I used to think that the various left lane exits and travel lanes that suddenly turned into exits on I84 between Danbury and Hartford, CT, were the worst intersections I've found (hopefully the person who designed those is still in the Middletown State Hospital), but they've been topped, for example, by this one in Oxford, Mississippi, involving Routes 7MS and 6MS/US278.

Courtesy of Google, we can see that anyone northbound who wants to go west has to exit in the left lane and then go toward the oncoming traffic in order to get on the westbound exit/entrance ramp. And if there is sufficient traffic, the queue backs into the passing lane of the northbound highway, and sometimes worse.



It's the same mess for southbound going east, westbound going south, and eastbound going north. You wouldn't believe the numbers of accidents, many head-ons, that I have seen on account of this horribly-designed intersection.

But I'm sure the cost in human lives was less than the cost of making it a true cloverleaf.

Anyone out there have anything to compare with this (please use Google Map for illustration)?

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I agree, I-84 from Danbury to Hartford is a nasty stretch of highway. I've driven it a number of times on my way to Maine, and hated going through it every time.

Let me present to you, via Google Maps, the I-80, Rte. 46, Rte. 23 interchange in New Jersey.

One word describes it: Yikes.

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Yes, they laughed at Einstein, but only because of his silly hairstyle; no one was actually laughing at his science.

And that map doesn't even begin to describe the perpetual state of construction there.

I will drive up to 10 miles out of my way to avoid that nightmare. They've been working on that knot(and the stretch of Rte. 46 east into West Paterson) for about 15 years now. I don't think even they remember what they were planning to accomplish anymore.

They were building the overpass for River Road in Totowa for two years.

One overpass.

Two years.

At one point I thought they were done with it, but a year after they were "done" they started construction on that same overpass. Again. I don't know if they ever stopped working on it, since I don't go that way very often.

What's really amazing is that, for comparison, the Empire State Building was built in 410 days. 102 stories. 410 days. That's like putting up 100 of those overpasses in Totowa in a year and two months.

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Yes, they laughed at Einstein, but only because of his silly hairstyle; no one was actually laughing at his science.

This one is an example of what I think is called a single point diamond and is gaining popularity among engineers from what I've been told--note the central point of attack of all traffic, and the lights are such that crossing traffic passes to the left of oncoming crossing, the reverse of normal.

That and SPUI (Wikipedia)

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Cool, thanks! Readers note: the first illustration at the top of that link is not a SPUI (I'm thinking they're better called Single Point Intellgent Design Urban Interchange--SPIDUI, which sounds a lot like what I do when I see it), the SPUI is the next illustration down. And the blue lines are closer to the blue, and the red to the red.

You obviously haven't driven overseas...

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Whoever says "perception is reality" is daft. It's merely an abstraction, and often not a very good one.

http://www.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en...17366,0.037165

Depending on how cooperative the link is, you might have to center it. This is Maryland Route 216 and Interstate 95. One offramp for each direction of traffic off of 95 onto 216, no loops. So people wanting to go west off southbound 95 must cross traffic going east on 216, and vice versa.

There is a traffic light at each intersection, but they are only operational from the morning rush to about 10pm. Given that to the west there are a large number of large stores and industrial areas, and that down the east side of 216 is a huge distribution center for one of the major grocery store chains, there's tractor trailer traffic going around the clock. Both intersections where the crossover occurs, there are any number of scars from accidents during the times those lights are down.

My contribution to this thread doen't have a picture, alas. When I was a kid I would spend the summer with my father in Oregon and at the time there was a very unpopular highway commisioner. My father took me out to one of his bigger blunders before they tore it down. A freeway exit ramp that was banked on the wrong side! If you took it at any more than 20mph you ended up in the bushs. That got him fired.

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Gimme a minute to read through Jay's latest observations...

Although it pales in comparison to some on this thread, this one can be quite fun, especially in high traffic...

This intersection where Brooklyn Mountain Road meets Durban Avenue (right here in my town of Hopatcong, New Jersey) may not look like much, either, but I think there is an accident at this corner at least once a month (and that's just the ones I know about). In fact, there was a wreck there just this evening.

It's just a simple intersection of two roads, with stop signs in two directions, but people just can't seem to figure out the whole "stop" concept, even though there are now FLASHING stop signs that were installed after numerous accidents.

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Yes, they laughed at Einstein, but only because of his silly hairstyle; no one was actually laughing at his science.

It actually shows I-95 and SR 175, which matches your description. The interchange with 216 (farther to the south) is a standard cloverleaf.

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Gah, sorry, that should be Route 175 and Interstate 95.

*sigh* Getting old.

...and not too far from there, another topographically tiny terror, I share this local slice of hell, The dreadful Netcong circle!

Combining all your favorite hazards attendant to circles(over-confident speeders, overly-cautious creepers and even a poorly timed flow control light on one end) with the additional thrills of a blind run-up from an underpass and two dangerous curve oriented merges from two different road speeds, the Netcong circle is good way to prove not only your driving skills but also your mastery of blood pressure control, handling of sudden bouts of terror and the ability to refrain from extra-window profane displays of an aural and/or physical nature.

Of course, in typical New Jersey fashion, even our traffic circles (often known as rotary junctions elsewhere) are bassackwards from the way the rest of the sane world does it. Every rotary I've hit in another state follows a "yield upon entering" rule, which makes sense, and gives the driver a clear directive for how to handle the circle. That Netcong circle? I've lived here for more than five years, and I still don't know what the right of way is for that stupid thing.

I have a question: Do traffic and highway engineers actually drive, or do they take the bus everywhere? I only ask because of all the boneheaded decisions that I see in road construction in this state. It's like the people designing the stuff don't even care.

For example, take this intersection of Rte. 10 and Rte. 46 in Ledgewood, NJ. The two lane highway adds a turn lane, and then, for no apparent reason except that there was room for it, also adds a third travel lane at this intersection. Just after the intersection, the road merges back into a two lane highway. Of course, what do people do when traffic backs up at the light? You guessed it, people jump into that right lane that shouldn't be there, and try to cut in front of everyone else.

Well, they don't wind up in front of me at that intersection when they get in that lane, I can tell you that. If you were behind me when I got to that light, you will be behind me after it. Just because you were dumb enough to get in a lane that ends in 500 feet doesn't make it my problem when you can't get back in.

That lane needs some concrete barriers to block it off and keep people from doing that; heck, even just painting off the area would help.

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Yes, they laughed at Einstein, but only because of his silly hairstyle; no one was actually laughing at his science.

Good grief, what a mess!

Two questions:

1. Concerning this part of the intersection



is that area right in the middle controlled by traffic lights, or is it "First come, first swerve?"

2. The features indicated by the white arrows



are these Jersey barriers which are in this case opening up two lanes to three?

Weird way to weave through traffic there!

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There's a traffic circle right in the center of Concord, MA, that makes me very nervous. The "yield upon entering" rule applies to everyone except those entering from the west, who have the right of way. Considering that this is a major tourist spot (i.e., lots of people are there who don't know the area), I'm surprised there isn't an accident every day.

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