Remote roads in urban areas

[michravera]

It may not be so today, but the intersection of Sunrise Blvd and Eagle Nest Road in eastern Sacramento county, at one time, impressed me as "why are these roads even here?"

I remember once "parking" on the corner of what was then Manlove Rd (today South Watt Avenue) and Fruitridge road  (basically in middle of the roadway on Fruitridge Rd) in 1980 or so and being interrupted only once in the hour or two we were there.

So, my question for the gang is "Can you name and describe roads with basically no traffic for most of the day in urban areas?" Bonus points are awarded for proximity to downtown, populations centers, etc. Areas restricted to the public, on private property, etc need not be mentioned (so, let's not talk about the 5000 ft remaining mark {the "5" sign} on runway 30L at SJC where, except for a few seconds at a time, you'd be about 1 km from the nearest human). Let's keep the definition of "urban area" to counties or equivalent with more than about 100000 people. If some impediment to traffic is nearby, I'll accept the answer, but won't give it as much credit. Opinions and Pictures are always welcome.

[Max Rockatansky]

Mount Hamilton Road/CA 130 in and around San Jose. 

[oscar]

In a distant corner of Honolulu County HI, the remnants of the old road to Kaena Point (connecting modern-day HI 93 and HI 930) qualify. The parts open to vehicle traffic are rough and unpaved, though the part west from HI 930 gets a little 4x4 traffic to fishing spots. You can no longer drive all the way to or past Kaena Point, with a barricade blocking vehicle access from HI 930 and landslides on the road from HI 93, but you can hike both segments as I've done.

There are also remote roads in Maui County and Hawaii County (the "Big Island") HI, both in counties with more than 100000 population. The most memorable is the Munro Trail on Lanai island (because I got stuck in a mudhole about halfway into the trail), which is far from the urban centers on Maui island but still in Maui County.

I can't think of any in Anchorage municipality in Alaska, the only county equivalent with enough population to qualify. There might be some, just that I don't like Anchorage enough to do much exploring there.

[briantroutman]

It may not be so today, but the intersection of Sunrise Blvd and Eagle Nest Road in eastern Sacramento county, at one time, impressed me as "why are these roads even here?"

Could you link to a map for that example? I show those two roads as being parallel and not intersecting.

As to the larger overall question, I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at. The Sunrise/Eagle Nest area you referenced is in Sacramento County, but it's a rather rural part of the county. In a number of cities where an urban street grid expands outward along a relatively flat plain, I would expect there to be countless points along roads with very little traffic because development hasn't spread there yet (like this or this or this).

On the other hand, there are plenty of dead end streets in Philadelphia that maybe see a maybe a dozen cars a week since they're effectively long-term parking lots for the residents who live on that block (and who don't drive on a daily basis). I'm not sure that's what you're looking for.

[Roadgeekteen]

I watched freewayjims video of I-280 in CA, it did not seem like you are in Silicon Valley/the Bay Area.

[michravera]

It may not be so today, but the intersection of Sunrise Blvd and Eagle Nest Road in eastern Sacramento county, at one time, impressed me as "why are these roads even here?"

Could you link to a map for that example? I show those two roads as being parallel and not intersecting.

As to the larger overall question, I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at. The Sunrise/Eagle Nest area you referenced is in Sacramento County, but it's a rather rural part of the county. In a number of cities where an urban street grid expands outward along a relatively flat plain, I would expect there to be countless points along roads with very little traffic because development hasn't spread there yet (like this or this or this).

On the other hand, there are plenty of dead end streets in Philadelphia that maybe see a maybe a dozen cars a week since they're effectively long-term parking lots for the residents who live on that block (and who don't drive on a daily basis). I'm not sure that's what you're looking for.

As stated, the traffic would be fairly light almost ALL of the time, since the intersection doesn't exist! But, I must have been thinking of Florin and Eagle Nest. Yes, it is (or at least was) a rural part of Sacramento. I haven't been out that way in a while. Today, isn't Fruitridge and Watt, almost "the center of town"?

[1995hoo]

Depending on how you define "urban," Kincheloe Road near Clifton, Virginia, might qualify. That area of the county has a rural feel, but the county has over a million residents.

The road is a gravel road for a good distance.

https://goo.gl/maps/jgRCCk2ypzWYvihf7

[ibthebigd]

Lexington Ky only part of the county is urbanized. They have a ton of Horse farms. The county Population is still over 300k.

SM-G950U

[oscar]

I watched freewayjims video of I-280 in CA, it did not seem like you are in Silicon Valley/the Bay Area.

But it certainly carries a lot of traffic, it's a six- to eight-lane wide freeway. Not "remote" by any measure.

It's intended to bypass much of Silicon Valley, definitely has an outer-suburban feel to it between Stanford University (the Interstate passes through a lightly-developed part of the campus, though that's because the campus is about a dozen square miles larger than it really needs to be) and CA 35.

[Max Rockatansky]

I watched freewayjims video of I-280 in CA, it did not seem like you are in Silicon Valley/the Bay Area.

But it certainly carries a lot of traffic, it's a six- to eight-lane wide freeway. Not "remote" by any measure.

It's intended to bypass much of Silicon Valley, definitely has an outer-suburban feel to it between Stanford University (the Interstate passes through a lightly-developed part of the campus, though that's because the campus is about a dozen square miles larger than it really needs to be) and CA 35.

CA 35, CA 9, CA 236, and CA 84 in the Santa Cruz Mountains certainly don't feel like urban highways despite being miles away from a dense urban center.  CA 236 is even one of the last remaining one-lane State Highways in California.

AZ 88 out in the Phoenix Area feels like throwback to something from the 1920s once you get to the Goldfield.  Its hard that the Apache Trail once was the main highway through the Superstitions towards Globe.

[NWI_Irish96]

Clarksville, IN, is a suburb of Louisville, KY, and is urban except for one road called Emery Crossing which looks like it's out in the middle of nowhere.

[ErmineNotyours]

This paint test zone is on SR 501 Spur, and is 7.2 miles from Downtown Vancouver, Washington.

[Roadgeekteen]

This paint test zone is on SR 501 Spur, and is 7.2 miles from Downtown Vancouver, Washington.

Don't the rural areas start right after the city in that part of the Country?

[webny99]

This paint test zone is on SR 501 Spur, and is 7.2 miles from Downtown Vancouver, Washington.

Don't the rural areas start right after the city in that part of the Country?

The West and the South are very different than the Northeast in that not everything is incorporated. Because of this, cities can keep annexing new neighborhoods as they get built, resulting in inflated city populations, but fewer named suburbs. This often does cause the technical city limit to border a rural area. Suburbia still exists in these cases, but it's just considered part of the city.

[Echostatic]

Delwau Lane in Austin is only 4 miles from Downtown and gets pretty much no traffic. The road serves seven houses, two farms and a seldom-used racetrack.

The bridge over Boggy Creek in my link is going to be replaced in the near future, which was controversial due to the low usage.

https://goo.gl/maps/8JJNtcKRhbe6GeFFA

[kurumi]

Vibert Road, South Windsor, CT; about 6 miles from downtown Hartford, and 1.6 miles from I-291: https://goo.gl/maps/cT8CarsjMZbqEnX59

[Max Rockatansky]

Fresno has a ton of incorporated parcels out in the farm boons.  North Avenue and Jensen Avenue west of CA 41 stand out since it passes by the Fresno-Clovis Regional Wastewater Facility out in the middle of nowhere.

Mulholland Highway west of I-405 was such a primitive road in Los Angeles that it was converted to pedestrian and bicycle usage. 

[jay8g]

Seattle has quite a few spots that feel surprisingly remote, but this part of SW Hill St at the north end of West Seattle is probably the most extreme example. It's a long stretch of single-track dirt road through a heavily forested area. If the West Seattle Bridge was open, it would be about 5 miles by car from downtown Seattle (it's about 10 with the bridge closed), or about 2.5 as the crow flies!

[jakeroot]

This is a very interesting question. It's hard for me to think of an example in my area, since most of the roads in the downtown areas of Tacoma and surrounding urban core are largely quiet throughout the day. This is primarily because most of the traffic is caught up getting to the city. Once they've arrived, it's relatively free-flowing. It's also because Tacoma is not exactly a large commuter destination (points north are the primary commuter points, although Tacoma is really spread out and most of the commuting in the city is not towards downtown).

With this said, I can name some streets in the very urban areas of Tacoma that are spectacularly quiet (but not unused...I don't know of any that just straight-up aren't used)

* Commerce Street downtown between 9th and 17th is largely for trams. For the most part, cars rarely use this road apart for business or parking access.
* Puyallup Ave, between Portland Ave and Pacific Ave, is a very quiet five lane arterial. It was previously part of both US-99 and US-410, but is a mere shadow of its former self after being bypassed by the 5 in the 60s, and both of those routes being eliminated.
* the short one-block stretches of 10th, 12th, and 14th in downtown are largely unused apart for deliveries and drivers turning around.
* the Yakima Ave bridges over the Nalley Valley and the 5 are very quiet for as wide as they are. Very easy to jaywalk; the road was recently narrowed to the south (as it becomes Thompson St) to provide street parking because of how quiet it was.
* the 11th St Murray Morgan Bridge, connecting downtown to the Port of Tacoma**, is absurdly quiet given how imposing it is against the skyline. Most users seem to be trucks accessing the 705 via 'A' St, or emergency vehicles

** Most roads in the Port of Tacoma are very quiet, especially as 11th is now discontinuous. This was not the case when WA-509 ran across the port, and more of the roads went through. For the purposes of this thread, however, I think it makes sense to exclude port roads.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Theodore Wirth Regional Park, only five minutes west of the core of downtown Minneapolis. I-394 forms the park's southern boundary.

https://www.google.com/maps/@44.9752448,-93.3243126,3a,75.000000y,-210.871384h,99.491264t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sjVqzotrxv-FRgIV9nFCOSw!2e0

[Roadgeekteen]

There aren't many near Boston. Maybe the Blue Hills reservation?

[SectorZ]

Vibert Road, South Windsor, CT; about 6 miles from downtown Hartford, and 1.6 miles from I-291: https://goo.gl/maps/cT8CarsjMZbqEnX59

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7091485,-72.6422286,3a,75y,174.07h,84.13t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sqqUHF8xSydusBYLk88tx9Q!2e0!7i3328!8i1664

Other side of Hartford, right off I-91 and CT-3 you've got a long desolate dirt road that goes from Wethersfield into Glastonbury along the Connecticut River. Surprisingly rural parts along that river just north and south of Hartford.

[jemacedo9]

I'd think that a lot of answers would come from city parks within city limits.  There are roads within the Fairmount Park areas of Philly that can feel pretty remote.  Forbidden Drive (which is a former road closed and turned to a wide gravel path) is wooded with very few signs of being in a city, unless it's crowded on a nice day.

[cpzilliacus]

Powder Mill Road in Prince George's County, Maryland might be an example, at least the far east end between Soil Conservation Road and MD-197.

This road runs past and through federal lands belonging to an assortment of agencies, including the Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Secret Service. 

But most of the time it is quite empty of traffic.  Trucks not on federal government business are banned, but autos, light trucks and motorcycles can use it at all times.

[sandwalk]

Southeastern sections of Chicago can appear pretty remote.

South Corliss Avenue:
https://goo.gl/maps/WXk1LvU72nWZvyLr7

East 134th Place:
https://goo.gl/maps/5eGyBNdipuRNEZKn6

---------------

Also, the "Forgotten Triangle" area of Cleveland can look pretty deserted.  This is the area where the new Opportunity Corridor is being built, so it may liven things up a bit.

East 71st Place:
https://goo.gl/maps/dL762xvStSL31mE27