Highways with bad reputations

[agentsteel53]

the 405 has a bad reputation for traffic congestion around here, which is only somewhat warranted.  it does get bad around I-10 and LAX, but generally speaking it is no worse than most other LA freeways.

[PHLBOS]

The I-76 Surekill Expressway

aka Surekill Parking Lot

US 1 along the Roosevelt Blvd. has been repeatedly referred to as one of if not the most dangerous highway(s) in the country.

The Saw Mill and especially the upstate Taconic Parkways get that reputation due to being very curvy

Stretches of those roadways also have a very narrow divider; essentially a 'weak-post' guiderail centered on the double-yellow line.

[vdeane]

I-390 seems to be a haven for speed traps. Particularly between Exit 1 and the Steuben/Livingston county line, I will never drive a single mph above the limit. I have been ticketed once and, without hyperbole, am still waiting for the day I don't see a trooper running radar there. In days of yore, before the bump to 65mph limits, there would invariably be a Monroe County sheriff clocking you somewhere in the town of Henrietta (which doesn't have its own police force).

I've heard that north of I-590 is now a major "safety" (read: revenue) corridor.

The I-590/I-490 interchange (the can of worms) is still notorious due to rush hour traffic.  My Dad refused to move to Irondequoit when the opportunity came up because of this.

US 11 in the north country due to traffic.  Especially the intersection between US 11, NY 345, Clarkson Ave, and Maple St. (though it's gotten better after the last two timing changes).

I-81 in Syracuse.

The Thruway in the finger lakes and western NY due to boredom.  The Williamsville toll barrier due to traffic.

Any road in NYC and nearby areas.

[xcellntbuy]

US 27 in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties has been referred to as "Bloody 27."  Krome Avenue FL 997, particularly the empty 13-mile stretch between US 41 and US 27 in far western Miami-Dade County, can shivers up a person's spine.

[empirestate]

I've heard that north of I-590 is now a major "safety" (read: revenue) corridor.

Interesting; that's one stretch that's never worried me nearly as much. Probably because I use it more seldom.

The I-590/I-490 interchange (the can of worms) is still notorious due to rush hour traffic.  My Dad refused to move to Irondequoit when the opportunity came up because of this.

Weird. I've not known the Can to have an especially bad rep since it was rebuilt, and I lived near it for 30 years! (But see my earlier comments about seeming to have a totally different experience from everyone else regarding these things.)

Any road in NYC and nearby areas.

Actually, any road statewide, because of NYC and the common failure to differentiate between it and the rest of the state.

[agentsteel53]

Krome Avenue FL 997, particularly the empty 13-mile stretch

I'm not sure what you mean here.  if it is empty, why is it problematic? 

[Ian]

US 322 in the eastern part of Pennsylvania has been known to be one of the more dangerous highways in the state. Between I-95 and US 1 is a very crowded 2 lane road with plenty of side roads which can cause both bad accidents and long traffic jams, and the super-2 portion of the West Chester By-Pass on US 322 is where Jackass star Ryan Dunn had his fatal car crash.

[1995hoo]

Krome Avenue FL 997, particularly the empty 13-mile stretch

I'm not sure what you mean here.  if it is empty, why is it problematic?  

I'll second that. My brother-in-law's family live off Pines Boulevard and when they took us to Shark Valley last summer we went down Krome Avenue (he was driving, had to take their minivan due to the child-seat laws). Didn't strike me as being any better or worse than any other two-lane road. But I will concede that it was daytime and maybe at night having all the vast emptiness of the Everglades to the one side of you might feel creepy.

[agentsteel53]

the super-2 portion of the West Chester By-Pass on US 322 is where Jackass star Ryan Dunn had his fatal car crash.

he had a blood alcohol level of 0.196, and he was estimated to have been doing over 120mph.

can't blame the road for that one.

[PHLBOS]

US 322 in the eastern part of Pennsylvania has been known to be one of the more dangerous highways in the state. Between I-95 and US 1 is a very crowded 2 lane road with plenty of side roads which can cause both bad accidents and long traffic jams, and the super-2 portion of the West Chester By-Pass on US 322 is where Jackass star Ryan Dunn had his fatal car crash.

Actually, the stretch of 322 where that happened

the super-2 portion of the West Chester By-Pass on US 322 is where Jackass star Ryan Dunn had his fatal car crash.

he had a blood alcohol level of 0.196, and he was estimated to have been doing over 120mph.

can't blame the road for that one.

To add... while attempting to turn at an exit ramp (for Pottstown Pike - old Route 100).

[xcellntbuy]

Krome Avenue FL 997, particularly the empty 13-mile stretch

I'm not sure what you mean here.  if it is empty, why is it problematic?  

Actually, I should have meant empty as in virtually no buildings and not one intersection, except a small trailer park near the intersection with US 27.  It is almost completely straight, with just one major curve.  No shoulders, as customary in south Florida with "the drink" on both sides.  Despite a speed limit of 55 mph on this two-lane roadway, travel is well over 70 mph or above.  Sight lines can have a mirage effect from heat or the water.  If they are cutting down and burning melaleuca trees, smoke is also a problem.  Passing is allowed almost the entire length and taken advantage of at the highest speeds, also in south Florida style.  Near misses of head-on collisions are always a strong possibility.  At night, the roadway looks like an airport runway with double-imbedded reflectors.

[Bickendan]

The Terwilliger Curves on I-5 in Portland. Pales in comparison to other examples here, but it's Oregon's highest accident area.

The Van Duzer Forest Corridor on OR 18 through the Coastals, which sees a lot of casino traffic.

The Mt Hood Highway (US 26) between Sandy and Rhododendron has a lot of crossover accidents when the sun is setting.

[nexus73]

US 101 in Prunedale CA has had the "Blood Alley" name for decades and a sign to let people know just how dangerous it was.  CalTrans gets the Footdragging Award from me for a highway project that should have been dealt with 50 years ago.

Honorable mention: US 20 east of Newport OR in the Eddyville curves area.  Newport/Lincoln County residents have clamored for this totally obsolete road to be upgraded since the 1950's.  ODOT finally got it on their to-do list and then the contractor got overwhelmed by the geographic and hydrological problems.  Now the half finished project sits there as folks try to figure out how to build bridges on supports that will stay level in waterlogged ground.  Good luck with that...LOL!

Rick

[bsmart]

It has been more than a few years but when I was stationed at Keesler AFB in Biloxi we were warned that US-90 was a very dangerous road.  Heavy traffic, the fact it ran pretty much east-west so the sun was in somebody's eyes most of the time, the beach right next to it (Especially the well known Bikini Babe who sold swimsuits along side the road and wore suits that definitely caught your attention ) caused a lot of accidents.  There was a sign as you left the base claiming that it was one of 10 deadliest roads in the US.  This was before all the Casinos came to town.

[realjd]

US 27 in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties has been referred to as "Bloody 27."  Krome Avenue FL 997, particularly the empty 13-mile stretch between US 41 and US 27 in far western Miami-Dade County, can shivers up a person's spine.

Down there wouldn't the Overseas Highway be more notoriously dangerious? The 18 mile stretch, before they finished the median barrier, was one of the most dangerous stretched of road in the country (supposedly).

[hobsini2]

I-94 and US 41 between Kenosha WI and Waukegan IL had bad reputations as blood highways back when Wisconsin's drinking age was 18 and Illinois was 21. That has since gone down dramatically.

[xcellntbuy]

Down there wouldn't the Overseas Highway be more notoriously dangerious? The 18 mile stretch, before they finished the median barrier, was one of the most dangerous stretched of road in the country (supposedly).
[/quote]
How could I have forgotten.  You are absolutely correct.

[nexus73]

It has been more than a few years but when I was stationed at Keesler AFB in Biloxi we were warned that US-90 was a very dangerous road.  Heavy traffic, the fact it ran pretty much east-west so the sun was in somebody's eyes most of the time, the beach right next to it (Especially the well known Bikini Babe who sold swimsuits along side the road and wore suits that definitely caught your attention ) caused a lot of accidents.  There was a sign as you left the base claiming that it was one of 10 deadliest roads in the US.  This was before all the Casinos came to town.

I did my tech training at Keesler back in 1974.  I-10 was not finished and ended at US 49 just north of Gulfport, so US 90 was a real busy road back then.  We got a hurricane warning film that dealt with Hurricane Camille, which had hit in 1969 and killed hundreds on the Gulf Coast.  Harrison County looked pretty sketchy compared to my home area in Oregon so all in all it was a good place to keep one's guard up as US 90 wasn't the only hazard down there.

Rick

[okroads]

The soon-to-be former I-40 in Oklahoma City has a well-earned bad reputation for the crumbling Crosstown bridge. 2 of the 3 westbound lanes were closed again last night due to another hole in the bridge. Thankfully, come Sunday, westbound traffic will be routed on the new alignment a few blocks to the south. Eastbound traffic moved to the new alignment in early January.

[Ian]

the super-2 portion of the West Chester By-Pass on US 322 is where Jackass star Ryan Dunn had his fatal car crash.

he had a blood alcohol level of 0.196, and he was estimated to have been doing over 120mph.

can't blame the road for that one.

Yeah that's true. But that fairly congested super-2 between Pottstown Pike and US 322 is still pretty dangerous.

[vdeane]

Weird. I've not known the Can to have an especially bad rep since it was rebuilt, and I lived near it for 30 years! (But see my earlier comments about seeming to have a totally different experience from everyone else regarding these things.)

Only during peak rush hour, and mainly on NY 590 south and I-490 east (both of which have at least one ramp become an exit only lane immediately upon entering the other road); the weaving causes issues.

[empirestate]

Weird. I've not known the Can to have an especially bad rep since it was rebuilt, and I lived near it for 30 years! (But see my earlier comments about seeming to have a totally different experience from everyone else regarding these things.)

Only during peak rush hour, and mainly on NY 590 south and I-490 east (both of which have at least one ramp become an exit only lane immediately upon entering the other road); the weaving causes issues.

The weaving, of course, being the whole reason for the rebuild in the first place. Of course, it used to affect all through traffic on 590, and as a result on 490 as well. The rebuild didn't eliminate the weaving, but did move it such that it only affects the spots adjacent to the nearby surface road exits. The trickiest I've found to be 590 NB at the Blossom Road exit (conflicting with traffic entering from 490 WB) and 490 EB at Penfield Road (conflicting with traffic entering from 590 SB).

The worst rush hour traffic in my experience, though, has been further west on 490, through the Culver-Monroe-Goodman stretch, or further east, on the 490-441 route. But it's been a while since I regularly commuted in that fashion, so patterns may have shifted. Also, I think that I've seen so much worse traffic in other cities that even the worst of Rochester's doesn't really register with me anymore.

[thenetwork]

The Central Interchange in Downtown Akron, OH.

That interchange is almost 60 years old and is still, for the most part, the same as it was in the 1950s.

-  There are two left exit ramps from  I-76 to I-77 South and SR-8 North that have shore deceleration lanes and what seems to be 89.999 degree turn-offs.  If it's not some overturned semi shutting down the ramps, its a car crash into the barrier walls.

-  On the north-south ramps to I-76, there is only one lane for each direction -- especially bad for the 2-3 lanes of I-77 north having to squeeze into the single transition lane to continue onto I-77 via the I-76 multiplex.

-  The interchange itself is crumbling and losing pieces on a regular basis, forcing ODOT to close ramps and lanes until the freshly-chewed bubble gum holding up the new loose concrete hardens.

[algorerhythms]

About 20 or so years ago, there was a bumper sticker "I drive US 71 in Arkansas. Pray for me"

71 between Alma & Fayetteville has always had a bad rep: narrow, twisted, and steep. Lots of stories & legends of people getting killed on 71, including a UofA President back in the 1930's or 40's.

I've seen the same slogan being used on a bumper sticker referring to US 219 in Pennsylvania.

[golden eagle]

What about the sharp curve on I-20 in west Birmingham? Or the former "S-curve" on I-59 in Laurel, MS?