Multiple Lanes Ending Consecutively

[CovalenceSTU]

Three that I know of:

Arcata, CA, where the right lane (removed to build a roundabout) ends 100ft after a merge.


US-20, Albany, NY, where two left lanes (that would have connected to the cancelled South Mall Expy) end within 125ft of each other.


US-9, Albany, NY, where it transitions from 8+ lane freeway to 2 lane surface street. The right lane ends at the same time as a merge, then a third right lane ends 300ft after.

[webny99]

On that note, a more intentional/strategic example is the NJTP where it shifts from 12 total lanes to 6. Interestingly, while there are three consecutive lane drops, none of them are actually simultaneous. They're staggered so that the left lanes merge first, then the center lanes, and then the right lanes. And to NJTP's credit, it works very well and backups are rare.

The contrast with a theoretically very similar situation in Fredericksburg, VA is jarring. I know it's not exactly 1:1 for a couple reasons (there's a higher percentage of traffic exiting the NJTP at I-95 than there is exiting to VA 3 in Fredericksburg, all trucks are on the right on the NJTP, etc.) but I do think there is something to be learned from the NJTP's approach in that it creates extremely clear expectations and is designed for merging to occur at high speeds, creating a much smoother high-volume merge than the traditional "right lane yield to merging traffic" that inevitably clogs the left lane(s) and leads to major backups.