oklahoma is funding new US-66 signage in preparation for 2026 and the centennial of route 66. It would be great that other states would follow that lead.

I Googled "US highways centennial", and all the top results only talked about Route 66's centennial, without mentioning the US highways system or other routes at all. What about the other hundreds of US routes that were also created in 1926; do they just not get invited to their own birthday party?

[sparker]

I see that Oklahoma is funding new US-66 signage in preparation for 2026 and the centennial of route 66. It would be great that other states would follow that lead.

I would surmise that OK has more to gain (and sell!) from any renewed interest in historic US 66 than other states simply because it continues to maintain a larger portion of the original alignment than any other state (although CA comes close, but much of its "old road" is under city and/or county maintenance).  Going back to the OP here -- if one is interested in enhanced signage for historic 66, contact the various established groups scattered along the route that engage in activities along those lines; there's a number out there, and AFAIK they do talk to each other regarding coordinated efforts, particularly across state lines.  DOT's generally don't get involved in such things unless as part of an existing maintenance or local aid effort (although, for reasons cited above, OK might be something of an exception).  But localized or state-based groups generally do the "grunt" work regarding placing and maintaining historic signage; they're the ones to talk to  -- and several seem to have an online presence, so contacting them is relatively easy.  Although 66 boosters are the most nationally known and recognized, other historic routes such as US 99 and US 101, at least out here in CA, have their support groups, so the general concept isn't an arcane pursuit by any means.

[SkyPesos]

Have we ever come up with a group consensus on what the most globally celebrated US Routes are aside from US 66?  Here are some the frequently cited routes that I see in no particular order:

-  101
-  99
-  40
-  50
-  20
-  395
-  6
-  80
-  191
-  163
-  550
-  212
-  61
-  1
-  41
-  2
-  441
-  27

This is my personal list, in no particular order:
- 40 (National Rd/Victory Hwy/National Old Trails Rd)
- 41 (Dixie Hwy)
- 25 (Dixie Hwy)
- 1 (Atlantic Hwy)
- 99
- 20
- 50
- 6
- 61
- 22 (Penn Lincoln Hwy)
- 36 (PP-OO Hwy)