Getting From Your County to the Rest of the Country

[CoreySamson]

So, about 18 months ago we had a series of threads entitled "getting from ___ to the rest of the country". I thought recently about what would happen if we applied the same logic to counties. I wonder which county has the most connections to other counties via the routes that pass through the county in question. This could get interesting.

Here's my county, for reference:

[JayhawkCO]

Couldn't have been happier to make Baltimore City green.

[7/8]

For Waterloo Region, ON:


EDIT: Included Quebec's A-20 as an extension of the 401.

Black = Waterloo Region
Yellow = The 401 and A-20
Red = Highway 7 (note: there is a downloaded gap in Highway 7 north of Toronto, so it's debatable whether the eastern portion should count)
Orange = Both Highway 7 and the 401
Blue = Highway 8
Purple = Both Highway 7 and 8
Green = Highway 24

[Max Rockatansky]

With Fresno County it would just be everything I-5 touches and nothing else.

[JayhawkCO]

With Fresno County it would just be everything I-5 touches and nothing else.

Not true.  At first glance, CA41 goes to SLO, Madera, and Mariposa Counties.

CA99 to Tulare County, etc.

[Max Rockatansky]

With Fresno County it would just be everything I-5 touches and nothing else.

Not true.  At first glance, CA41 goes to SLO, Madera, and Mariposa Counties.

CA99 to Tulare County, etc.

Yes, brain farted that one for some reason. CA 43, CA 145, County Route J1, County Route J40, CA 180, CA 33, CA 198, CA 201, County Route J19, CA 269 and CA 63 are also going to hit in-California counties.  I-5 would be the only Route hitting something out of state.  Even former US 99 would mostly duplicate I-5 but would hit some different counties like; Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, Placer, Yuba, Sutter and Butte just in California factoring 99E. 

[webny99]

Two questions before I submit mine:

1. Do continuous state routes count if they change numbers at the state line?
2. Can I count US 15 and NY 15 as the same route?

[JayhawkCO]

Obviously the counties that have the most interstates will likely connect to the most other counties.  A fun side question: which county that doesn't have an interstate connects to the most other counties?

And just for the record, Arapahoe County, CO is connected to 171 other counties if I added them correctly.

[1995hoo]

What are you using to make the maps? (Not that I'm going to try it immediately. I live in Fairfax County, Virginia, and among the routes that pass through here are US-1, US-29, US-50, and I-95.)

[jlam]

What are you using to make the maps? (Not that I'm going to try it immediately. I live in Fairfax County, Virginia, and among the routes that pass through here are US-1, US-29, US-50, and I-95.)

mapchart.net

[webny99]

What are you using to make the maps? (Not that I'm going to try it immediately. I live in Fairfax County, Virginia, and among the routes that pass through here are US-1, US-29, US-50, and I-95.)

Looks like jlam beat me to it, but I'm using mapchart.net and I imagine that's what others are using as well.

[SkyPesos]

I did it with metro areas 3 months ago...
https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=30208.msg2662051#msg2662051

Anyways, map for Hamilton County, OH. Pretty much the metro area map without KY and IN state routes.

[Scott5114]

1. Do continuous state routes count if they change numbers at the state line?

OP counted OK-6 as part of TX-6 so same-number routes are okay. I would say if the numbers change they wouldn't count, because at that point the highway doesn't really have much more of a connection to the route in your area than if your route turned and going straight was a different route.

[webny99]

I'm also curious, aside from the obvious (Delaware), if there are any counties that have a connecting route to every other county in their state.

[JayhawkCO]

I'm also curious, aside from the obvious (Delaware), if there are any counties that have a connecting route to every other county in their state.

Also obvious, but Providence County, RI.

Merrimack, NH works too.  Nope, misses Carroll.

[webny99]

It looks like NY 19 becoming PA 449 is the only route affected by my earlier question, and that only costs me one county. And I can't count US 15 since NY 15 is no longer signed on I-390/I-86, so here goes (I used "extra large" legend size which will hopefully make it easier to read):

[7/8]

I'm also curious, aside from the obvious (Delaware), if there are any counties that have a connecting route to every other county in their state.

If we're including Canada:
- Yukon, only has one county
- PEI, all three counties qualify since PEI 2 passes through all three counties
- Westmoreland County, NB qualifies (NB 1 and 2 cover the west half, NB 11 the east half, and there's multiple highways that go south into Albert County)

[jlam]

Here is mine. If I counted correctly, you can get to 223 counties from Weld County (including Weld County)

[doorknob60]

I don't have time to create a map right now, but Ada County, ID would be pretty much a thick east-west line (or a few parallel lines) with US-20, US-26, and US-30, but almost nothing north/south since US-95 does not pass through the county (though I would say it serves the county for long distance traffic, not good enough here).

[JayhawkCO]

I don't have time to create a map right now, but Ada County, ID would be pretty much a thick east-west line (or a few parallel lines) with US-20, US-26, and US-30, but almost nothing north/south since US-95 does not pass through the county (though I would say it serves the county for long distance traffic, not good enough here).

And I-84.

[Great Lakes Roads]

La Porte County (IN) would be good at E-W highways but it would suffer from a lack of N-S routes.

[bassoon1986]

I knew any place in Louisiana wouldn't get too far unless you live along I-10. For being dead center of Louisiana in Rapides Parish, you really don't reach far. US 71 is what got my path beyond Arkansas. We just don't have a single route number that reaches that far. And no single east-west route that does much of anything because it's limited by the geography here. You connect to US 84 to cross into Mississippi or eventually to US 190 west to get further into Texas.


iPhone

[US20IL64]

From DuPage Co IL, I-55 is best connection to many parts of US. I-90 used to go through, but is now in Cook Co.

For US highways, good ol' US 20. 

[hbelkins]

Not even worth it for me to try to do a map. I only have state routes in my county, and none cross state lines. Only 18 Kentucky counties total can be reached from roads in my county.

[Dirt Roads]

Orange County, North Carolina has some quirks.  Of course, we've got both I-85 and I-40. 

US-15/501 cuts through the southeast corner of the county, and is useful to get from most of Orange County to the Sandhills.  But it is still better (discounting rush hour) to get south (through Fayetteville) to by taking I-40 -to- I-95 or to get south (through Rockingham) via I-85 -to- I-73.

On the other hand, to get north there are two state routes that get us out of here.  NC-86/VA-86 into Danville, Virginia is arguably the most important two-lane state route in the southeast, connecting Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill to Lynchburg and Charlottesville via US-29.  And while NC-57 to Roxboro isn't perceived as so important, it is still part of the best route to get to the western suburbs of Richmond via US-501 -to- US-360.  Including rush hour, both of these routes are far better to get to Washington DC than using I-95.