Why does the Indian Nation Turnpike exist?

[splashflash]

US 82 west of Paris has or has planned widening to four lane divided.  Maybe US 82 east of Paris will follow suit once this study is completed: https://www.txdot.gov/projects/projects-studies/statewide/us82-corridor-study.html

East of Blossom the traffic counts on US 82 drop off too but if it were 4 lanes, it would have potential to pick up traffic volume to funnel to the INT.

[edwaleni]

My parents lived in Tulsa when the Cimmaron was in development. In fact my parents saw the town of Keyesport (and some others) before they were forced to relocate for the lake.

My father said the Cimmaron was really for Oklahoma State University. The upgrade of the rest of the route to Enid came later to support Vance AFB.

As for the Hugo-Durant question, my armchair thought is that at the time Houston was a major port at the time and it made sense to increase capacity.  Also I would look at when the Arkansas-Verdigris waterway was built for the Port of Tulsa and Catoosa.

As for Durant, and the traffic pushing north from Dallas, I assume that NAFTA and increased Mexican trade has caused traffic to increase to KCMO. Something not anticipated in 1954.

The McClellan—Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System opened for barge traffic in 1971. 17 years after the Hugo route was put together.

[rte66man]

My parents lived in Tulsa when the Cimmaron was in development. In fact my parents saw the town of Keyesport (and some others) before they were forced to relocate for the lake.

My father said the Cimmaron was really for Oklahoma State University. The upgrade of the rest of the route to Enid came later to support Vance AFB.

As for the Hugo-Durant question, my armchair thought is that at the time Houston was a major port at the time and it made sense to increase capacity.  Also I would look at when the Arkansas-Verdigris waterway was built for the Port of Tulsa and Catoosa.

As for Durant, and the traffic pushing north from Dallas, I assume that NAFTA and increased Mexican trade has caused traffic to increase to KCMO. Something not anticipated in 1954.

The McClellan—Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System opened for barge traffic in 1971. 17 years after the Hugo route was put together.

It was chiefly done as a quid pro quo for approval of other turnpikes. As mentioned upthread, Gene Stipe was heavily involved and he controlled enough votes to kill it otherwise.

There have been various efforts over the years to ensure all parts of the state were connected by a turnpike. Woodward-OKC, Altus-Elk City, etc. Most ended up as 4 lane highways (OK6, US 270). the Indian Nation ended up as a turnpike because the Little Dixie crowd didn't want to wait 40 years.

[Chris]

This 1970 map shows a planned freeway from Hugo to Paris. This was never built, but apparently an extension of the Indian Nation Turnpike into Texas was planned at some time?



Source of map, DFW Freeways: http://dallasfreeways.com/dfwfreeways/old-highway-maps/1970_arco_ne_texas_med.jpg

[The Ghostbuster]

If this freeway or tollway extension had been built, they probably wouldn't have needed to expand US 271 to four lanes between Hugo, OK and Paris, TX.

[rte66man]

If this freeway or tollway extension had been built, they probably wouldn't have needed to expand US 271 to four lanes between Hugo, OK and Paris, TX.

It is the path of the current 4 lanes, just not as a freeway. There isn't enough traffic to justify one.

[bugo]

There's plenty of... questionable... turnpikes in the state. That one, the Cimarron, the Kickapoo, and the Cherokee all come to mind. Not that those roads aren't at all useful, but I cannot imagine any other state building them as turnpikes instead of as free roads. Usually states only build the most important routes as turnpikes (e.g. the Kansas Turnpike, Ohio Turnpike, etc) or have turnpikes as efficient freeway routes in urban areas (e.g. Texas, California, Florida) but Oklahoma has plenty of turnpikes that are neither particularly important for long-distance travel or urban.

The Cimarron and Cherokee Turnpikes are "questionable"? They're part of a major highway that is slated to become an Interstate in the next few years. And old OK 33 between Locust Grove and Flint was an absolute death trap. That road should have been 4 lanes 30 years before the turnpike was built. How to say you've never driven old OK 33 without saying you've never driven old OK 33.

[bugo]

I should see if Bugo has an old "I Drove 33 And Survived" bumper sticker.

I found it on a website years ago, and I don't have the bumper sticker itself, just this image. I have thought about printing it out and making a bumper sticker out of it. I remember back in the 1970s seeing bumper stickers that said something like "Pray for me, I drive US 71". The stickers disappeared,  but US 71 still hasn't been bypassed between Ft Smith and Texarkana.

[bugo]

My parents lived in Tulsa when the Cimmaron was in development. In fact my parents saw the town of Keyesport (and some others) before they were forced to relocate for the lake.

Where is Keyesport? Do you mean Keystone or Appalachia, both which were inundated by the waters of Keystone Lake. Mannford was also flooded.

[The Ghostbuster]

As to the comment on "questionable turnpikes", the only questionable turnpike I find in Oklahoma is the Chickasaw Turnpike, since most of it was never constructed.

[plain]

I'm going to ask this here. How many of these shields existed and were they ever used for other turnpikes?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/XnGL9bp8YNKmnKTn9?g_st=ac

[rte66man]

I'm going to ask this here. How many of these shields existed and were they ever used for other turnpikes?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/XnGL9bp8YNKmnKTn9?g_st=ac

I've not seen the blue signs before. There  are a number of green one but most have disappeared.

[Scott5114]

I'm going to ask this here. How many of these shields existed and were they ever used for other turnpikes?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/XnGL9bp8YNKmnKTn9?g_st=ac

The Muskogee Turnpike had them too.

I assume it was a standard design used on all the unnumbered turnpikes, until the meatball design was introduced.

[bugo]

I took these pictures in 1999 or 2000, but by 2006 they were mostly gone, replaced by the current green and white signs.

[Stephane Dumas]

This 1970 map shows a planned freeway from Hugo to Paris. This was never built, but apparently an extension of the Indian Nation Turnpike into Texas was planned at some time?



Source of map, DFW Freeways: http://dallasfreeways.com/dfwfreeways/old-highway-maps/1970_arco_ne_texas_med.jpg

I apologize for this late reply, but could be possible then they once studied and toyed with the possibility to upgrade US-271 between Hugo and Paris as a full freeway first before they have gone with the current 4-lanes divided highway as we knew today?

[I-35]

This 1970 map shows a planned freeway from Hugo to Paris. This was never built, but apparently an extension of the Indian Nation Turnpike into Texas was planned at some time?



Source of map, DFW Freeways: http://dallasfreeways.com/dfwfreeways/old-highway-maps/1970_arco_ne_texas_med.jpg

I apologize for this late reply, but could be possible then they once studied and toyed with the possibility to upgrade US-271 between Hugo and Paris as a full freeway first before they have gone with the current 4-lanes divided highway as we knew today?

Off topic, but it's crazy to see Denison depicted as larger than Sherman on a map.  AFAIK, Denison has always been the little brother there.

**EDIT** It does look like they were closer rivals during the 1950s thru 1970s. 

[bwana39]

This 1970 map shows a planned freeway from Hugo to Paris. This was never built, but apparently an extension of the Indian Nation Turnpike into Texas was planned at some time?



Source of map, DFW Freeways: http://dallasfreeways.com/dfwfreeways/old-highway-maps/1970_arco_ne_texas_med.jpg

I apologize for this late reply, but could be possible then they once studied and toyed with the possibility to upgrade US-271 between Hugo and Paris as a full freeway first before they have gone with the current 4-lanes divided highway as we knew today?

Int was originally part of a proposed 4-lane road system from Houston (or Port Arthur) to Tulsa. It would have linked the oil business on the gulf coast to the oil business in Oklahoma that is centered in / around Tulsa. It lost the steam in Texas and voila Oklahoma had a tollway that connected to lesser roads. There is STILL not four lanes in an unbroken pattern  from Paris to US-69 or US-287 (Tyler or Palestine). SH -19 and US-69 both still have 2-lane stretches,