U.S. Route 50
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U.S. Route 50 is an east-west U.S. highway. As indicated by the trailing "0" in its route number, US 50 is a main coast-to-coast route, or at least nearly so. Signs at both termini give the Maryland to California distance as 3,073 miles (4,946 km) Photos: Signs in [West Sacramento] and [Ocean City] giving the distance to the other end, from [link]., though that mileage is based off of an older measurment and has likely changed due to bypasses, Interstate highway co-signings, and other realignments.
US 50 serves both Jefferson City, Missouri, and Carson City, Nevada, two of only five state capitals not served by an Interstate highway.
In Nevada, US 50 is known as "The Loneliest Road in America" (see Nevada section).
Major cities
- Sacramento, California
- Carson City, Nevada
- Kansas City, Missouri
- St. Louis, Missouri (metro area only, does not physically enter St. Louis)
- Cincinnati, Ohio
- Parkersburg, West Virginia
- Clarksburg, West Virginia
- Winchester, Virginia
- Washington, D.C.
- Annapolis, Maryland
- Salisbury, Maryland
- Ocean City, Maryland
Termini
US 50's western terminus is in West Sacramento, California at an interchange with Interstate 80. Its eastern terminus is in Ocean City, Maryland at the southern end of a barrier island, at the intersection of North Division Street (eastbound US 50) and Baltimore Avenue (Maryland Route 378, signed as northbound Maryland Route 528). Westbound US 50 begins one block west, at Philadelphia Avenue (southbound MD 528).
The West Sacramento terminus once had a sign saying "US 50 East / Ocean City, MD / 3073 Miles". It was stolen by a fraternity sometime during 2002, and was replaced with a more ordinary mileage sign. When installed, the replacement erroneously listed the distance as 3,037 miles (4,888 km), but it was subsequently patched over with the correct mileage. [End of US highway 50], [The Sign Battle Saga] There is a similar sign at the eastern terminus that indicates the distance to Sacramento, CA (again, 3,073 miles).
US 50 once extended all the way to San Francisco, by going south through Stockton and then west to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. This part was decommissioned in favor of Interstate 580. Photo: [Unintended exposure of the US 50 shield] in East Bay Area, from [link]
(However, the part going across the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge is I-80.)
{| class="wikitable" style="margin: 0.5em auto; font-size:95%;"
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!colspan=5|Browse numbered routes
|- style="text-align: center;"
|- style="text-align: center;"
|colspan=2 align="center"|← 49''
!California
|colspan=2 align="center"|51 →''
|- style="text-align: center;"
|colspan=2 align="center"|← 28''
!Nevada
|colspan=2 align="center"|80 →''
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.States traversed
The highway passes through the following states:
Route description
Maryland
There are two sections of US 50 in Maryland. The first, from east to west, follows Ocean Gateway, then part of a blue star memorial highway, then the John Hanson Highway. It serves as a major highway connecting Ocean City, Salisbury, Cambridge, Easton, Annapolis, and Washington, D.C.. The second section cuts through the corner of Garrett County for less than 10 miles.District of Columbia
In the District of Columbia, US 50 mostly follows New York Avenue and Constitution Avenue sharing part of its routing with U.S. Route 1. The route leaves the district via the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge over the Potomac River, entering Arlington County, Virginia multiplexed with Interstate 66. Aside from the Roosevelt Bridge, U.S. 50 has another water crossing in the district, the Baltimore-Washington Parkway Bridge over the Anacostia River.Virginia
U.S. 50 enters Virginia in Arlington County as Arlington Boulevard, passing near the Arlington National Cemetery. It goes through Fairfax along Fairfax Boulevard and west of the city it is known as Lee Jackson Memorial Highway. Beyond Fairfax County, US 50 becomes known as John Mosby Highway. Between Paris and Winchester, it is multiplexed with U.S. Route 17 and beginning in Winchester, it becomes the Northwestern Turnpike before entering West Virginia.West Virginia
In West Virginia, US 50 is routed along the Northwestern Turnpike and Corridor D of the Appalachian Development Highway System. During its journey through the state, US 50 passes briefly through Garrett County, Maryland. The part of the highway east of Clarksburg is a mountainous rural highway, but the section between I-79 at Clarksburg and I-77 at Parkersburg is a four-lane superhighway as Corridor D. The remining link in Corridor D, from I-77 to the Ohio River is currently under construction.Ohio
Indiana
Illinois
U.S. 50 has at least two multiplexes in Illinois. It overlaps with Interstate 64 from O'Fallon to East St. Louis and with Interstate 255 from East St. Louis to the Missouri state line.Missouri
Kansas
NOTE: U.S. 50 was once split in Kansas. The eastern end of the split was near Baldwin City while the western end was in Garden City. U.S. 50N ran along what is now U.S. 56 to Larned, then followed what is now Kansas Highway 156 ("K-156," which itself was once U.S. 156) to Garden City. U.S. 50S may have followed what is now K-33 south through Wellsville, then turned west along what is now K-68 to Ottawa. U.S. 50S followed what is now U.S. 50 proper the rest of the way (this does not take into consideration new rural alignments or bypasses of said highways). U.S. 50N and 50S met at the intersection of Main Street and Kansas Ave. in Garden City (route56.com)
Colorado
In Colorado, US 50 is carried through the Rocky Mountains via Monarch Pass.Utah
Much of US 50 in Utah is multiplexed with Interstate 70, ironically though, the 2 largest cities served by US 50 in Utah (Salina and Delta) are on the portion that is not freeway. Similar to the Nevada portion, Utah's section of US 50 features long distances with no services available including Thompson Springs to Fruita, Colorado for about 60 miles, Green River to Salina for about 110 miles, and Delta to a single gas station on the Utah/Nevada State Line, for about 150 miles.Nevada
In Nevada, US 50 is known as the "Loneliest Road in America" a name it earned due to its long stretches with little or no services. It is routed along the old Lincoln Highway and the path of the Pony Express. It passes through the towns of Carson City, Moundhouse Dayton, Stagecoach, Silver Springs, Fallon, Austin, Eureka, and Ely.California
In California, US 50 enters the state in South Lake Tahoe and is routed along the Lincoln Highway. It passes through Placerville on its way to Sacramento where it is then routed along Business Loop Interstate 80 between California State Route 99 in Sacramento and Interstate 80 in West Sacramento.Alternate routes
U.S. Route 50 Alternate in Nevada has an eastern terminus west of Fallon. It heads to the northwest to an intersection with Interstate 80 in Fernley, then turns due south with Alternate US 95. It rejoins US 50 in Silver Springs, with Alt US 95 continuing south. The two legs of Alt US 50 and the main line route form a 30 mile (48 km) triangle in the Nevada desert.Branches
See also
External links
References
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