Mid-Sized Cities That Aren't Control Cities, But Maybe Should Be

[Laplace]

I've seen threads on here that name examples of small localities being control cities that probably could easily be passed over (usually in New Mexico and Pennsylvania), but what about mid-sized cities that are large enough that aren't control cities? Here are some mid-sized cities that, in my opinion, could potentially be given control-city status.

Yuma, AZ - I-8 West: From the beginning of I-8 in Casa Grande all the way to the coast, the control city on I-8 West in San Diego. I think Yuma would make a more logical control city for I-8 West until the California border. I know some people like far-off control cities, and I prefer them over a minor locality if a decent-sized city isn't nearby. However, Yuma has a metro population of ~200k people and is the largest city in Arizona outside the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas. Yuma is also approximately the halfway point between Casa Grande and San Diego, making it a logical control point. Plus, the smaller Flagstaff is a control city on both I-17 and I-40, but likely is only granted control city status because of its interstate junction, which Yuma doesn't have.

Bridgeport, CT - I-95 South: New Haven makes the most sense as the control city for I-95 North out of NYC, as it's an interstate junction and a fairly recognizable city. In fact, Bridgeport wouldn't even be on this list if it weren't for a couple of small factors. First off, Bridgeport is the largest city in the state, yet isn't a control city, which feels strange to me. Although it's not too much larger than New Haven or Hartford. More importantly, the control city at the I-95/I-91 junction is New London, which is significantly smaller than Bridgeport. If New London is big enough to be a control city, than Bridgeport definitely is too. In this case, Providence or Boston would make more sense for I-95 North out of New Haven.

Manchester, NH - I-93 North: Out of Massachusetts, the control city for I-93 north is Concord, rather than the larger and closer Manchester. Similarly to Bridgeport, Manchester is the largest city in its state and is not a control city. I think the idea here is that people are more likely to be familiar with Concord, since it's the state capital. Still seems awkward for the largest city in the state to be passed up as a control city though.

Provo, - UT I-15 South: I can understand why Provo isn't used for I-15 North in Vegas, since Salt Lake City is much more well-known. However, Ogden is used for I-15 North. I think if they are going to use Ogden for I-15 North, they should use Provo for I-15 South. The only reasons I could see Ogden being used and not Provo is that Ogden is the largest city on I-15 north of Salt Lake City and there's a junction with I-84 in nearby Riverdale. Still, it feels a little odd seeing Provo being left out, as it's larger than Ogden. It should at least be co-signed with Las Vegas.

Bellingham, WA - I-5 North: The control city on I-5 north of Seattle is Vancouver, BC. While signing an international border is important, the border itself is still over 100 miles away. Like Yuma, Bellingham also has a metro population of ~200k and could certainly be used as a control city without a problem.

[Ben114]

Worcester, MA - I-84 East: Currently, I-84 east of Hartford, CT is signed with a control city of Boston, MA. Worcester is a decent sized city, and is currently a control city on I-90, I-495, I-290, I-395, I-190, and MA 146. Worcester is located about 1 hour west of Boston, and has a population around 190,000 in the city.

[Roadgeekteen]

Rochester and Syracuse on the Thruway

Philadelphia on I-95 in Maryland... oh wait

[jeffandnicole]

Philadelphia on I-95 in Maryland... oh wait

Not applicable in the spirit of the thread, because you still have Newark and Wilmington in Delaware first.

[RobbieL2415]

I second Worcester being added on I-84 E.

Other suggestions:
I-384 E, Manchester, then Windham. After Windham, Providence
I-91 S after Hartford:Meriden
MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

[Ben114]

MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

Hyannis should be replaced with Barnstable until the Exit 6 advances.

[RobbieL2415]

MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

Hyannis should be replaced with Barnstable until the Exit 6 advances.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with that. Most vacationers on a budget flock to the Hyannis section of Barnstable.  Im putting this in the perspective of the tourist. Most print and digital travel guides refer to Hyannis exclusively.  However to be fair, Barnstable is the county seat.

[hotdogPi]

MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

Hyannis should be replaced with Barnstable until the Exit 6 advances.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with that. Most vacationers on a budget flock to the Hyannis section of Barnstable.  Im putting this in the perspective of the tourist. Most print and digital travel guides refer to Hyannis exclusively.  However to be fair, Barnstable is the county seat.

Hyannis isn't even a town.

[Revive 755]

I think we've had a similar thread before ,but anyway . . .

LaSalle - Peru is big enough that it should be a secondary control city on I-80 in Illinois, however it is skipped over for secondary control cities of Joliet EB and Moline-Rock Island WB.  It also gets skipped over on side roads at NB I-39 in favor of the primary control city of Rockford.

[RobbieL2415]

MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

Hyannis should be replaced with Barnstable until the Exit 6 advances.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with that. Most vacationers on a budget flock to the Hyannis section of Barnstable.  Im putting this in the perspective of the tourist. Most print and digital travel guides refer to Hyannis exclusively.  However to be fair, Barnstable is the county seat.

I know it's a CDP but I believe it would be a better control city given the above reasons.

Hyannis isn't even a town.

[Roadgeekteen]

MA 25 S, begin: Falmouth, Hyannis (supplentary signs for the Islands), at MA 28/Bourne Bridge: Falmouth, Martha's Vineyard
US 6 E (MA), from the Bourne Rotary to Exit 6: Hyannis, Orleans, Exit 6 to the Orleans Rotary: Orleans, Provincetown

Hyannis should be replaced with Barnstable until the Exit 6 advances.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with that. Most vacationers on a budget flock to the Hyannis section of Barnstable.  Im putting this in the perspective of the tourist. Most print and digital travel guides refer to Hyannis exclusively.  However to be fair, Barnstable is the county seat.

Hyannis isn't even a town.

But it's more well known.

[Brandon]

I think we've had a similar thread before ,but anyway . . .

LaSalle - Peru is big enough that it should be a secondary control city on I-80 in Illinois, however it is skipped over for secondary control cities of Joliet EB and Moline-Rock Island WB.  It also gets skipped over on side roads at NB I-39 in favor of the primary control city of Rockford.

Northbound only though.  Southbound, the secondary control for I-39 is LaSalle-Peru.

[ftballfan]

Kalamazoo on I-94 in Michigan

[US 89]

Provo, - UT I-15 South: I can understand why Provo isn't used for I-15 North in Vegas, since Salt Lake City is much more well-known. However, Ogden is used for I-15 North. I think if they are going to use Ogden for I-15 North, they should use Provo for I-15 South. The only reasons I could see Ogden being used and not Provo is that Ogden is the largest city on I-15 north of Salt Lake City and there's a junction with I-84 in nearby Riverdale. Still, it feels a little odd seeing Provo being left out, as it's larger than Ogden. It should at least be co-signed with Las Vegas.

Couldn't agree more. There are a few signs at entrance ramps listing Provo as the southbound control, but I'd think that should be extended to the freeway mainlines as well.

Here's the thing about Ogden, though. I'd assume Pocatello would be used instead of Ogden, but there's an even split of 15/84 traffic at Tremonton, which might call for a Twin Falls or Boise dual-control with Pocatello. Also, Idaho Falls is bigger than Pocatello and might be used instead. It gets a little bit messy, which may factor into why Ogden is the northbound control from SLC.

Another city that's getting large enough for control status: St. George, Utah. Sounds silly at first, but it has a population of 84,000 (about the same size as Ogden, and much larger than Pocatello) and a metro population of 165,000.

[GaryV]

Kalamazoo on I-94 in Michigan

Good idea, but so many people in Detroit would be lost.  Their knowledge of West Michigan is woefully inadequate.

I remember at lunch one day, someone was talking about going to Grand Rapids for the weekend.  Another one at the table told her to remember not to drink the water.  "That's Flint!" And the ignorant one replied, "Same difference."  I wanted to go over to her and tell her that where she was sitting (in Dearborn) she was closer to Flint than her friend would be in Grand Rapids.

[inkyatari]

I think we've had a similar thread before ,but anyway . . .

LaSalle - Peru is big enough that it should be a secondary control city on I-80 in Illinois, however it is skipped over for secondary control cities of Joliet EB and Moline-Rock Island WB.  It also gets skipped over on side roads at NB I-39 in favor of the primary control city of Rockford.

Totally agree with LaSalle / Peru

[jp the roadgeek]

I-384 E, Manchester, then Windham. After Windham, Providence

I wouldn't use Manchester, since you're pretty much in Manchester already when you exit from I-84 East, and you are in Manchester when you exit from I-84 West (need to get rid of Spencer St/Silver Lane as control "cities").  I would actually use the more familiar "Willimantic" than Windham.  Eastbound I would use: I-384 EAST// Wiillimantic/Providence.  Westbound it would be I-384 EAST/// Bolton/Willimantic with either a supplemental sign for Spencer St/Silver Lane, or add it to the bottom of the sign a la the CT 9 SB Exit 25 sign that adds TO CT 71 on the bottom of the sign.

I could also see Stamford being used as a control city along with NYC on I-95 for exit signage from CT 8/25 South in Bridgeport, US 7 South to I-95 South in Norwalk, and on pull thru signage at their junctions on I-95 itself.  Northbound, I could also see it being used along with New Haven on signage from I-287 East to I-95 North in Rye (no more Conn Turnpike, since it hasn't officially existed for 30+ years anyway), and on pull thru signage on I-95 between the Westchester line and I-287. 

[mgk920]

'Appleton' instead of either 'Oshkosh' or 'Fond du Lac' for NB I-41 in metro Milwaukee, WI.  Of the three, Appleton is the most populous and distant.  Also, even though Green Bay is on I-41, it's already covered by NB I-43.

Mike

[Road Hog]

The decision was made a decade ago to make McKinney a control city on northbound US 75 out of Dallas, even though Plano was and is a bigger city by far.

[Roadgeekteen]

The decision was made a decade ago to make McKinney a control city on northbound US 75 out of Dallas, even though Plano was and is a bigger city by far.

Is Plano a suburb? That might be why.

[hotdogPi]

The decision was made a decade ago to make McKinney a control city on northbound US 75 out of Dallas, even though Plano was and is a bigger city by far.

Is Plano a suburb? That might be why.

Plano is definitely a suburb. McKinney is also probably one, but it's no different than signing Worcester from Boston.

Side note: I never realized until now that there are medium-sized cities in Texas named Allen and McAllen, in completely different parts of the state. It's like Belmar and Bellmawr, NJ, but larger.

[Charles2]

I-65 north of Nashville or south of Louisville: Bowling Green

[ftballfan]

The decision was made a decade ago to make McKinney a control city on northbound US 75 out of Dallas, even though Plano was and is a bigger city by far.

Is Plano a suburb? That might be why.

I think McKinney is the county seat of Collin County

[hotdogPi]

The decision was made a decade ago to make McKinney a control city on northbound US 75 out of Dallas, even though Plano was and is a bigger city by far.

Is Plano a suburb? That might be why.

I think McKinney is the county seat of Collin County

I've never understood why it matters whether something is a county seat or not, and I still don't.

[doorknob60]

Provo, - UT I-15 South: I can understand why Provo isn't used for I-15 North in Vegas, since Salt Lake City is much more well-known. However, Ogden is used for I-15 North. I think if they are going to use Ogden for I-15 North, they should use Provo for I-15 South. The only reasons I could see Ogden being used and not Provo is that Ogden is the largest city on I-15 north of Salt Lake City and there's a junction with I-84 in nearby Riverdale. Still, it feels a little odd seeing Provo being left out, as it's larger than Ogden. It should at least be co-signed with Las Vegas.

Couldn't agree more. There are a few signs at entrance ramps listing Provo as the southbound control, but I'd think that should be extended to the freeway mainlines as well.

Here's the thing about Ogden, though. I'd assume Pocatello would be used instead of Ogden, but there's an even split of 15/84 traffic at Tremonton, which might call for a Twin Falls or Boise dual-control with Pocatello. Also, Idaho Falls is bigger than Pocatello and might be used instead. It gets a little bit messy, which may factor into why Ogden is the northbound control from SLC.

Plus the fact that Ogden is bigger than all of those (besides Boise, which is definitely a stretch for an I-15 control city N of SLC in my opinion). As opposed to Las Vegas, which is far larger than anything else south of Salt Lake, and there's no major highway diversions south of there to the extent of the I-15/I-84 split. Sure, some people split off to US-6 to head towards Green River and Colorado, but that's a relatively small percentage. That said, Provo still should be signed within the metro area, IMO.

I'm always a proponent of using 2 control cities, one for more local/regional mid-sized cities, and then one far off major city. So south from Salt Lake would be "Provo/Las Vegas", then south of Provo "St George/Las Vegas", for example. And north could be "Ogden/Boise" maybe, then North of Ogden "Pocatello/Boise" or "Twin Falls/Boise" (a bit tough to choose due to the multiplex). Though this does not seem to be a common practice.