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Interstate 70 (abbreviated I-70) is a long interstate highway in the United States. It runs from Interstate 15 about a mile from Cove Fort, Utah to a Park and Ride in Baltimore, Maryland. I-70 approximately traces the path of U.S. Route 40 (and also the old National Road) over much of its distance, except: between Cove Fort, Utah and Denver, Colorado where it follows U.S. Route 89, U.S. Route 50, and (primarily) U.S. Route 6; between Limon, Colorado and Oakley, Kansas where it follows U.S. Route 24; and between Washington, Pennsylvania and Hancock, Maryland.

Length

Mileskmstate
232 376 Utah
451 731 Colorado
424 687 Kansas
252 408 Missouri
156 253 Illinois
157 254 Indiana
225 365 Ohio
14 23 West Virginia
168 272 Pennsylvania
94 152 Maryland
2,173 3,520 Total

Major cities

Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs.

Intersections with other interstates

Route Notes

Utah

  • I-70 between the towns of Green River and Salina (Exits 54 to 162), a distance of 108 miles (174 km), has no services, the longest such stretch in the interstate system (although at Exit 89, basic services are available about 12 miles (20 km) north of I-70 in Emery).
  • As originally planned the western terminus of I-70 was Denver, Colorado. Utah and Colorado pressured the federal government to extend the plans for I-70 further west, arguing that a direct link between Denver, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah was vital for an effective highway system. Utah's proposal was to follow U.S. Highway 6 and connect to I-15 at Spanish Fork, Utah. Federal planners (influenced by the military) agreed I-70 needed to be extended, but not to serve Salt Lake. The military wanted to better connect southern California with the North Eastern U.S. This led to I-70's constructed route that terminates at Cove Fort. Many motorists include I-70 as part of their cross-country drives between New York City and Los Angeles (which are accessible to I-70 via other interstates).

Colorado

  • The section between Loveland Pass and Grand Junction, Colorado is one of the few stretches of Interstate that regularly remains closed for days at a time, as it passes through areas of the Rocky Mountains that receive large amounts of snowfall and are notoriously prone to avalanches. I-70 is one of few surface roads connecting ski resorts such as Keystone and Aspen with Denver and due to the Eisenhower Tunnel, it is more likely to be open than the road over Loveland Pass. An alternative is to fly into the ski towns' small airports.
  • I-70 through Glenwood Canyon was the last section of I-70 to be completed. The 15 mile (24 km) stretch was completed in 1992 and was an engineering marvel due to the extremely difficult terrain and narrow space in the canyon, which requires corners that are sharper than normal Interstate standards. Construction was delayed for many years due to environmental concerns. The difficulties in building the road in the canyon were compouned by the fact that a railroad occupied the south bank and many temporary construction projects took place to keep U.S. Highway 6 open, at the time the only east-west road in the area. There are three eastbound and two westbound tunnels, and much of the highway is elevated above the Colorado River. The speed limit in this section is 50 mph (80 km/h) due to the limited sight distance and sharper corners. Great care was taken to not destroy the local ecosystem with the building of the road. All rest areas through this stretch use reclaimed water. In 2004, part of this section was destroyed by a large boulder that fell while the road was shut down for construction.
  • The Eisenhower Tunnel on I-70 is the highest vehicular tunnel in the world, and the longest tunnel built under the Interstate program.
  • What had been planned as I-470 around Denver, Colorado exists in three sections: C-470, E-470 (eastern extension) and the Northwest Parkway (originally conceived of as W-470); E-470 intersects I-70 in Aurora. There are no immediate plans to promote the 470s (as they are known in Colorado) to interstate status.

Kansas

  • I-70 is given the nickname "Main Street of Kansas" as the interstate extends from the Western border to the Eastern border covering 424 miles and passing through most of the state's principal cities in the process.
  • The highway gave its name to the "I-70 Killer," a serial killer who committed a string of murders within a few miles of it in several Midwestern states in the 1980s. No suspect has ever been apprehended despite the widespread publicity the murders have generated, including their being featured several times on the television show America's Most Wanted.
  • I-70 also carries the distinction of having the closest distance between two distinct child interstates with the same child interstate number. I-470 near Topeka, Kansas and I-470 on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri are approximately 72 miles apart.

Missouri

  • In Kansas City, Missouri, I-670 cuts directly through the downtown while I-70 bypasses the taller buildings a few blocks north. Westbound I-670 is also designated Alternate I-70 making this the only permanent "alternate" interstate in the country. The pair, along with US 71, US 24, US 40, US 169, I-35, and I-29, creates the downtown freeway loop, also known as the "Alphabet loop". Most of the interstates in this loop are in their second mile, so all exits (no matter the which interstate carries the road) are numbered 2 and suffixed with every letter of the alphabet except I, O and Z.
  • In St. Louis, Missouri, I-70 spawns two child routes: I-170, or the Innerbelt Expressway, and I-270, or the American Veterans Memorial Highway.
  • In addition to the two child routes, people often confuse Missouri State Highway 370 to be I-370. The 12-mile (19-km) freeway gives area commuters an alternate route across the Missouri River, allowing them to avoid the congestion on I-70's Blanchette Memorial Bridge crossing of the Missouri River. Route 370 runs from I-270 at the Bridgeton/Hazelwood city boundary (at Exit 22B) to I-70 in St. Peters (at Exit 224). Westbound Route 370 is designated as an Alternate I-70 route for traffic coming from Westbound I-270. According to a MoDOT official, MoDOT submitted Route 370 to AASHTO for upgrade to Interstate status, but AASHTO wanted Route 370 to be renamed as I-870, while MoDOT wanted it named I-370.
  • At the Poplar Street Bridge, I-70 is part of a four-interstate multiplex. From the Missouri state line, westbound on the bridge is marked as I-44, I-55, I-64, and I-70. This is the only four-interstate multiplex in the country.
  • The 1985 World Series between the Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals was nicknamed the "I-70 Series" because St. Louis and Kansas City are the two endpoints of I-70 in Missouri.

Illinois

  • The 0 milepost for I-70 is on I-270 at the New Chain of Rocks Bridge. The intersection of I-55/70 and I-270 is 15 miles from the New Chain of Rocks Bridge, and 20 miles from the Poplar Street Bridge, where I-55/70 actually enters Illinois. This means the mileposts in Illinois are five miles lower than they should be. If you were to travel on Eastbound I-70 near the intersection, you would see Mile Marker 16 following Mile Marker 20. Furthermore, on Westbound I-70, the intersection of I-70, I-55, and I-270 is exits 15 A&B. Five miles further westbound on I-55/70, Illinois Route 159 is also exits 15 A&B.

Indiana

Ohio

West Virginia

Pennsylvania

  • Shunpiking the Interstate 70 portion of the Pennsylvania Turnpike via Interstate 68 and Interstate 79 is actually shorter than using the Turnpike. From Hancock, Maryland to Washington, Pennsylvania using the Turnpike the route is 155 miles (250 km), while the Shunpiking route from Hancock, Maryland to Washington, Pennsylvania via Morgantown, West Virginia is 151.8 miles (244 km). The speed limit is also higher on the Shunpiking route as West Virginia has a speed limit of 70 mph (110 km/h).
  • Drivers on I-70 near Breezewood, Pennsylvania have to leave the freeway and travel a few blocks on US 30 through traffic lights -- rare on an interstate -- before returning to the freeway. There used to be a sign of a policeman pointing at drivers where eastbound I-70 leaves the Pennsylvania Turnpike, saying, "You! Slow Down!" This could be fixed by building a direct connection between the PA Turnpike and the freeway section of I-70. However, it is argued that building a direct connection between the two would disrupt the economy in Breezewood, which serves motorists passing through the town. Map Aerial photo Photos of Eastbound I-70 with traffic lights: *.
  • The 38 miles (61km) of I-70 between Washington, Pennsylvania and New Stanton, Pennsylvania is a sub-standard section of the highway. It is characterized by sharp curves, limited sight distance, narrow shoulders, and lack of merge lanes at interchanges. Traffic on clover leaf ramps must weave in the right through lane of traffic due to the lack of a third lane for entering and exiting traffic. Other on and off ramps effectively function as RIRO, making for a nerveracking entrance if traffic is approaching. The speed limit on this stretch is 55 mph (90 km/h)
  • I-70 went through Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at one point; its original route has been incorporated into I-376, as well as parts of I-76, I-79 and I-279.

Maryland

  • Near I-70's eastern end Baltimore, Maryland, a sign announcing the distances to Columbus, Ohio, St. Louis, Missouri, Denver, Colorado, and Cove Fort, Utah near the freeway's western terminus, has sprung up in the highway's median (Photo: from [http://www.aaroadtrips.com/i-070b_md.html). This sign was intended as a test of the Clearview typeface used as an alternate to FHWA Series E-Modified, the font currently used on most American highway signs.
  • I-70 was originally supposed to intersect with Interstate 95 in Baltimore. Due to opposition from environmental groups, this plan was scrapped. The intersection to I-95 and the spur route to downtown (I-170) had already been built before plans were cancelled. The signs for I-170 are now replaced with signs for US 40, and I-70 terminates at the exit for Security Boulevard in the western suburb of Woodlawn. The pavement of the interstate runs into a Park and Ride. The only remaining sign of the planned extension into downtown is exit ramps to nowhere on I-95. Aerial photos of I-95 ghost ramps: [http://maps.google.com/?q=Baltimore+MD&ll=39.269565,-76.658628&spn=0.003389,0.010825&t=k
  • The aforementioned I-170 ends shortly beyond the US 1 (Fulton Avenue/Monroe Street) junction. No traffic is allowed on this part of the freeway (all traffic must utilize the exit ramp back to surface streets and US 40), although streetlights and an empty sign bridge serve as proof that I-170 was to be extended beyond this point, along with vacant ramps to/from US 1. After the I-70 extension was scrapped, I-170 was to continue towards I-95 and be renamed I-595. After that plan fell through, US 40 was rerouted to the old I-170 freeway. A ghost ramp onto southbound I-95, the most obvious clue that I-70/I-595 was planned to intersect there, has been demolished.
  • At Frederick, Maryland, I-70 split into two branches: I-70N, which led into Baltimore, and I-70S, which took a path into the Washington, D.C. area. I-70N is now I-70, while I-70S has been renamed I-270. The I-70S designation was also used for the current I-70 freeway in Western Pennsylvania. (There are signs along US 40 in Baltimore that still depict the I-70 freeway as I-70N. Trucks are directed onto it via I-695.)

See also

Reference

  • 2005 Rand McNally "The Road Atlas 2005" - newest feature- interstate mileage by state

External links

Information and images

Travel sites

Interstate 70

Interstate 70

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Interstate 70".

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