Maine State Highway System

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Maine State Highway System
I-95.svg US 1.svg Maine 11.svg
Standard markers in Maine
System information
Length22,236 mi [1]  (35,785 km)
Highway names
Interstates Interstate x (I-X)
US Highways U.S. Route x (US-X)
State State Route x or Route x (SR X)
System links

In the state of Maine, the Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT) has a system of numbered highways, defined as the "connected main highways throughout the state which primarily serve arterial or through traffic." As of 2006, 22,236 miles [1] of roadway are included in the highway system, including Interstate highways, U.S. Routes, state highways, and other urban and rural local roads.

Contents

Route types and funding

Interstate Highways

I-95 (ME).svg

Maine has one primary Interstate highway, I-95, within its borders, as well as four related routes: I-195, I-295, I-395, and the unsigned I-495. All Interstate highways in Maine are part of the National Highway System and, as such, receive some degree of federal funding. All of these highways are freeways and are built under set standards for roadway design.

U.S. Numbered Highways

Maine contains two primary U.S. numbered highways: U.S. Route 1 and U.S. Route 2.

US 1.svg

US 1 has a bypass and business route as well as several alternate alignments designated US 1A. US 1 also has a "child" route - the intrastate U.S. Route 201, a spur route north to the Canada–US border which also has its own alternate, designated US 201A.

US 2.svg

US 2 has two alternate alignments designated US 2A as well as two child routes - US 202, a southwestern spur stretching to Delaware, and US 302, a western loop connecting US 1 in Portland to US 2 in Montpelier, Vermont. These routes are generally maintained and funded in the same manner as state routes, with these responsibilities falling to the MaineDOT.

Maine 22 intersection on Maine 77 JCT ME 22 on ME 77.jpg
Maine 22 intersection on Maine 77

State Routes

MA Route 15.svg

State routes are numbered and signed by the state, and by extension are also generally maintained and funded by the state, except in areas designated as "urban compact areas," defined by MaineDOT as "those in which the population according to the last United States census exceeds 7,500 inhabitants. Urban compact municipalities are also those in which the population according to the last United States census is less than 7,500 inhabitants but more than 2,499 inhabitants, and in which the ratio of people whose place of employment is in a given municipality to employed people residing in that same municipality according to the last United States census is 1.0 or greater." In this case, the section of road is the responsibility of the municipality. [2]

State-aid highways

State-aid highways are roads chosen by the local municipality which serve as links between other state routes. Winter snow removal is the responsibility of the municipality, while other maintenance and funding is handled by the state, with the exception of urban compact areas.

Townways

Townways in Maine are classified as all highways that do not fall into one of the preceding categories. These roads are chosen, funded, and maintained by the towns, or the county in unorganized areas. The vast majority of highways in the state fall under this category. These also represent the closest thing to county roads in the state, as Maine does not have signed county roads as other states such as New York do.

Signage practices

State Routes

MA Route 4.svg

Maine's route marker is a simple black-on-white design, nearly identical to route markers used in Massachusetts. One- and two-digit numbered routes use 24-by-24-inch (610 mm × 610 mm) or 36-by-36-inch (910 mm × 910 mm) signs while three-digit numbered routes use 30-by-24-inch (760 mm × 610 mm) or 45-by-36-inch (1,140 mm × 910 mm) signs. [3]

Maine has three business state routes, indicated with a "Business" banner accompanying the route shield.

U.S. Highways

US 201A.svg

Maine uses standard shields for U.S. Routes, a white six-point shield on a black border. Square signs are used one- and two-digit routes and rectangular for three-digit routes. Maine also has two business U.S. Routes, indicated by banners complementing the corresponding route shields. Maine also has a U.S. Route 1 Bypass, indicated in the same way, with a bypass shield.

Interstate Highways

I-95 (ME).svg

Maine uses standard-size Interstate shields on its Interstate Highways. Many of Maine's Interstate shields contain the state name, and others do not. I-95 shields on the Maine Turnpike are generally accompanied by Maine Turnpike shields. The Falmouth Spur, designated I-495 in 2004, is unsigned.

See also

Related Research Articles

Interstate Highway System Network of freeways in the United States

The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. The system extends throughout the contiguous United States and has routes in Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico.

United States Numbered Highway System Highway system of the United States of America

The United States Numbered Highway System is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these highways were coordinated among the states, they are sometimes called Federal Highways, but the roadways were built and have always been maintained by state or local governments since their initial designation in 1926.

Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The highway largely parallels the Atlantic coast and US 1, except for the portion between Savannah and Washington and the portion between Portland and Houlton, both of which follow a more direct inland route.

U.S. Route 202 (US 202) is a spur route of US 2. It follows a northeasterly and southwesterly direction stretching from Delaware to Maine, also traveling through the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The highway has borne the number 202 since at least 1936. Before this, sections of the highway were designated U.S. Route 122, as it intersected US 22. Its current designation is based on its intersection with US 2 in Maine.

Interstate 295 (Maine) Highway in Maine

Interstate 295 (I-295) is a 53.11-mile (85.47 km)-long auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Maine from I-95 in Scarborough to I-95 in West Gardiner. The highway was designated the Richard A. Coleman Highway in 2015 by the Maine Legislature. The highway serves as a bypass of Lewiston-Auburn and serves the Greater Portland area. It takes a more direct route between Portland and Augusta, the state capital, than its parent I-95. It also is toll-free, unlike I-95, which carries the tolled Maine Turnpike.

Interstate 195 (I-195), also known as the Saco Industrial Spur, is a short auxiliary Interstate Highway running 2.41 miles (3.88 km) in eastern York County, Maine. The highway, located entirely in the city of Saco, is a nominally east–west route that provides access to Downtown Saco and the resort town of Old Orchard Beach from Interstate 95. The western terminus of I-195 is at a trumpet interchange with the Maine Turnpike in central Saco. The route has numbered interchanges with Industrial Park Road, U.S. Route 1, and Maine State Route 5 before terminating at an at-grade intersection with SR 5 near the border between Saco and Old Orchard Beach.

The Falmouth Spur is a short freeway connecting Interstate 95 (I-95) with I-295 and U.S. Route 1 (US 1) north of Portland, Maine, in the United States. It carries the unsigned designation of I-495. As part of the Maine Turnpike, the mainline of which carries I-95, the Falmouth Spur is a toll road. The spur has only two interchanges—one at each end—and a toll booth in the middle. It is signed only for its destinations—I-95, I-295 and US 1—to minimize driver confusion.

Texas state highways are a network of highways owned and maintained by the U.S. state of Texas. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is the state agency responsible for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of the system. Texas has the largest state highway system, followed closely by North Carolina's state highway system. In addition to the nationally numbered Interstate Highways and U.S. Highways, the highway system consists of a main network of state highways, loops, spurs, and beltways that provide local access to the other highways. The system also includes a large network of farm to market roads that connect rural areas of the state with urban areas and the rest of the state highway system. The state also owns and maintains some park and recreational roads located near and within state and national parks, as well as recreational areas. All state highways, regardless of classification, are paved roads. The Old San Antonio Road, also known as the El Camino Real, is the oldest highway in the United States, first being blazed in 1691. The length of the highways varies from US 83's 893.4 miles (1,437.8 km) inside the state borders to Spur 200 at just 0.05 miles long.

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The New Hampshire Highway System is the public roads system of the U.S. state of New Hampshire containing approximately 17,029 miles (27,406 km) maintained by the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT). All public roads in the state are called "highways", thus there is no technical distinction between a "road" or a "highway" in New Hampshire.

Interstate 95 (I-95) in the US state of Maine is a 303-mile-long (488 km) highway running from the New Hampshire state line in Kittery, to the Canadian border in Houlton. It is the only two-digit Interstate Highway in Maine. In 2004, the highway's route between Portland and Gardiner was changed so that it encompasses the entire Maine Turnpike, a toll road running from Kittery to Augusta.

U.S. Route 1 Bypass (Portsmouth, New Hampshire–Kittery, Maine)

U.S. Route 1 Bypass is a 4.3-mile-long (6.9 km) bypass of U.S. Route 1 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Kittery, Maine. Most of its north section, northeast of the Portsmouth Traffic Circle where it meets the Blue Star Turnpike and Spaulding Turnpike, is built to rudimentary freeway standards, with no cross traffic but driveway access. The southern portion is similarly constructed, although there are two four-way intersections with traffic lights just south of the circle and a third at its south end, just before intersecting with US 1.

The North Carolina Highway System consists of a vast network of Interstate, United States, and state highways, managed by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. North Carolina has the second largest state maintained highway network in the United States because all roads in North Carolina are maintained by either municipalities or the state. Since counties do not maintain roads, there is no such thing as a "county road" within the state.

Exit numbers in the United States Conventions on assigning numbers to highway exits in the United States

In the United States, exit numbers are assigned to freeway junctions, and are usually numbered as exits from freeways. Exit numbers generally are found above the destinations of the exit, as well as a sign in the gore. Exit numbers typically reset at political borders such as state lines. Some major streets also use exit numbers. Freeway exits in the United States are usually numbered in two formats: distance-based and sequential.

Iowa Primary Highway System

The primary highway system makes up over 9,000 miles (14,000 km), approximately 8 percent of the U.S. state of Iowa's public road system. The Iowa Department of Transportation is responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of the primary highway system, which consists of Interstate Highways, United States Highways, and Iowa state highways. Currently, the longest primary highway is U.S. Highway 30 at 332 miles (534 km). The shortest highway is Interstate 129 at 0.27 miles (430 m).

Arkansas Highway System

The Arkansas Highway System is made up of all the highways designated as Interstates, U.S. Highways and State Highways in the US state of Arkansas. The system is maintained by the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT), known as the Arkansas State Highway Department (AHD) until 1977 and the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) from 1977 to 2017. The system contains 16,442.90 miles (26,462.28 km) of Interstates, U.S. Routes, state highways, and special routes. The shortest members are unsigned state highways Arkansas Highway 806 and Arkansas Highway 885, both 0.09 miles (0.14 km) in length. The longest route is U.S. Route 67, which runs 296.95 miles (477.89 km) from Texarkana to Missouri.

Delaware State Route System Overview of the State Route System of Delaware

The Delaware State Route System consists of roads in the U.S. state of Delaware that are maintained by the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT). The system includes the portions of the Interstate Highway System and United States Numbered Highways system located in the state along with state routes and other roads maintained by DelDOT. All roads maintained by the state are assigned a maintenance road number that is only marked on little white markers at intersections and on auxiliary plates below warning signs approaching intersections. These numbers are only unique in a specific county; some roads can be designated with multiple road numbers, and numbers do not necessarily correspond to the signed Interstate, U.S., or state route numbers. DelDOT maintains a total of 5,386.14 miles (8,668.15 km) of roads, comprising 89 percent of the roads within the state. Some large bridges in the state are maintained by other agencies including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Delaware River and Bay Authority. Roads in the system include multilane freeways, multilane surface divided highways, and two-lane undivided roads serving urban, suburban, and rural areas. Some of the roads maintained by DelDOT are toll roads, in which motorists must pay to use.

References

  1. 1 2 Floodgap Roadgap's RoadsAroundME: Frequently Asked Questions and General Information about Maine State Highways
  2. "MaineDOT Community Programs: MaineDOT Community Programs: State Urban Compact Municipalities". Archived from the original on 2018-03-16.
  3. "Standard Details" (PDF). Maine Department of Transportation. November 2014. p. 645 (08). Retrieved August 4, 2017.