Most useless US Hwys

[NE2]

US 83 Biz in San Ygnacio, TX.

[Gnutella]

But what does US-6 really do west of the Hudson River?

It's the major east/west route across the northern tier of Pennsylvania. I-80 is about 50 miles to the south, and I-86 is about 30 miles to the north.

[triplemultiplex]

There's probably a solid 20% of US Highway mileage that is no longer needed.  Anything that just parallels an interstate (or worse, is concurrent with it) for hundreds of miles can just go away as far as I'm concerned.  Nostalgia is not a good enough reason to keep them around.  State highways can handle any emergency detour duties just fine.

Furthermore, I am in favor of allowing US highways to be discontinuous.  Many of them have long, unsigned concurrencies anyway so just make it official.  I've been in New Mexico for a couple months now and I have not seen a single US 85 shield despite US 85 being on all these different maps.  I've seen a vestigial US 80 shield in Deming, but in driving some 75% of the old alignment and the entirety of I-25, no sighting of US 85.  The hard part is already done in that case.

Then I can't help but point out the high density of US Highways in the Southeast in general, but South Carolina in particular.  Way more US Highways than one would predict based on population.  All these 3 digit routes that wander around, multiplex with each other for long distances and generally lack any importance.  That herd could use some thinning.

[hotdogPi]

Anything that just parallels an interstate (or worse, is concurrent with it) for hundreds of miles can just go away as far as I'm concerned.

Something wrong with US 5?

[PHLBOS]

The reasoning for the now-odd US 3/MA 3 hand-off point in Cambridge is due to that location originally (prior to 1971) had US 1 (& MA 28) intersecting w/it. 

*cough cough* The handover actually happens at Massachusetts Avenue. That was the original route of US 1 in the 1920s, but 1 pretty soon after came up VFW Pkwy. to Storrow. For whatever reason, the 3/3 handoff never moved to the south end of the Longfellow Bridge where it would have made sense.

*cough cough* again.  The US/MA 3 hand-off location is still in Cambridge per my original post and not Boston. 

As far as the shifting of the hand-off east towards Mass Ave., which likely occurred in 1971 as well, one has to wonder if the reasoning for not extending US 3 further east along Memorial Drive from Mass Ave. to the Longfellow Bridge has to do with the very low bridge & overpass clearances along that stretch of road.  Some of those clearances might be lower than even those along Storrow Drive; that might've been too much for AASHTO to swallow.

Another reason why the MassDPW shouldn't have monkeyed around with the re-routing US/MA 3 between Cambridge and Neponset Circle back in '71.

[NE2]

The 1989 AASHTO log has US 3 ending at US 20 in Boston. Thus AASHTO had jack shit to do with the state-level change.

[bob7374]

The 1989 AASHTO log has US 3 ending at US 20 in Boston. Thus AASHTO had jack shit to do with the state-level change.

The updated 2009 AASHTO database has US 3 ending at MA 3, the mileage coincides with the intersection with MA 2A.
http://route.transportation.org/Pages/U.S.RouteNumberDatabase%28Dec2009%29.aspx

[NE2]

Presumably MassDOT submitted a correction. But the important point is that AASHTO had nothing to do with the 1970s change.

[jbnv]

US 63 in Louisiana. Either replace 167 with 63 or get rid of it.

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 371 and US 425.

Finally, any business route that serves no modern purpose of navigation. Especially 90 BUS in Lafayette.

[NE2]

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 425.

It's a more direct route than US 65 (and should therefore be a realigned US 65 or US x65).

[hotdogPi]

How about all those routes numbered US 1A in Maine? Are they useless?

[bugo]

US 83 Biz in San Ygnacio, TX.

Is this for real?  Why? 

[hotdogPi]

US 83 Biz in San Ygnacio, TX.

Is this for real?  Why?

It exists.

[agentsteel53]

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 371 and US 425.

400 and 412 seem significantly more useless to me.

[roadman65]

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 371 and US 425.

400 and 412 seem significantly more useless to me.

US 400 is not useless, did you not hear the latest news.  That everybody from SW Missouri is flocking to Lamar, CO.  Wichita and Dodge City are going to have a tourist boom for those tired from travel to stop and patronize their businesses.   

Yeah, probably in somebody at AASHTO dreams it is, of course.

[hotdogPi]

My "Most useless US Hwys" list, not including Truck/Business/Alternate/Bypass:

1. US 1A (All Maine)
2. US 201A
3. US 46
4. US 202 (which includes erroneous MA 202 )
5. US 5 (it's obsolete)
6. US 44
7. US 11 (obsolete except in northern New York)
8. US 6 (only important Pennsylvania and east)
9. US 201
10. Any state route signed with a US sign (e. g. US 34 in Ithaca NY)

[roadman65]

You forgot US 130 to your list.  Its completely overshadowed by the NJ Turnpike and I-295 both.

[Kacie Jane]

My "Most useless US Hwys" list, not including Truck/Business/Alternate/Bypass:

1. US 1A (All Maine)
2. US 201A

If you're excluding "Truck/Business/Alternate/Bypass" routes, then I'd think that by any reasonable definition of the term, you should exclude the first two from your list.

[triplemultiplex]

412 seem significantly more useless to me.

US 412 is not even mentioned on I-25.

[bugo]

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 371 and US 425.

400 and 412 seem significantly more useless to me.

412 actually makes sense as a single corridor, whether you like the number or not.  It should have a single number, at least on the non-duplexed portions.

[Charles2]

I'm still trying to figure the point of US 371 and US 425.

400 and 412 seem significantly more useless to me.

412 actually makes sense as a single corridor, whether you like the number or not.  It should have a single number, at least on the non-duplexed portions.

But wouldn't it be more logical to renumber 412 as something that comes more closely to fitting in the grid?  US 364? US 470? US 72, then redesignate the current US 72 as either US 74 or 76?  Better yet, extend US 76 W from Chattanooga along US 64 to Pulaski, then N on I-65 to Columbia, then redsignate US 412 as US 76?

quotes, people ~S

[PHLBOS]

But the important point is that AASHTO had nothing to do with the 1970s change.

With that in mind, when did AASHTO start requiring states to submit for approval US highway reroutes?

[The High Plains Traveler]

But the important point is that AASHTO had nothing to do with the 1970s change.

With that in mind, when did AASHTO start requiring states to submit for approval US highway reroutes?

1927. (Including its predecessor organizations).

[PHLBOS]

But the important point is that AASHTO had nothing to do with the 1970s change.

With that in mind, when did AASHTO start requiring states to submit for approval US highway reroutes?

1927. (Including its predecessor organizations).

Okay.  That being the case; how did the MassDPW 1971 reroutes of both US 1 & 3 get done without AASHTO's involvement (of any capacity) per NE2's earlier comment?

[The High Plains Traveler]

But the important point is that AASHTO had nothing to do with the 1970s change.

With that in mind, when did AASHTO start requiring states to submit for approval US highway reroutes?

1927. (Including its predecessor organizations).

Okay.  That being the case; how did the MassDPW 1971 reroutes of both US 1 & 3 get done without AASHTO's involvement (of any capacity) per NE2's earlier comment?

They violated the AASHTO requirement that a state not change the routing or marking of a U.S. route. Since AASHTO doesn't have any real enforcement power, states can get away with this.