INTERSTATE 70 (I-70) IN UTAH

 

Interstate 70 (I-70) is a mainline route of the Interstate highway System connecting Utah and Maryland. The Utah section runs east-west for approximately 232 miles across the central part of the state.  Unlike most Interstate Highways, much of 1-70 in Utah was not constructed parallel to or on top of an existing U.S. Highway. Portions of 1-70 were constructed areas where previously there were no paved roads. Because it was built over an entirely new route, I-70 has many features that are unique in the Interstate Highway System. For example, the 110 miles between Green River and Salina makes up the longest distance anywhere in the Interstate Highway System with no motorist services. This same piece is noted as the longest highway in the United States built over a completely new route since the Alaska Highway, and the longest piece of Interstate Highway to open at a given time.

I-70 Between Green River and Salina, Utah

BROOKLYN-BATTERY (HUGH L. CAREY) TUNNEL

The Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel (officially the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel) is a tolled tunnel in New York City that connects Red Hook in Brooklyn with Battery Park in Manhattan. The tunnel consists of twin tubes that each carry two traffic lanes under the mouth of the East River. I-478 is the official route designation for the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel and its approaches, although it is not signed as such. With a length of 9,117 feet, the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel is the longest continuous underwater vehicular tunnel in North America.

EAST RIVER MOUNTAIN TUNNEL

The East River Mountain Tunnel is a 5,142-foot vehicular tunnel that carries Interstate 77 and U.S. Route 52 through East River Mountain between the communities of Bluefield, West Virginia and Rocky Gap, Virginia. The East River Mountain Tunnel is one of only two land vehicular tunnels in the United States that cross a state line, the other being the Cumberland Gap Tunnel (Kentucky and Tennessee). The state line falls almost exactly across the midpoint of the tunnel, with 51% of the tunnel residing in West Virginia and the remaining 49% on the Virginia side.

LONGEST DISTANCES BETWEEN EXITS ON U.S. LIMITED ACCESS HIGHWAYS

Highway	Exit Number	Exit Name	Exit Number	Exit Name	Distance (Miles)
Florida 91 (Florida Turnpike)	193	Yeehaw Junction	242	Kissimmee/ St. Cloud	48.9*
Florida 91 (Florida Turnpike	193	Yeehaw Junction	152	Fort Pierce	40.5*
I-80 in Utah	4	Bonneville Speedway	41	Knolls	37.4*
1-70 East (Pennsylvania Turnpike)	110	Somerset	146	Bedford	35.5
I-75 (Alligator Alley)	80	SR 29	49	Snake Road/ Government Road	30.6*
I-335 (Kansas Turnpike)	147	US 56	177	I-470	30.3*
I-90 (Mass. Pike)	3	Westfield	2	Lee	29.9*
I-44 West in Oklahoma (Will Rogers Turnpike)	283	US 69	255	E. Will Rogers Blvd.	28.4
I-40 in California	78	Kelso	50	Ludlow	28.4*
I-44 East in Oklahoma (H.E. Bailey Turnpike)	53	Us 277	80	US 277/ US 81	27.6
I-70 West (Pennsylvania Turnpike)	146	Bedford		Brotherton Road	27.3
I-75 North in Florida	23		49		26.2
I-70 West in Colorado	75		49		26
I-75 in Florida (Alligator Alley)	49	US 27	23	Snake Road/ Government Road	25.7
I-76 (Pennsylvania Turnpike)	226	Carlisle	201	Blue Mountain	25*
I-80 (Indiana Turnpike)	144	Angola/ I/69	121	Howe/ Lagrange	23.8*
*Denotes same distance in either direction

INTERSTATE 70 – “THE BREEZEWOOD GAP”

One of the few instances in which there are traffic signals on an Interstate occurs on I-70 in Breezewood, Pennsylvania. I-70 uses part of US 30 along a surface road in Breezewood. Traffic traveling eastbound on I-70/I-76 must exit and travel a short distance on US 30 in order to continue east on I-70 to Hancock, Maryland*. (The routing is similar for traffic on I-70 in the opposite direction: traffic must exit and travel a short distance on US 30 in order to continue west on I70/I-76 to enter the Pennsylvania Turnpike). Local businesses have lobbied to keep the gap to avoid a perceived potential loss of business. To better understand this gap, note the map below. Begin at the lower left (Exit 161/Breezewood). West of that exit you are traveling east on I-70/I-76. When you take the Breezewood exit, you are leaving I-76, but staying on I-70. I-70/I-76 (Pennsylvania Turnpike) is a toll road, and therefore you must pay a toll before continuing on I-70. After paying toll, you continue east on I-70. Note that after you leave the toll booth you travel under the eastbound (south direction at this point) lanes of I-70, which is where you wind up after completing the Breezewood gap. Continuing eastbound on I-70 you come to US 30, where you make a cloverleaf to go westbound on US 30. At the second light you turn left to continue eastbound on I-70. Note that even though you exit onto US 30 and encounter two traffic signals, you technically never leave I-70. For an even better understanding, please enjoy the YouTube video of a motorist travelling eastbound on the I-70 Breezewood gap. *I-70 is an east-west Interstate that runs from near Cove Fort, Utah to Baltimore, Maryland. Although I-70 is an east-west route, its direction of travel out of Breezewood is south.

INDIANA HIGHWAY LENGTHS

CATEGORY	HIGHWAY	MILES	LOCATION
Longest Interstate	I-65	261.25	Enters the state northbound at Jeffersonville (across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky) to its northern terminus in Gary, 1/8th of a mile north of the Indiana Toll Road.
Longest Active US Route	US 41*	277.01	Enters the state south of Evansville and runs north to Hammond where it exits into the south side of Chicago
Longest Active State Road	SR 3	212.65	A discontinuous highway running through eastern Indiana from near the Ohio River to near the Michigan state line. (Charlestown to Brighton)
Longest “Old State Road”	OSR 63	9.86	No other information available
Longest “Old US Route	OUS 50	6..74	No other information available
Shortest Interstate within the State	I-275**	3.29	I-275 aka the Cincinnati Bypass forms a complete beltway around Cincinnati. Enters Indiana from Kentucky over Ohio River and extends to Ohio state line.
Shortest US Route	US 131	0.064	Elkhart County between the entrance to the Indiana Toll Road, a few hundred feet north of the Toll Road overpass, and the Michigan state line.
Shortest State Road	SR 520	0.26	A four-lane connector, it exists solely to connect US Route 12 and U.S. Route 20 in Pines, about 3 miles west of Michigan City.
Shortest “Old State Road”	OSR 160	0.08	No other information available
Shortest “Old US Route”	OUS 52	0.17	No other information available

Source: Indiana Department of Transportation

*Fun Fact 1: US 41 in Indiana was featured in the famous crop duster scene in the 1959 Alfred Hitchcock film North by Northwest, although the scene was actually filmed in Bakersfield, California. **Fun Fact 2: Prior to 2018 I-275 was the only auxiliary interstate that entered 3 states. However, I-275 lost that designation in 2018 when I-295 in Delaware and New Jersey was extended into Pennsylvania. **Fun Fact 3: I-275 is the longest beltway with an Interstate highway designation. It is the third longest beltway behind the Sam Houston Tollway and the Grand Parkway encircling Metro Houston.

THE ENTIRETY OF SR 520 LOOKING SOUTHBOUND FROM ITS INTERSECTION WITH US ROUTE 12