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[ET21]

Stevenson Expressway: I-55 from Lake Shore Drive to the Tri-State

I've heard traffic reports refer to The Stevenson all the way down to Joliet.

I've heard it go out to I-355 for the most part on AM780 reports. Technically the Stevenson term ends once the highway heads out of Cook County.

[roadman]

Some Boston area lingo:

The Cloverleaf - I-95 (128) at I-93 in Woburn/Reading/Stoneham

The Lane Drop - I-93 NB in Wilmington where road goes from four to three lanes

The Supermarket - I-90 (MassPike) in Newton where it passes under the Star Market building

The Barracks - I-90 (MassPike) in Weston where it passes by the State Police building

The Double Decker Bridge - I-495 in Lawrence where it crosses the Merrimack River - mainline is on upper level, C/D roads are on lower level.

[jon daly]

I recall going up to Red Sox games and the Freedom Trail as a kid. The Supermarket was the first building I ever saw built over a highway.

[roadman]

I recall going up to Red Sox games and the Freedom Trail as a kid. The Supermarket was the first building I ever saw built over a highway.

Fun fact:  The Supermarket was built when the Turnpike Extension was constructed - I have a copy of the contractor's "Building the Turnpike Extension" documentary that shows the building.

[Flint1979]

There's also a Sheraton hotel built on top of the Mass Pike. It's one of the things I remember from driving into Boston.

[Flint1979]

Stevenson Expressway: I-55 from Lake Shore Drive to the Tri-State

I've heard traffic reports refer to The Stevenson all the way down to Joliet.

Really? I thought the Stevenson Expressway was just Cook County.

[inkyatari]

Stevenson Expressway: I-55 from Lake Shore Drive to the Tri-State

I've heard traffic reports refer to The Stevenson all the way down to Joliet.

Really? I thought the Stevenson Expressway was just Cook County.

Not saying this is a common thing, but I have heard it.

Chicago-centrism and all.

[Laura]

WTOP's Bob Marbourg likes to refer to "the Big Curve" on the Beltway in Maryland. I've never been completely sure which curve he means, but I think he means where the Outer Loop meets the I-270 Spur. He also refers to the Wilson Bridge and the American Legion Bridge as "the big bridges"; I don't know of anyone else who uses that expression for them.

Yep, when I used to commute to Rockville I used to listen to WTOP, and I always assumed that “The Big Curve” is the one on the outer loop before the I-270 spur.

In the Baltimore area:

The JFX: The Jones Falls Expressway, which is the part of I-83 inside the beltway.

The 83s: The 695-83 concurrency (between the JFX and the Harrisburg Expressway)

The Beltway is I-695 and is given “Outer Loop” and “Inner Loop” instead of N/S/E/W directions.

40 East: Pulaski Highway, which runs east from Baltimore

40 West: Baltimore National Pike, which runs west from Baltimore

MD 943 Warren Road: the only time this number is signed is in traffic reports and VMS signs.




iPhone

[Rothman]

Had a friend that stayed in the hotel over the Pike.  He said it was horrible just because of the constant noise.

Is it still a Sheraton? I thought at one point it was a Marriott (long time ago).

[PHLBOS]

Some Boston area lingo:

The Cloverleaf - I-95 (128) at I-93 in Woburn/Reading/Stoneham

The Lane Drop - I-93 NB in Wilmington where road goes from four to three lanes

The Supermarket - I-90 (MassPike) in Newton where it passes under the Star Market building

The Barracks - I-90 (MassPike) in Weston where it passes by the State Police building

The Double Decker Bridge - I-495 in Lawrence where it crosses the Merrimack River - mainline is on upper level, C/D roads are on lower level.

You forgot The Split as in the Braintree Spilt (I-93/US 1 & MA 3).

[Flint1979]

Had a friend that stayed in the hotel over the Pike.  He said it was horrible just because of the constant noise.

Is it still a Sheraton? I thought at one point it was a Marriott (long time ago).

It's a Crowne Plaza. I haven't been in Boston since 2004.

[US 81]

If you are in north TX and you hear traffic reports on the radio with...

* "Decatur Cutoff", refers to US 287 (the US 81 part is rarely if ever mentioned) in north Fort Worth NW of its split from I-35W.  AFAIK, that part of US 287 has never had a local name, and I never saw anything that looked like a named street blade sign the few times I've been out that way.  So, I'm not sure where the "Decatur Cutoff" name comes from, but traffic reports are the only source you'll hear it from.
....

"Cut-off" is fairly common in Texas nomenclature (probably elsewhere as well) for the first or only road to breach or bypass a certain obstacle, usually in a rural setting. What is now N. Main/Saginaw Blvd/Bus 287 has, for most of my life, been a slow tedious traffic snarl.  When the US 287 freeway opened, it was referred to as the Decatur cutoff from common local (or regional?) usage. 

I'd never seen "Cut-Off" on any signage ever until rural roads started getting named (not just numbered) as part of the 911 upgrades. 

[webny99]

Infamously, the "Can of Worms" junction of I-490, I-590, NY 590, and NY 96 in Rochester. It isn't labeled on any map, but you can tell at a first glance where the name came from.

Prior to the 1987 redesign, traffic was analogous to a can of worms, due to the weave movements (intense squirming and wriggling) required to stay on 590. Now, it's the physical ramps themselves, not the cars/traffic flow, that are better suited to the term.

[vdeane]

Heck, the old Can of Worms was basically two closely-spaced Y interchanges with flyovers to allow access to Winton Road to/from the east and north thrown in.  Judging by the satellite imagery, it's quite possible that every lane was an exit-only lane from the perspective of either 490 or 590.  The current interchange had to sacrifice some connections (no more access from Blossom Rd to I-490, nor from Winton to NY 590 north).  The rail spur was actually fitted into the design, but was retired from service before construction.

I can only imagine what it must have been like to replace it.  My parents made it sound like there was a different traffic pattern every single day!

Speaking of Rochester traffic reports, "the 590 split" refers to the I-390/I-590 interchange.

[GenExpwy]

The main issue with the old Can of Worms was that mainline through traffic on 490 had to weave with mainline through traffic on 590 in a space of (IIRC) about 300 feet (in both directions).

As an aside, if you assume that the switch from I-590 to NY 590 occurred in the exact middle of this, that would give you a 150-foot overlap of the mainlines of I-490 and I-590. This would be the second example (after Cleveland’s 271/480) of two 3dis overlapping.

[plain]

The Richmond metro:

Bryan Park: the I-95/I-64 West/I-195 interchange

Shockoe Valley: the I-95/I-64 East/3rd St/5th St/7th St interchange

The Powhite: VA 76 Powhite Pkwy

The Expressway: VA 195 Downtown Expwy

Chippenham: VA 150 Chippenham Pkwy

The Outer/Inner Loop: Sometimes used by traffic reporters to describe the direction of travel on I-295 and/or VA 288

Everything else is just called by the numbers, etc.




The Hampton Roads region:

The HRBT: the I-64 Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel

The Monitor-Merrimac: the I-664 Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel (traffic reporters very rarely use the initials MMMBT or MMBT, but VDOT always does on VMS's around the region)

The JRB: the US 17/US 258 James River Bridge

The Downtown: the I-264 Downtown Tunnel

The Midtown: the US 58 Midtown Tunnel

Bowers Hill: the I-64/I-264/I-664/US 13/US 58/US 460 interchange(s) in Chesapeake

The High-Rise: The I-64 High-Rise Bridge over the Elizabeth River Southern Branch

Twin Bridges: I-64's crossing of the Elizabeth River Eastern Branch

[roadman]

Some Boston area lingo:

The Cloverleaf - I-95 (128) at I-93 in Woburn/Reading/Stoneham

The Lane Drop - I-93 NB in Wilmington where road goes from four to three lanes

The Supermarket - I-90 (MassPike) in Newton where it passes under the Star Market building

The Barracks - I-90 (MassPike) in Weston where it passes by the State Police building

The Double Decker Bridge - I-495 in Lawrence where it crosses the Merrimack River - mainline is on upper level, C/D roads are on lower level.

You forgot The Split as in the Braintree Spilt (I-93/US 1 & MA 3).

Yes I did - thank you.

[webny99]

The main issue with the old Can of Worms was that mainline through traffic on 490 had to weave with mainline through traffic on 590 in a space of (IIRC) about 300 feet (in both directions).

Because of the way it was described to me as a kid (obviously, I wasn't around prior to 1987), I used to think it was a giant, paved intersection which was basically a free-for-all as to who went when. No ramps, no lane markings, no stoplight, no nothing, just a giant paved zone where you just weaved in the direction you wanted to go. 
It was a major lightbulb moment for me when I saw an old visual and realized it was actually a set of directional-T intersections. So it was crazy, but not quite as crazy as the free-for-all I'd assumed!

Heck, the old Can of Worms was basically two closely-spaced Y interchanges with flyovers to allow access to Winton Road to/from the east and north thrown in.  Judging by the satellite imagery, it's quite possible that every lane was an exit-only lane from the perspective of either 490 or 590.  The current interchange had to sacrifice some connections (no more access from Blossom Rd to I-490, nor from Winton to NY 590 north).

If anything, I wish a few more connections had been sacrificed, namely access from I-490 to Blossom Road, which creates the existing weave which wreaks havoc with afternoon traffic flow.

Here's a page about the interchange with a historic visual that I enjoy studying. The redesign must have been incredible to witness, with everything changing. I-490 East to I-590 South is literally the only movement (including through movements) that has any similarity to its previous configuration.

[TheHighwayMan394]

Twin Cities terms

"Fish Lake" - the northwest I-94/494/694 junction in Maple Grove

"The River" - used to refer to either the Minnesota or Mississippi, depends on the context of the report being given; reports generally just say things like "X minutes from route X to the river" expecting commuters to know which one is being referred to based on the route given

I thought the OP was only referring to “natural” terms, but since we’ve expanded here are some more:

“Burnsville Split” or “Forest Lake Split”: south and north junctions of I-35W and I-35E. Technically the north junction is in Columbus, but no one calls it that. Columbus was formerly a township that incorporated recently to prevent Forest Lake from annexing it.

“The Commons”:  I-35W and MN 62 junction, owing to its former configuration as the Crosstown Commons

“Bloomington Strip”: I-494 through Bloomington, usually referring to the stretch between MN 100 and MN 77 but sometimes includes US 169 on the west and MN 5’s airport split on the east

[vdeane]

As an aside, if you assume that the switch from I-590 to NY 590 occurred in the exact middle of this, that would give you a 150-foot overlap of the mainlines of I-490 and I-590. This would be the second example (after Cleveland’s 271/480) of two 3dis overlapping.

I don't know how it was actually signed, but since I-590 and NY 590 are technically separate routes (even though NY 590 is used as a continuation, and they share a set of mileposts and exit numbers), probably not.  NY 47 certainly would have, though.

[Hurricane Rex]

Oregon, or more specifically Portland area:
Fremont stack: the 4 level interchange on the east side of the Freemont Bridge
The sunset: US 26
Sylven: Also US 26, east if OR 217 (tgis and sunset are used interchangeably)
The baldock: I-5
The banfield: I-84
The rose quarter: I-5 between I-84 and I-405 and I-84 between mp 0 and 1, even though its more Lloyd Center than rose quarter.
The hook: Newberg Dundee bypass' west end.
The curves or Terwillager curves: I-5 between mp 296 and 298.

[Bickendan]

Oregon, or more specifically Portland area:
Fremont stack: the 4 level interchange on the east side of the Freemont Bridge
The sunset: US 26
Sylven: Also US 26, east if OR 217 (tgis and sunset are used interchangeably)
The baldock: I-5
The banfield: I-84
The rose quarter: I-5 between I-84 and I-405 and I-84 between mp 0 and 1, even though its more Lloyd Center than rose quarter.
The hook: Newberg Dundee bypass' west end.
The curves or Terwillager curves: I-5 between mp 296 and 298.

The funny thing is I'm confident I coined the term 'Fremont Stack' and 'Ross Island Maze' and have never used them outside this board. If they've been used outside on even on a rare colloquial basis, I'd love to know, because great minds and all that.

[GaryV]

In Detroit, "The Interchanges" refers to I-94 (Ford Fwy) interchanges with I-75 (Chrysler) and M-10 (Lodge).

[SSOWorld]

I think they still give travel times to/from “the Post Office” even though USPS hasn’t occupied the building the Eisenhower runs through for decades.

Usually, it's "the Old Post Office".  Then we have...

The Junction (Edens/Kennedy)
The Merge/Split (Ryan/Ford/I-57)

And yet IDiOT refers to the Junction as Montrose.

[ne11931]

A couple in Boston that used to be regular ones in the past that aren't used anymore-
 
The "Schraftt's building", next to Route 93 in Charlestown.

The "Coca-Cola plant" at the end of the offramps from the Mass Pike at Cambridge St. in Allston, now a Double Tree Hotel.

One that is used occasionally that is confusing is Route 2 at Bedford Rd. in Lincoln described by reporters as "Tracy's Corner". It is not a "corner" although it is about a mile from "Crosby's Corner", and the gas station called Tracy's at that intersection was sold years ago and no longer has that name.