High Contrast's Hair Road Photo Updates

[Takumi]

Starting off, I'd like to share a few of my favorite route shield photos over the years.

My favorite find was this white-border US 360 unisign near Skinquarter, westbound on the eastern leg of Chesterfield secondary route 603. I found it and took this picture on 6/1/11, and it was still standing a few months later when I drove by towards VA 153.


In the springtime I took a trip from home to Urbanna to see VA 227, and on the way back I drove VA 106 southbound in its entirety. On the latter route I saw this unusually large US 60 shield and truck restriction assembly, but my camera had died by that point. When I drove by again in September, it was still present so I took this picture. This one is just north of I-64. There's another one closer to US 60, but I got on the interstate instead of going that way.


In early summer I planned to drive VA 156 end-to-end, but was unable to do so due to two detours in place, one north of Malvern Hill Battlefield and one between secondary routes 615 and 636 near Mechanicsville. The latter had several detour signs with erroneous shields for the secondaries and an erroneous West banner for VA 156, which is (generally) a north-south route. The three shields were all posted together along the detour until this photo, where 636's detour ends. As you can see in the far background, 636 only goes one direction from this intersection (west) while 615 goes northeast, making the double arrow another error (and even more inexplicable since the banner implies both directions to be north!)


Early in the year I drove all of the routing that has ever been assigned to current VA 38, with the exception of its destroyed former eastern endpoint north of VA 153. The downgraded sections are deservedly so, particularly the section east of Mannboro which is very narrow and mostly unpopulated. From the former western/northern endpoint of VA 38 I drove VA 13 to Powhatan courthouse, which I reached near sunset. This is one of my favorite atmospheric photos, with the sun setting behind the trees and this VA 300 trailblazer.


This blue guide sign for approaching secondary routes is a new phenomenon in Virginia. I've seen three of them, all in 2011 and two of the three have erroneous primary shields. This one is on US 1/301 northbound approaching Walthall with a VA 620 shield. Of course, the "real" VA 620 hasn't existed since 1933.


Here is another, on VA 33 eastbound near Mattaponi in King & Queen County found during my aforementioned trip to Urbanna. (The third one is on US 460 westbound near New Bohemia, with a correct secondary 629 shield).


This one is a bit older, from October 2009 on a fishing trip to Virginia Beach. We detoured to see if old VA 408 was still posted at VA 279 (which was the case for a few years after it was formally decommissioned). It wasn't, but I found this VA 225 shield just south of the intersection. Yes, Virginia Beach put a VA 225 shield on VA 279, but that's par for the course of them.


In December 2010 I had recently put my current car on the road. I wanted to take it on a slightly longer trip than normal to see how it fared, so I drove part of VA 40, from US 1 in McKenney to VA 46 in Blackstone. Upon reaching the latter intersection, I found this new-looking error VA 460 trailblazer next to the VA 40 trailblazer.


Finally, I was driving to work in early 2010 when I found this error US 460 ALT trailblazer, which is visible from I-95 northbound, at the intersection of Bank St and Crater Rd. Along with the error ALT banner instead of a Business one, this routing is a few blocks north of US 460 business. Bank St was converted to two-way traffic in summer 2011, but most of the signage from its one-way days is still up.

[froggie]

Wouldn't surprise me if Virginia Beach still has the "US 225" shields posted on Shore Dr...

[Alps]

That's not VA 225, VA shields have the top corners rounded... I can also say the VA 156 detour shields are gone. There's still one detour around a closed bridge, but only with 156 shields. Nice photos - you look for the same sorts of things I do.

[Takumi]

I can also say the VA 156 detour shields are gone. There's still one detour around a closed bridge, but only with 156 shields

The detour was in place at the time when the 156-643-636 intersection was all torn up, but only on the north and south sides. 643's detour continued to 642 (which goes through a stripmall) up to US 360, then east back to 643.

[Takumi]

Also, if you want to use anything for the shield gallery, go right ahead.

[WillWeaverRVA]

I can vouch for the VA 643 and VA 636 shields being up along US 360 (I posted a picture in the sign error thread), but most of them are now gone.

That's not VA 225, VA shields have the top corners rounded...

Not in Virginia Beach, they don't.




(This route doesn't even exist anymore, either...)

[froggie]

(This route doesn't even exist anymore, either...)

And hasn't for 51 years...

[Takumi]

New blog entry, where I took some photos of an abandoned grocery store, close-ups of the white-border US 360 assembly, and some under-construction pictures of the Meadowville interchange. http://highcontrastshair.blogspot.com/2011/11/1025-and-1026-chesterfield-pics.html

[WillWeaverRVA]

I need to check out that abandoned store. Good stuff.

[Takumi]

New blog update, where I show my travels on VA 40's eastern 50 miles, as well as a couple abandoned businesses in Prince George County.
http://highcontrastshair.blogspot.com/2011/11/va-40-parts-2-3-8211-111511.html

[Takumi]

New post, where I drive by some of the work happening on and around VA 109.
http://highcontrastshair.blogspot.com/2011/12/va-109-work.html

[Takumi]

New update, showing the Meadowville interchange.

[KEVIN_224]

Nice photos! Just one question though: Is there a reason why the control city on the I-295 and I-95 South signs said "ROCKY MOUNT, NC" and not "RICHMOND"?

[Takumi]

Yes. This is south of Richmond, and the only city I-295 goes through is the suburb of Hopewell. Rocky Mount, 100 miles away, is the next major city. To get to Richmond from this interchange you have to take I-295 north to I-64 or US 60.

[hbelkins]

Rocky Mount never struck me as being that major of a city.

[KEVIN_224]

@ Takumi: Thank you for the clarification! I've been in so little of Virginia overall! (Only Arlington and Alexandria to date, not touching Alexandria since 1989 and Arlington since 2004!) As for the changes on this roadway? The article at Wikipedia hasn't been updated yet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_295_%28Virginia%29

[Takumi]

Rocky Mount never struck me as being that major of a city.

I agree, but it's bigger than anything else directly on I-95 north of Fayetteville, which is another 90 miles or so south.

[Takumi]

@ Takumi: Thank you for the clarification! I've been in so little of Virginia overall! (Only Arlington and Alexandria to date, not touching Alexandria since 1989 and Arlington since 2004!) As for the changes on this roadway? The article at Wikipedia hasn't been updated yet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_295_%28Virginia%29

You're welcome, and thanks for your compliments. I don't normally update Wikipedia, but I may add it if nobody else does.

[froggie]

Rocky Mount never struck me as being that major of a city.

Besides what Takumi said about the lack of large cities on I-95, one should consider that it's also the turn-off to head to Raleigh.

[Takumi]

New entry, showing photos from my Williamsburg trip. Includes this VA 132Y reassurance shield.

[Brian556]

New entry, showing photos from my Williamsburg trip.

Are you saying the state of Virginia maintains the Colonial Pkwy? Those brown signs looks like national park service signs to me.

That Colonial Pkwy is a rather strange road. I'm guessing the lack of pavement markings is for looks purposes.
The use of triple slab with no markings was a very silly decision. An unmarked road such as this definitely needs a pavement seam in the middle.

[Alps]

New entry, showing photos from my Williamsburg trip.

Are you saying the state of Virginia maintains the Colonial Pkwy? Those brown signs looks like national park service signs to me.

That Colonial Pkwy is a rather strange road. I'm guessing the lack of pavement markings is for looks purposes.
The use of triple slab with no markings was a very silly decision. An unmarked road such as this definitely needs a pavement seam in the middle.

It's the last remaining suicide highway. Officially that's a center passing lane.

[Takumi]

The NPS does maintain it, but it has a state route number, albeit a vastly non-standard one. The George Washington Parkway in Fairfax and Arlington is the same way.

[WillWeaverRVA]

Great pictures from the parkway. I didn't realize the signs at the VA 132Y interchange used standard shields (this is highly unusual for the parkway, and the NPS in Virginia as a whole).

[Takumi]

Thanks. I think those are also the only standard shields within Williamsburg city limits. Nope, those VA 143 shields are right there before VA 162 begins.