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[hbelkins]

The annual AASHTO Subcommittee on Transportation Communications (TransComm) conference is going to be held in Biloxi, Miss., Sept. 30-Oct. 3. I may be going.

Google shows the best route from my area of Kentucky as 75-59-459-65-10-110. This would certainly allow me to clinch I-65 and I-110, and get me new counties in Alabama and Mississippi.

Any suggestions on an alternate route home of similar length that might allow for different counties or possible in-one-state US or interstate route clinches? Google's other suggestions are using TN 111 and US 27 to Chattanooga, and Cumberland Parkway to I-65 via Nashville. That wouldn't give me any new counties or route mileage.

Keep in mind that I will be driving an employer vehicle, which limits how far off the most direct path I can go.

[formulanone]

I forget exactly where you're at, but how about US127 to TN28 in Dunlap, which avoids the traffic mess in Chattanooga? Then take US72 west, AL279, AL79 in Scottsboro, AL160 in Cleveland, then take it to I-65 south.

You'll trim off 40 miles from the drive, but add about an hour. Looking at your county map on mob-rule, it doesn't look as if you'd gain any new counties, but it will free up mileage for spinbacks or picking up a few counties here or there.

Natchez Trace Parkway clips a bunch of counties in central and northeast Mississippi; not sure how specific your county-counting rules are, but I think that's going to be too far out of the way.

You'd pick up a few in SE MS with MS63 - MS57 - US45 to Meridian, which is all four lanes and rather sparse on traffic. Continuing on US45 north of Meridian is also four lanes, but might be out of your way (it's also annoyingly bumpy).

[froggie]

Where specifically in Biloxi?  You know that's my old stomping grounds.

[hbelkins]

Where specifically in Biloxi?  You know that's my old stomping grounds.

Beau Rivage Resort.

I forget exactly where you're at, but how about US127 to TN28 in Dunlap, which avoids the traffic mess in Chattanooga? Then take US72 west, AL279, AL79 in Scottsboro, AL160 in Cleveland, then take it to I-65 south.

You'll trim off 40 miles from the drive, but add about an hour. Looking at your county map on mob-rule, it doesn't look as if you'd gain any new counties, but it will free up mileage for spinbacks or picking up a few counties here or there.

Natchez Trace Parkway clips a bunch of counties in central and northeast Mississippi; not sure how specific your county-counting rules are, but I think that's going to be too far out of the way.

You'd pick up a few in SE MS with MS63 - MS57 - US45 to Meridian, which is all four lanes and rather sparse on traffic. Continuing on US45 north of Meridian is also four lanes, but might be out of your way (it's also annoyingly bumpy).

I'll be in a state vehicle, which has a GPS tracker, which limits how out-of-the-way I can go. I'd likely split the drive home into two days, since the conference runs until after lunch on Wednesday. I might drive the entire thing down on Sunday, so that should alleviate a lot of the traffic concerns in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Birmingham and Mobile. Halfway appears to be somewhere between Birmingham and Gadsden.

Google Maps is funny. Yesterday, it gave an option to use KY 90 and TN 111. Today, that option doesn't come up, but it gives an option to use I-59 and US 49 via Meridian and Hattiesburg. Ten minutes longer and three miles shorter than using I-65 and I-10 through Mobile.

[froggie]

^ Presumably also using MS 67 between 49 and 10/110.  That's a fairly good route.  US 49 is mostly 65 MPH from Saucier to Hattiesburg, and 49/59 is generally less traffic than I-65.  There are 2 signals along MS 67, but they're fairly spread out.  There are also 2 signals along 49 on the south side of Wiggins but I'm pretty sure it goes back to 65 north of MS 26.  There's one more signal on 49 near the Camp Shelby gate.

[hbelkins]

^ Presumably also using MS 67 between 49 and 10/110.  That's a fairly good route.  US 49 is mostly 65 MPH from Saucier to Hattiesburg, and 49/59 is generally less traffic than I-65.  There are 2 signals along MS 67, but they're fairly spread out.  There are also 2 signals along 49 on the south side of Wiggins but I'm pretty sure it goes back to 65 north of MS 26.  There's one more signal on 49 near the Camp Shelby gate.

I spend the night in Hattiesburg on my way to your Slidell meet.

I zoomed in on the map, and yes, it uses 67 between 10/110 and 49. That might be a good option for the return trip, since that will be on a weekday. And it uses US 98 to connect to I-59 south of downtown Hattiesburg.

[formulanone]

There's also the old US 11 shield in Laurel, if that matters to you.

[vdeane]

There's also the old US 11 shield in Laurel, if that matters to you.

Or is it in Yanny?

[froggie]

Are the old US 11 color shields in Hattiesburg gone?

[hbelkins]

This appears to be a no-go now. KYTC only wants to pay for three or four attendees, and they're insisting on carpooling. I volunteered to give up my spot to some folks who haven't been to TransComm yet, or to whom I've attended more recently than they have.

Next year's TransComm conference is probably going to be in Indy. Certainly no new territory to cover, but the budget shouldn't be an issue since it's so close. (Of course, I thought the same thing two years ago when it was in Charleston, WV, and I was wrong; I can see those niggardly bean-counters requiring people who live in Louisville or northern Kentucky to drive to Indy each day.)