Favorite Interchange

[kurumi]

I-95/I-476/MacDade Blvd., southwest of Philadelphia. Brian Polodoro once called it the Squid Interchange. Can't think of a name even close to as good as that.

http://binged.it/xaUkB5

Ia! Ia! Cthulhu ftangh!

Wha?

I know, it's supposed to be "fhtagn". The spell checker should have caught that.

[Bickendan]

I-95/I-476/MacDade Blvd., southwest of Philadelphia. Brian Polodoro once called it the Squid Interchange. Can't think of a name even close to as good as that.

http://binged.it/xaUkB5

Ia! Ia! Cthulhu ftangh!

Wha?

I know, it's supposed to be "fhtagn". The spell checker should have caught that.

Stupid spellcheck.

[OCGuy81]

If you like that one, try the Newhall Interchange, where I-5, I-210 and California 14 all meet on the north edge of the San Fernando Valley.

Yes, that's a rather ugly one as well.  I've driven through it many times, though I try to avoid the 5 Golden State when heading north.  Never been a fan of driving through the Grapevine.

I really love taking the 101 if I'm heading north.

[agentsteel53]

Yes, that's a rather ugly one as well.  I've driven through it many times, though I try to avoid the 5 Golden State when heading north.  Never been a fan of driving through the Grapevine.

I really love taking the 101 if I'm heading north.

I don't mind the grapevine; it's the endless plains of the central valley which are pretty sleep-inducing.  I take 101 if I have the time; but for speed, it is 5.

[cooperrhall]

The windmill design at US-35 and OH-32/124 outside of Jackson, OH.

http://g.co/maps/hje8x

You don't see many of those around. As a matter of fact, it's the only one that I know of. Plus, if they ever decide to upgrade US-35 to a full freeway there, that could easily become a cloverleaf.

[brownpelican]

The Stack in Jackson, Miss. (I-20, I-55 North, U.S. 49)

[bugo]

The windmill design at US-35 and OH-32/124 outside of Jackson, OH.

http://g.co/maps/hje8x

You don't see many of those around. As a matter of fact, it's the only one that I know of. Plus, if they ever decide to upgrade US-35 to a full freeway there, that could easily become a cloverleaf.

Ugh, both highways have at grade left turns.  Dangerous.  I'd rather see a simple diamond.

The end of the US 70 Hot Springs, AR bypass has a left turn onto a freeway.  I think this situation might be temporary.

[PurdueBill]

I always liked the MA 128/I-95-US 1-MA 129 interchange in Lynnfield and Peabody, as home was near it from when I was 6 until my parents moved away after I was out of grad school.  You could barely skim the interchange, like going from 128 NB to US 1 SB via the short ramp (Exit 44A), or you could be in the interchange seemingly forever like if you were going from Goodwin Circle coming from Lynn to US 1 SB via the interchange (which one would do if you were heading to Lake St. in West Peabody, heading for home for me).  The interchange has everything--a Massachusetts rotary with bonus traces of old alignment, local access (slip ramp to Dearborn Rd. from onramp to US 1 NB), second chances (if one misses Exit 44A, or if it were blocked/closed, one can access US 1 SB if one knows what one is doing), yellow flashing lights at gore points, etc.

Before the missing link in I-95 was completed in Peabody in 1988, I-95 NB went through the ramps of this interchange, on Exit 44B (formerly Exit 30N) northbound and through an always-green signal for the right turn lane at the jughandle on SB US 1, exiting and following signs to 128 SB for southbound I-95 traffic. 

[kphoger]

I call it The Fallopian Interchange
http://g.co/maps/z44sg

[Jordanah1]

US41 and WI60 near slinger, because the food sign has two culvers on it...one in each direction... cheese curds for win.

[ARMOURERERIC]

I always liked the downtown Newport News ramp complex on I-664.  I moved into a fixer at 48th and Huntington in 1991, and was heavily involved in the revitalization of the North End throughout the 1990's.  I had opportunity to do alot of ressearch into the history of downton NN and why there was such a huge, overpowered interchange constructed for such a low ADT:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=newport+news+va&hl=en&ll=36.980118,-76.422572&spn=0.003608,0.007639&hnear=Newport+News,+Virginia&gl=us&t=m&z=17

Well into the mid 1980's downtown NN was still very viable and was in fact up until around 1975 the largest "downtown" in Virginia.  It was killed due to the rapid aging of the original downtown storefronts, built in haste in the 1890's to go with the boom of the newly opened shipyard.  Newmarket plaza, and later Newmarket Fair Mall gave a destination for all the stores who wanted toleave downtown, and since both those commercial venues had failed as well.  If you look at the map and see the undeveloped green area bounded by 26, 28 Washington and West, you will see the final nail in downtowns coffin:  The city, around 1985, condemmed over 70 businesses and 3 churches to clear the "superblock" at the request of NN shipbuilding, it was to become 2-35 story office buildings and a hotel.  The day before groundbreaking, the shipyard cancelled the ceremony without reason.  The loss of those businesses were just enough to kill downtowns critical mass of commerce.  I had a big picture on the wall of my office dated 1983, showing Washington Avenue packed with pedestrian shoppers from 28th to 34th.  Over the next year 250 businesse closed their downtown locations.  NN shipbuilding went on to champion zoning laws that made it hard to renovate or restore remaining buildings and then bought and demolished what was left.  As of 1980 downtown still had Sears, JC Penny's, Montgomery Ward, Grants Murph'y, Woolworth's and a Leggett's along with 3 grand movie theatres.  I-664 was planned to service all that.

But during this time, 664 was being designed, and tthe palns were to accomodate about 4x the traffic that remained by the time the road opened.

[kj3400]

My choice would be the NE I-95/I-695 interchange in Baltimore, if they weren't rebuilding into some ugly stack.
SO I'll go with the mess of ramps of MD 295, I-95 and I-395.
Though the Springfield Interchange to the southwest is a close second.

[vdeane]

I call it The Fallopian Interchange
http://g.co/maps/z44sg

Looks like someone said "let's see what the most inefficient way of building this is".

[kphoger]

I call it The Fallopian Interchange
http://g.co/maps/z44sg

Looks like someone said "let's see what the most inefficient way of building this is".

To be fair, the east-west highway existed, including the tollbooth, before the north-south highway was built; in fact, the north-south highway is quite new.

[bsmart]

I always liked the downtown Newport News ramp complex on I-664.  I moved into a fixer at 48th and Huntington in 1991, and was heavily involved in the revitalization of the North End throughout the 1990's.  I had opportunity to do alot of ressearch into the history of downton NN and why there was such a huge, overpowered interchange constructed for such a low ADT:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=newport+news+va&hl=en&ll=36.980118,-76.422572&spn=0.003608,0.007639&hnear=Newport+News,+Virginia&gl=us&t=m&z=17

Well into the mid 1980's downtown NN was still very viable and was in fact up until around 1975 the largest "downtown" in Virginia.  It was killed due to the rapid aging of the original downtown storefronts, built in haste in the 1890's to go with the boom of the newly opened shipyard.  Newmarket plaza, and later Newmarket Fair Mall gave a destination for all the stores who wanted toleave downtown, and since both those commercial venues had failed as well.  If you look at the map and see the undeveloped green area bounded by 26, 28 Washington and West, you will see the final nail in downtowns coffin:  The city, around 1985, condemmed over 70 businesses and 3 churches to clear the "superblock" at the request of NN shipbuilding, it was to become 2-35 story office buildings and a hotel.  The day before groundbreaking, the shipyard cancelled the ceremony without reason.  The loss of those businesses were just enough to kill downtowns critical mass of commerce.  I had a big picture on the wall of my office dated 1983, showing Washington Avenue packed with pedestrian shoppers from 28th to 34th.  Over the next year 250 businesse closed their downtown locations.  NN shipbuilding went on to champion zoning laws that made it hard to renovate or restore remaining buildings and then bought and demolished what was left.  As of 1980 downtown still had Sears, JC Penny's, Montgomery Ward, Grants Murph'y, Woolworth's and a Leggett's along with 3 grand movie theatres.  I-664 was planned to service all that.

But during this time, 664 was being designed, and tthe palns were to accomodate about 4x the traffic that remained by the time the road opened.

I lived in Newport  News from 1976-1985 while I was stationed at Langley AFB.  I don't remember downtown NN being very much alive at the time.  We very seldom went down past Mercury Blvd  (unless I was trying to see some of the ships being built at the Shipyard.  The two malls on Mercury Blvd (Newmarket Mall and Coliseum Mall [Looking at Google maps it appears Coliseum Mall and the infamous 'flyover' on Mercury Blvd have been torn down]) had taken all the chain stores by then.  My daughter was born at Mary Immaculate Hospital in the old building along the water.  Seven years later my son was born at the Same Hospital 10 miles away at the new Hospital building out near the Airport.  I also remember when they replaced the old James River Bridge (now the fishing pier) with the new bridge.  For a while you drove out on the new bridge then made a sharp turn onto a temporary trestle to use the old lift bridge  then shifted back to the new bridge.

[NE2]

I call it The Fallopian Interchange
http://g.co/maps/z44sg

There's one of these in Montreal at the east end of the Champlain Bridge.

[sr641]

i20 / i75 exit in atlanta

[HighwayMaster]

I like the new I-87/I-84 interchange in Newburgh. The curved flyover from NY-300 to I-87 is really sweet, especially when you look at it from I-84 East.