Pronunciation of route numbers

[hbelkins]

Around these parts...

One- and two-digit routes are pronounced as you would expect.

KY 1 -- one
US 68 -- sixty-eight
I-75 -- seventy-five

Things get interesting once you get past 99.

Three-digit routes that are multiples of 100:

KY 100 -- one hundred
US 400 -- four hundred

Other three digit routes:

KY 101 -- one oh one
KY 110 -- one ten
KY 498 -- four ninety-eight

Four digit routes x000-x009

KY 1000 -- one thousand
KY 1009 -- one thousand nine
KY 2001 -- two thousand one (or two thousand and one)

Four digit routes x010 and above:

KY 1010 -- ten ten
KY 1571 -- fifteen seventy-one
KY 2024 -- twenty twenty-four
KY 3068 -- thirty sixty-eight

How is it elsewhere?

[agentsteel53]

In the Austin, Texas area, there is a route 'twenty-two twenty-two'.  that's the only four-digit route I've heard pronounced by locals.

[The High Plains Traveler]

A friend who used to live in Lake Jackson TX commuted to work on (FM) "two thousand four". I don't know that I've heard anyone anywhere say route numbers in a way different from what you listed. Though I don't deal with them often my inclination would be to say the name of four-digit routes as a pair of two-digit numbers, such as "twenty-one sixty".

Sounds a little like, how are you saying the current year (two thousand thirteen or twenty thirteen)?

[1995hoo]

Around here I think it's pretty much as hbelkins says. The only four-digit number I can ever recall being used with any regularity was the now-decommissioned "7100" for the Fairfax County Parkway (now VA-286) and it was pronounced "seventy-one hundred."

As far as Interstates go, it seems to be a crapshoot whether a given person says "I" before the number (e.g., "eye-three-ninety-five" versus just "three-ninety-five"). For non-Interstates I usually just hear the number. Sometimes people add "Route" (usually "rout," not "root"). I never hear anybody say "Highway" the way some folks out west do–it's either "15," "US-15," or "Route 15," never "Highway 15."

I suppose you could ask the same question as to street addresses or ZIP codes or area codes. Lots of four-digit addresses here; some newer neighborhoods use five digits. I grew up hearing most four-digit addresses pronounced the way The High Plains Traveler suggests (e.g., "eighty-three seventy-eight" for 8378). If I have to give my address over the phone I give each digit separately, though, in part because three digits are the same and it avoids ambiguity if I just do it that way. (Frankly, I've also found that giving each digit separately is the easiest to understand for people who don't speak English as their first language.) I usually have to spell my street name too.

As to ZIP codes, I've always said each digit, but I hear a lot of people who live in DC pronounce a ZIP code like "20005" not as "two zero zero zero five" but instead as "two thousand five." That always bugs me a bit because to me "two thousand five" means "2005," i.e., one zero short of a full ZIP code. I always say each digit for area codes as well, but a lot of people in Maryland say "four ten" instead of "four one zero." I suppose in a phone number it should be clear to anyone familiar with the North American numbering format that it's "410," but the way some people pronounce "ten" makes it sound a little like "fourteen."

[agentsteel53]

I always spell out anything which is three digits or more.  the only real variation is whether I say "oh" or "zero" - I cannot detect a pattern to it.

[roadman65]

I have never been exposed to four digit highway numbers in places I dwelled, but in Kentucky, Texas, or Louisiana I would always assume that the way we say three digit numbers would apply. 


For example: In Houma, LA http://www.flickr.com/photos/54480415@N08/8503641703/in/photostream I would just say LA thirty forty or in Texas http://www.flickr.com/photos/54480415@N08/8503948094/in/photostream/ FM sixteen ninety-six.

[jp the roadgeek]

In New England, anything less than an interstate is referred to as "Route", whether it be US or state highway.  Any interstate is referred to as I-xx.  As far as numbers, no routes go into 4 digits; so anything under 100 is just the number; anything above 100 is x-xx (ie one ten for 110, or one twenty-eight for 128).  I know in western NY they put the word "the" before the "I" in an interstate highway.  The NY Thruway in that area is "The I-90"

[wxfree]

The only variation I've heard is the pronouncing of some three-digit numbers saying each digit separately.  For example, I'd say 875 as "eight seventy-five," but a few people say it as "eight seven five."  FM 2005 I pronounce as "two thousand five."

Most people here say "highway" for farm-to-market roads, state highways, and US highways.  "Farm road" and "US" are rarely heard.  I've never heard anyone say "state highway"(except in traffic reports), "Texas highway," or "route."  Loop and spur roads that have city street names are referred to by name rather than by number.  Business routes are usually referred to by street name.  An oddity is Waxahachie, which has "Business 287" and "Highway 77," portions of which don't have street names and are referred to by number.

[ce929wax]

An oddity is Waxahachie, which has "Business 287" and "Highway 77," portions of which don't have street names and are referred to by number.

I used to live at an apartment complex in Hachie where I had the address xxxx US Hwy 287 Bypass, Waxahachie, TX, 75165.  I always pronounced it, and heard everyone else pronounce it as, "two-eighty-seven".

[PurdueBill]

In at least my part of northeast Ohio the usage seems to be roughly:

I-77: "I-77"
US 224: "route 224" and occasionally "US 224"
OH 18: "route 18", occasionally "state route 18"

while in Indiana the state routes would go by "state road 18", not "route".  US routes seem to be identified as such, and the same with Interstates.  In both, it seems most common to refer to county numbered routes as "County Road XX".  Maybe the "route" vs. "road" thing is a more urban vs. rural thing?

One relief on TV lately is that with the new Gannett graphics package at WKYC, the out-of-place Florida-style green/white "Toll 80" shield used on the Ohio Turnpike in maps has been replaced by a normal Interstate shield. 

The "20005" being pronounced "two thousand five" reminds me of a couple people I knew who a few years back were referring to the then-future year 2010 as "twenty oh ten" as if in sequence with "twenty oh eight" (2008) and "twenty oh nine" (2009).  I finally joked with them that I thought they were referring to something happening 18,000 years from now!

[hbelkins]

I've always pronounced ZIP codes by all five digits. My ZIP is 41311 and I pronounce it "four one three one one." Only once have I heard it pronounced differently, by someone in Lexington who said "four thirteen eleven."

[corco]

I do find myself saying "oh ten" every once in a while- if I'm referring to an event that happened, I've heard myself say "back in oh ten"- "back in ten" sounds like something completely different, and "back in 2010" makes me feel like I'm talking about something a hundred years ago.

[kphoger]

People here in Wichita do things a little differently.

In the rest of the country, people would pronounce 135 as "one-thirty-five".
Here, however, they pronounce 135 as "eye-thirty-five".
I-35, on the other hand, they pronounce as "the turnpike".

   

[Dr Frankenstein]

Up here, the standard for three digit numbers seems to be to pronounce the hundreds, then the rest. i.e. Hwy 132 is "one thirty-two." and Hwy 417 is "four seventeen." The exception is when the middle digit is zero; the digits are then pronounced separately. Hwy 202 is "two oh two", Hwy 401 is "four oh one."

[wxfree]

I do find myself saying "oh ten" every once in a while- if I'm referring to an event that happened, I've heard myself say "back in oh ten"- "back in ten" sounds like something completely different, and "back in 2010" makes me feel like I'm talking about something a hundred years ago.

I think I read somewhere that the linguistic experts said that the proper way to pronounce the years of the last decade was "twenty oh X," as in "twenty oh four."  And 2010 is pronounced "twenty ten," which is the pattern the rest of the century will follow.  But in the middle part of the last century, early years were pronounced as "nineteen two" or "nineteen four."  I'm not sure what changed or if there even is a "correct" way to say it.

[kphoger]

Up here, the standard for three digit numbers seems to be to pronounce the hundreds, then the rest. i.e. Hwy 132 is "one thirty-two." and Hwy 417 is "four seventeen." The exception is when the middle digit is zero; the digits are then pronounced separately. Hwy 202 is "two oh two", Hwy 401 is "four oh one."

I don't find the exception to be an exception.  I find "oh two" to be the correct way to pronounce the two-digit pair 02 in the same way I find "thirty-two" to be the correct way to pronounce the two-digit pair 32.

That is to say, I could write out 02 as a hyphenated number, "oh-two", where the oh- functions in same way as the thirty- functions in 32.

To me, that's perfectly natural.

[WichitaRoads]

People here in Wichita do things a little differently.

In the rest of the country, people would pronounce 135 as "one-thirty-five".
Here, however, they pronounce 135 as "eye-thirty-five".
I-35, on the other hand, they pronounce as "the turnpike".

   

Well, only the folksy or ignorant around here do that... LOL. I never got that... does the "1" look THAT much like an "I"? ROFL. Wichitans... gotta love us.

And for the record: my folks and grandparents made that mistake, too.

ICTRds

[6a]

In Columbus people just say the number if it is a freeway.  I-71 is seventy one, SR 315 is three fifteen, etc.  I think SRs 161 and 104 are the only non freeway roads that get called a number, and that's because they are Dublin-Granville Rd. and Columbus-Portsmouth Rd or Jackson Pike or whatever the hell 104 is called.  But yeah, we just say the number like it's a price.

Edit: oh yeah, US 33 is thirty three and should be a highway anyway.

[WichitaRoads]

Well, then there's the well-known policy on Kansas state routes of saying "K" first....

"kay fifteen"
"kay sixty-one"
"kay one fifty-six"

ICTRds

[US81]

FM 2001 goes from I-35 east to Niederwald TX. I don't live very close but I have driven there once or twice. I have heard it referred to as "Niederwald Road" or "Niederwald Strasse" and - rarely - "twenty-oh-one." 

[PurdueBill]

For Zip Codes, it was interesting to hear announcers on game shows reading  the addresses for tickets..."nine zero zero three six" versus "nine double-oh three six"...guess that wasn't necessarily part of the copy that was required to be read a certain way and was up to the discretion of the announcer.

Growing up near Boston, certain route numbers were pronounced in interesting ways.

I-93 = "route 128" or "route 3" or "the Southeast Expressway" or "the Central Artery" or upon rare occasion, "93"
I-95 = "route 128" unless it's way north or south
I-90 = "the Pike" or "the Mass Pike" but rarely "I-90"
US 3 = MA 3 = "route 3", as for any other numbered route including 495

This sign I got a picture of in August 2010 includes the uncommon use of "route" with an Interstate shield on a paddle sign (yes, it was a paddle sign--notice the old holes in the sign and the remaining breakaway paddle sign post base still in the ground)...I don't know if anyone would call either road "route 95" or "route 90" in this area, especially "route 90" for the Pike.  "Route 95" is debatable but everyone knows that you are entering Route 128 there with access to the Mass Pike.

One other peculiarity that I saw even in writing was that US 1 north of Alfalfa Circle (if anyone calls it that, Exit 50 of I-95) was referred to by certain vintage folks as "Old Route 1" which made no sense to me until I learned that the current I-95 north of there was planned as a new relocated Route 1.  So even though the original US 1 is still US 1, there are people out there who call the actual US 1 by "old Route 1".

[corco]

SRs 161

161 is an interesting beast. I was born in Columbus, my folks lived in Dublin right off the 270/161 interchange for many years, my grandfather still lives off Olentangy River Rd and my Mom lived in that house for a while and she lived within a couple miles of 161 in various locations from the early sixties until the late 80s. She has a well above average sense of navigation.

A couple years ago, I was leaving my grandparents house in the car by myself for some reason to head down to my aunt's in Pickerington and was talking on the phone with my Mom as I was leaving, with a general idea as to where I was going- I hadn't driven in Columbus with or without passengers before, but had been on the road many times as a younger fella, though it had probably been 6 or 7 years since I'd been on this particular stretch. I got to the intersection of Olentangy and Dublin-Granville, not realizing it was 161, and on the phone I said "Mom, does Dublin-Granville connect to 315?" and she said "No, I don't think so- from their house it's best just to go down to 161"

So, I ended up going down to Bethel, knowing that was a major enough road that it would probably connect before I said "screw it" and cut over to 315, thinking I must have accidentally passed 161. (Side note- it's amazing how well treed Olentangy is- you can drive large portions of it and have no idea you're a hundred feet from a major freeway)

I told my Mom about this later, and she said she had no idea. It's amazing what the mind doesn't notice when it doesn't need to notice it. Basically 30 years in Columbus, and she never knew the road was called "Dublin-Granville"

So yes, 161 is referred to by number.

[Brandon]

Well, then there's the well-known policy on Kansas state routes of saying "K" first....

"kay fifteen"
"kay sixty-one"
"kay one fifty-six"

ICTRds

Ditto for Michigan with the "M" said first.

Em twenty-six (M-26)
Em five (M-5)
Em fourteen (M-14)
Em two-oh-three (M-203)

"One twenty-seven" or "You ess one twenty-seven" (US-127)
"Ninety-four" or "Eye ninety-four" (I-94)

In northern Illinois, it's a bit different.

"Route fifty-nine" or "Fifty-nine" (IL-59)
"Route thirty" or "Thirty" (US-30)
"Eye fifty-five" or "Fifty-five" (I-55)

Then there's Chicagoland where route numbers disappear.

Ryan Expressway (I-90/94)
Harlem Avenue (IL-43)
Northwest Highway (US-14)

Then we have Wisconsin.

Highway Em (County M)
Highway sixteen (Wis-16)
Highway one fifty-one (US-151)
Highway ninety-four (I-94)

[PHLBOS]

In New England, anything less than an interstate is referred to as "Route", whether it be US or state highway.  Any interstate is referred to as I-xx.  As far as numbers, no routes go into 4 digits; so anything under 100 is just the number; anything above 100 is x-xx (ie one ten for 110, or one twenty-eight for 128).

With regards to pronunciation of Interstates in New England; not everybody states I-XX or I-X-XX for an Interstate.  For years, I've heard people simply say Route 95, 93, 4-95, 1-95, 2-95, 2-90, etc. when pronouncing Interstates in Mass. & Rhode Island; so it goes either way.

[kphoger]

"Route fifty-nine" or "Fifty-nine" (IL-59)

And that's rowt, not root.

Ryan Expressway (I-90/94)
Harlem Avenue (IL-43)

More commonly:  The Ryan, or The Dan Ryan;  and just Harlem.