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A ghost ramp is a ramp which is built (or partially built) to connect a freeway or other highway to another route which is planned or proposed, and left "stranded" when the latter route is abandoned or cancelled. Ghost ramps are a common sight in many urban areas in the United States, and are often visible signs of a successful freeway revolt. Most ghost ramps are short "stubs", but occasionally one finds lengthy "ramps to nowhere".

The term can also refer to a ramp which at one point handled traffic, but was abandoned for some reason (and never demolished). The term does not refer to inactive or partially-built ramps which are intended to connect to a roadway which is actively planned or under construction; it only refers to ramps which have been abandoned for some reason.

Examples

Examples of ghost ramps around the world:

United States

Alaska
  • There is a ghost ramp on the Johansen Expressway in Fairbanks for the planned Illinois Street ramp. It is unlikely that this ramp will be built due to the discovery of contaminated soil along the proposed route, leading to a steep increase in cost. *
  • On the George Parks Highway in Fairbanks, there is the remnant of a ramp coming off the highway eastbound at Airport Way. That ramp was demolished after the cloverleaf was constructed. *

Arkansas

California
  • In San Mateo County, Interstate 380 was originally planned to continue westward from its junction with Interstate 280 past Skyline Boulevard and over the coastal hills, terminating at Highway 1 near Rockaway Beach in Pacifica. This portion of I-380 was shelved due to budget, environmental, and engineering concerns (the freeway would have crossed directly over the San Andreas Fault). Today, travelers exiting southbound I-280 onto eastbound I-380 can see two ghost ramps which would have carried thru traffic on I-380. CalTrans remains hopeful that the freeway will eventually be built; the callbox and exit numbers along the entire completed length of I-380 (a little over three miles) are consistent with what they would have been had the freeway been finished as planned. *

  • Just south of Pasadena on the continuation of what originally was proposed to be the northern terminus of the Long Beach Freeway (I-710), there is a noticeably widened median and then two slabs of pavement for what could be a future I-710 going through residential Pasadena. There has been debate between Caltrans and residents whether extending the freeway would clear up traffic between the Golden State Freeway (Interstate 5) and the San Gabriel River Freeway (Interstate 605) because there are no north-south running freeways in the heavily populated area. The drawback is that it could only end up displacing surface street traffic on to freeways, improving nothing in turn. [http://maps.google.com/maps?t=h&om=1&ie=UTF8&ll=34.141717,-118.154354&spn=0.007796,0.014462

  • There is an entire section of 101 that was taken down just a few years after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake right in downtown San Francisco just north of the I-80 split. The ramp is visible from above and if you look to the north, there are empty gaps where the original James Lick Skyway ran right through the city. The freeway now ends a few blocks south of its original ending. *

  • Also in San Francisco at the same time the James Lick Skyway was being taken down, the city had also worked on eliminating a viaduct going through downtown that was heavily damaged in the same Loma Prieta earthquake. The Embarcadero which on different maps switched from being SR 480 to a spur of 80 itself being I-480. If you look just between the San Francisco Bay Bridge and the I-80 split off from US-101, there are still ghost ramps leading to where the original viaduct used to run. There are also remnants along where it used to run along the bay and terminated only 2 miles northwest of its original beginning at 80. *

  • In San Mateo on the eastbound connector from CA-92 to the southbound US-101, there is a ghost ramp which was originally built to connect to northbound US-101 via a loop ramp but was never finished. *

District of Columbia

See also sections relating to the DC area in the sections on Maryland and Virginia

  • A small ghost ramp on DC 295, which may have at one point provided a connection to I-295 or (the unsigned) I-695. *

  • The unsigned Interstate 695 terminates abruptly southwest of RFK Stadium, just before the Pennsylvania Avenue overpass. An access road (not shown on current satellite imagery) now extends to RFK; this section of freeway is planned to be replaced. *

Connecticut
In Farmington, Connecticut (west of Hartford, Connecticut), the junction of Interstate 84 and Connecticut State Highway 9 is a four-level stack interchange only half of which is used. The interchange was originally built for Interstate 291, most of which was cancelled. The interchange stood wholly unused for over 20 years, until Route 9 was extended in 1992 to use the south-facing part of the interchange. Route 9 ends at I-84, so the north-facing and through ramps remain unused. Viewable at *

Georgia
Atlanta:

  • At the eastern terminus of Georgia State Route 166, the highway ends immediately after its interchange with the downtown connector, with a stub in the mainline. A half diamond interchange links the freeway to Lakewood Avenue. The eastward extension of this freeway was killed in the Atlanta Freeway Revolt of the 1970s. It would have continued to the east and connected with the East Atlanta Tollway (unbuilt) and would have terminated at Interstate 20. This freeway, along with the existing Langford Parkway, was proposed to be a part of the unbuilt Interstate 420. *

  • Near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, two ghost ramps exist at the Virginia Avenue overpass above Hartsfield Drive. Hartsfield Drive carried traffic into the Atlanta Municipal Airport Terminal before the construction of the present terminals. These ramps were part of four ramps leading to and from Virginia Avenue, which linked the terminal to Interstate 85 south and to the local communities. Originally, the four ramps consisted of a diamond ramp that linked northbound Hartsfield Drive to eastbound Virginia Avenue (still visible), a diamond ramp that linked eastbound Virginia Avenue to southbound Hartsfield Drive (still visible), a cloverleaf ramp that linked northbound Hartsfield Drive to westbound Virginia Avenue (destroyed), and a cloverleaf ramp that linked westbound Virginia Avenue to southbound Hartsfield Drive (destroyed).**

  • The western end of the freeway portion of Georgia State Route 14 Spur was relocated as part of the construction of the South Fulton Parkway. This realignment closed what had been the western end of the freeway. This alignment exists as ghost ramps from Roosevelt Highway at its intersection with Welcome All Road. The ramps depart the intersection to the north and curve toward the east but stop short of intersecting South Fulton Parkway at its Roosevelt Highway interchange. *

Cherokee County:

Indiana
Jeffersonville:

Kentucky

Hopkinsville:

  • The Pennyrile Parkway was to extend from Interstate 24 near Oak Grove to Henderson. The southernmost seven miles were not constructed, however, and a stub was left in Hopkinsville. There are plans in the six-year plan to construct the remaining mileage. *

Louisville:

Newport:

Princeton:

Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana

  • The eastern terminus of Interstate 220 (Louisiana) contains several stub ramps and the grading for the remainder of the interchange; as only the northern half of what was intended to be a beltway was completed. *

Maryland
Baltimore, Maryland staged numerous successful revolts; and has many ghost ramps to show for it.

  • A stretch of U.S. Highway 40 west of downtown Baltimore contains a short below-grade freeway alignment, which was constructed as part of a planned routing of Interstate 170 into downtown. When the I-70 extension into Baltimore was killed, this small freeway segment was orphaned. Currently, US 40 runs east-west on a one-way couplet of surface streets, enters this segment for part of its length, and returns to the surface streets at the other end. A considerable portion of the freeway segment sits unused, as does a ramp leading to the segment. Viewable at *

  • Also due to the killing of I-70 through Baltimore, are ghost ramps along Interstate 95 at the proposed eastern terminus of I-70. Viewable at *

  • Also, immediately south of this intersection, I-695 has a hairpin turn and two additional pairs of ghost ramps; the Windlass Freeway would have continued to the west from this turn. *

In College Park:

  • Between Baltimore and Washington D.C., Interstate 95 merges on with the I-495 beltway that loops around DC to continue into Virginia. At the intersection of both freeways, you can see apparent ghost ramps at the south end, where it looks as if I-95 was supposed to continue through DC. There is evidence on old maps that at one time, I-95 was proposed to cut straight through DC, possibly using the current I-395 routing that has a terminus right in the center. If the freeway were ever built, the intersection for all four directions is already complete. Viewable at *

Massachusetts
A number of cloverleaf interchanges in the Boston, Massachusetts area have a missing arm and overly wide bridges, reflecting an unbuilt highway:

  • In Burlington, at the junction of Interstate 95 (Route 128) and U.S. Route 3, (originally the US 3/128 junction) US 3 south of the junction was cancelled. The cloverleaf has since been converted into a somewhat awkward trumpet interchange, but grading for the cloverleaf is still clearly visible. *

  • In Canton, at the junction of Interstate 95 (Route 128) and Interstate 93, (originally the I-95/128 junction) I-95 north of the junction was cancelled. This cloverleaf has also been converted into a trumpet interchange, but grading for the cloverleaf and collector-distributor lane, plus an extra bridge for a flyover from I-95 south to Route 128 south, are still clearly visible. Portions of the roadway to the north, proposed as the Southwest Expressway are paved and somewhat overgrown and can be traversed by foot today. *

  • In Marlborough, at the junction of Interstate 495 and Interstate 290, the bridges over I-495 are wider than needed for the two-lane freeway connector into Hudson, as there were once plans to extend I-290 all the way to Route 128. There is also grading for an abandoned cloverleaf loop from I-290 east to I-495 north. This was replaced by a flyover, due to a large number of truck rollovers on the ramp. *

Minnesota
  • Interstate 335, a spur of Interstate 35W, was proposed to connect I-35W with Interstate 94 just north of downtown Minneapolis. The project got as far as right-of-way acquisition and grading for exit ramps on I-35W at Johnson Street before it got cancelled due to local opposition. The northbound exit from I-35W to Johnson Street makes a rather long dogleg around a hill, while the southbound lanes of I-35W contain the vestiges of an entrance ramp near Hennepin Avenue. The ramps can be seen on this map. (Reference)

Missouri

New Jersey

New York
Staten Island:
  • Near the Todt Hill Road exit of the Staten Island Expressway is a fully built 3-way interchange which would have connected to the Richmond Parkway, had it been extended to that point. Viewable at *
  • Where the Willowbrook Expressway ends at Victory Boulevard, stubs point south for a never built section of the road. *
  • Where the Richmond Parkway ends on Arthur Kill Road, a stub of the highway crosses Arthur Kill Road and then Richmond Avenue before dead-ending. This would have continued to the above mentioned interchange with the Staten Island Express *
  • The West Shore Expressway ends on the Richmond Parkway, although the interchange is designed as a full 4-way interchange. This was too have connected to the never built Shore Front Drive *

Long Island:

  • At the northern terminus of the Long Island Expressway in Riverhead, there are stub ramps for a continuation of the expressway northward, and even space for an Old Country Road-495 North cloverleaf ramp. *

North Carolina

Ohio

Columbus, Ohio:

  • At Interstate 270 and Alum Creek Drive southeast of the city, one ramp from Alum Creek Drive south to Interstate 270 west was never constructed. Grading and right-of-way are evident and may be constructed in the future if suburban growth continues to persist. *

  • At the Ohio State Highway 315 and Bethel Road interchange, the interchange has a missing loop ramp in the northwest quadrant. Bethel Road ends at OH 315 although an extension east to Morse Road has been in the plans for decades. *

  • The Interstate 270 and Ohio State Highway 315 interchange had a missing direct-right-turn ramp in the northwest quadrant for several decades. Traffic going from Interstate 270 westbound to OH 315 southbound had to turn left from the northeast quadrant ramp. A flyover connection was completed in the early 1990s. *

Cleveland, Ohio:

  • At the interchange of I-490 and I-77. I-490 was to continue beyond this point, but it was cancelled. *

In and around Cincinnati, Ohio:

  • At the interchange of I-74 and U.S. Highway 127. This was supposed to have been the interchange for the Colerain Expressway, which was never constructed. *

Oregon
Portland, Oregon and its surrounding areas has several examples:

  • Just before the east end of the Marquam Bridge, for the cancelled Mt. Hood Freeway. Additional ghost ramps to this cancelled freeway were removed when Interstate 5 (which runs on the Marquam Bridge) was widened. This ramp is not viewable from above, as it is on the lower deck of a two-layer viaduct (and is completely concealed from arieal or satellite photography by the upper deck).

  • At the western end of the Hawthorne Bridge, which used to connect to the now-defunct Harbor Drive freeway. It is now used as a pedestrian and bike path connecting the bridge to Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Also visible is another ramp connecting the bridge to Naito Parkway that was abandoned as unsafe during a 1990's renovation. *

  • On the Front Avenue overpass over I-405, which is much wider than it needs to be. Used to accommodate ramps which provided access to Harbor Drive. *

  • On the ramp from I-5 southbound to I-84 eastbound, and on the approach from I-84 west to I-5. These may have been intended to connect I-84 with the Steel Bridge. *

  • On the I-5 ramps to and from the northern end of I-405, for the proposed Rose City Freeway through northeast Portland. A half-built stack interchange was built, including a portion of freeway structure past I-5 from the Fremont Bridge. The freeway structure was eventually reconfigured to connect to N Kerby Avenue at the request of nearby Emanual Hospital. Ramps connecting the Kerby Avenue connector to I-5 were left incomplete. *

  • The massive I-405/US 30 interchange at the west end of the Fremont Bridge was built for the cancelled I-505 project. Initially, this sat as a ghost ramp until a temporary connection to NW Vaughn Street was built. The Vaughn Street connection was reconfigured into a short stretch of freeway rerouting US 30 onto a new 4-lane undivided highway called Yeon Avenue. Two ghost ramps exist just short of Vaughn Street that may have provided the temporary connection. *

  • Over the access road to the Sunset Transit Center in Beaverton, is an overpass whose only purpose is to link two fields, presumably left over from transit construction. The overpass itself is paved; however neither approach is. It can be viewed at *.

  • As an example of a recently-built ghost ramp; in 2000 the interchange between Oregon State Route 217 and Interstate 5 in Tigard was redesigned. The project was planned in two phases; only phase 1--construction of a flyover ramp from I-5 NB to 217 NB, redesign of the other ramps, and several other improvements--was completed. Phase 2 is currently unfunded, has no timetable for construction, and is unlikely to be completed in the foreseeable future due to lack of funding. A ghost ramp, located on the ramp from SB OR-217 to SB I-5, was included in phase 1. *

In Eugene, Oregon:

Pennsylvania
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and surrounding communities:

In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:

Rhode Island
  • On J.T. Connell Highway in Newport, there is a stub ramp at the north end at RI 138 and also at the highway's interchange with the Newport Bridge Access Road [http://maps.google.com/maps?t=h&ll=41.501507,-71.319433&spn=0.00376,0.011855. Along the stretch of highway in between, there is also an unused road surface on what would be the southbound side of the highway.
  • In Johnston, exit 6 the I-295 and US 6 interchange was meant for I-84. The ramp that was to go westbound (exit 6c) has been converted to a turnaround ramp (295 north to 295 south). *
  • In East Providence, there are ghost ramps at either end of the Henderson Bridge, and even grading past the eastern end of the highway, suggesting the highway was planned to go to RI 114/1A (Pawtucket Avenue).

Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee:

Memphis, Tennessee:

  • Interstate 40 was planned to go through the city's Overton Park but public opposition, combined with a court victory by opponents, forced abandonment of the plans. The eastern portion of the road had already been built inside the Interstate 240 loop and this non-interstate highway is now named Sam Cooper Boulevard while the northern portion of the I-240 loop was redesignated as I-40. *

  • On I-40 at the end of the Hernando DeSoto Bridge, there are two stub ramps off the north sides of the Front Street ramps. *

Texas
Near Houston, Texas:

  • On the South Sam Houston Tollway, there is a "Future Kirby Drive" exit that currently has only a stub on the north side of the tollway. * Note: Satellite image is outdated due to recent construction.

  • Near Katy, going southbound from Fry Road, Grand Parkway turns from limited-access freeway into a string of split intersections. There is a ghost ramp at nearly every intersection.

  • There is a long strip of "Future Crosby Freeway" West of E. Sam Houston N. Parkway. *

Near Irving, Texas

  • At the southern end of Texas 161 at Texas 183 near DFW, there is a huge stub of highway and some stub ramps around the interchange. *

Virginia
In Danville
  • At the interchange of US 29 at Virginia State Highway 41, VA 41 is only open to the east of the interchange, but with stub and ghost ramps leading to and from VA 41 to the west.

  • North of town, at the interchange of US 29 and US 29 Business, the former US 29 North highway is still intact and out of use. The former US 29 South highway is in use as the US 29 Business south offramp.

  • On the Danville Expressway (US 29/US 58) at the Holland Road overpass, there are four stub ramps around the overpass, suggesting a diamond interchange was intended.

Washington
In Seattle, Washington:

  • To the side of the new Qwest Field running up 4th Avenue S., there still lies the original entrance to I-90 eastbound, but it has been demolished and moved a quarter mile south (made up from the newly constructed Edgar Martinez Way S. south of Safeco Field). The western terminus of I-90 still stands right next to the ghost ramp of the former eastbound onramp.

In Tacoma, Washington:

  • The freeway section of Washington State Route 7, just south of downtown, terminates rather abruptly, with a ramp configuration suggesting that the freeway was intended to run further south. This can be seen by viewing late 1960s maps, which show a Route 7 freeway continuing south to Spanaway. *

In Lakewood, Washington:

  • Visible remnants of a converted cloverleaf interchange may be found at the interchange between Interstate 5 and Washington State Route 512. There is an abandoned SB to EB loop ramp that was supplanted by a three lane left-turn on the NB-to-EB ramp. It is abandoned, but easily visible due to a large dirt mount where the road surface once was.*

West Virginia

Benwood, West Virginia:

Charleston, West Virginia:

  • There are currently two stubs for a future second Kanawha River crossing on Interstate 64 between Dunbar and South Charleston. The stub along the north bank was constructed in 2004 and the stub along the south bank was constructed in 2006. When funding becomes available, a parallel river crossing for eastbound traffic will be constructed and the existing span will be converted into westbound traffic. *

Wheeling, West Virginia:

Canada

Ontario
In Windsor, Ontario:
  • From Highway 401 to Provincial Road, there is an abandoned SB to EB loop ramp. it has now been supplanted by a left-turn lane to the NB-to-EB ramp. It is abandoned, but easily visible from both the road and freeway. *

In Hamilton, Ontario:

  • From Plains Road East, heading Westbound, looping around in a cloverleaf ramp to Queen Elizabeth Way Eastbound/Southbound. *

British Columbia
Many ghost ramps in BC are remains of ramps from older interchanges that have been reconfigured.

Examples include:

  • A few ghost ramps exist at Highway 1 at Exit 58, 200 St. When the interchange was reconfigured into a diamond-SPUI hybrid, the remaining ramps can be seen unclearly from the overpass on Highway 1. Even the remains of the old road to the now demolished old overpass can be seen clearly. A low-resolution overhead view of the interchange is at *

  • Ghost ramps also exist at what used to be an interchange between Highway 99 and Railway Drive in Surrey; this is located between exits 10 and 16, at Highway 99's overpass over the Burlington Northern railway. It is very probable that this interchange was abandoned simply because this is a sparsely populated area and the nearby train station is no longer used.*

  • Two ghost ramps exist at Exit 44-Cape Horn Interchange on Highway 1. Seen from the overpass, the ghost ramps show that this was a trumpet interchange- reconfigured due to weaving.

  • On Highway 1, some ghost ramps exist at the Exit 37/Gaglardi Way Interchange. Seen from the overpass, and unclearly from Highway 1, they give a sign that Gaglardi Way once had a plan to be extended. *

Québec
  • On Autoroute 50 in Mirabel, there is a trumpet interchange shape on Google Maps leading to Boulevard Henri-Fabre, however the map shows an interchange has been completed.
  • There is also a stub ramp at the end of Commerce A-1 off Autoroute 50 at Mirabel, as well as a stub ramp off A-50 westbound just prior to the interchange. See it here.
  • There are stub ramps on eastbound and westbound Autoroute 40 near Montréal just west of the interchange with Boulevard des Anciens-Combattants *.
  • There are ghost ramps at the northern terminus of Autoroute 13 at Autoroute 640 in Boisbriand. There are two extra overpasses (for a total of four), an unused cloverleaf loop, stub ramps where the final two cloverleafs would be constructed, and even the grading for a continuation of the freeway north of here. Google Map
  • Autoroute 440 (Autoroute Dufferin-Montmorency) has ghost ramps just above Rue St-Vallier Est (St. Vallier Road East) in downtown Quebec City, for a proposed completion of A-440 and link to A-973 (Autoroute Laurentienne)/Quebec route 175 via an under-city Tunnel (much like Autoroute 720 in Downtown Montreal) in the St-Roch and Limoilou neighbourhoods. The ramps would have connected to the tunnel, but it was never built, and the freeway remains in two sections to this day, separated by downtown. The western end of A-440 starts at the Autoroute 40/Autoroute 73 interchange, and currently ends its freeway segment at Avenue St-Sacrement, continuing as Boulevard Charest (Charest Boulevard). It resumes at the intersection of St. Vallier Road East, continuing along the river to Quebec route 138 in Boischatel. Google Map Google Map close-up of ramps
  • Autoroute 15 in Brossard and La Prairie has ghost ramps for a proposed Autoroute-to-Autoroute interchange (Possibly Autoroute 6). The interchange was graded as a Y-interchange, but the carriageways for A-15 were built closer together, and the interchange has been cancelled. A-6 may have been routed towards the Farnham, Quebec area, possibly with the name Autoroute Haute-Richelieu (Upper Richelieu Autoroute). An interchange ramp was also graded for Boulevard Taschereau (Taschereau Boulevard, Quebec route 134), but has been cancelled as well. Google Map of both interchanges

United Kingdom

  • In Manchester, the A57(M) motorway has an unfinished slip road that hangs 20 feet in the air. It is hidden from view from the road.

  • Glasgow's M8 motorway has several ghost ramps built for the abandoned Inner Ring Road. The most famous examples are the West Street ramps at Junction 20 (Kingston), and another pair can be found at Junction 15 (Townhead). There are also ghost ramps on the westbound M8 between junctions 16 and 17, for an unbuilt motorway leading out to the north and west.

  • Newcastle has two ghost ramps on the northbound Central Motorway East (originally A1(M), now A167(M)), links from a proposed Central Motorway East By-pass. (A third northbound link was opened as the local access from Camden Street.)

  • In Surrey, the M23 begins with junction seven and has a ghost ramp that was intended to extend the M23 further into London.

  • On many early rural motorways, ghost ramps can be found at locations proposed for Motorway Service Areas. Sites for services were designated at regular intervals, about 12 or 13 miles apart, and the ghost ramps built as part of the original motorway construction. Land adjacent to the motorway was often obtained for the future services - usually a neat circular or hexagonal plot that is easily identified on aerial photos: e.g., M18 near Hatfield. While many of these original sites were opened as service areas, those remaining unused are now unlikely ever to be developed, either because the sites are too small and restricted, or because they're just in the wrong place: Doncaster North services recently opened less than 2 miles from the ghost ramps at Hatfield.

Cancelled highway projects | Road junction types | Streets and roads

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Ghost ramp".

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