User talk:MatthewAnderson707/sandbox

Major intersections (Cancelled US 99 project)
=U.S. Route 80 in Arizona=

Historic Route 80
=Highway Proposals=

This is where I put forward my proposals for new highways or changes to highways in existence. Since this is purely fictional, it can never be posted in a Wikipedia article of any kind.

=U.S. Route 97 in Alaska=

My Proposal
My proposal is based off an old idea to extend US 97 to Alaska on two separate occasions in history. Once between 1957 and 1958, and once between 1964 and 1968 where it came very close to happening (signs and maps were even manufactured). Although the AASHTO guidelines state that odd numbered highways are usually North/South, US 97 would be an exception to that rule. Due to the Alaska Highway's routing and AK-2's routing being mainly East/West, North/South would be confusing to apply to US 97. As for the naming portion, Alaska Highway would be applied as the main title for US 97 in Alaska due to the highway mainly following the route of the Alaska Highway. The secondary name would be after the late Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska. The tertiary name would not be Goat. YT 1 in Yukon would become YT 97 in accordance to BC 97 and US 97. Both BC 97 and YT 97 would then become a new link of the Trans-Canada Highway system.

Construction
Not much construction would be required east of the Dalton Highway. Every now and then, there may be sections that need to be upgraded to four lane divided trunk road status, specifically between the Dalton and Fairbanks, Alaska for major truck traffic. A new two lane highway completely paved would need to be built from the Dalton to Nome (which is currently being planned as an extension of AK-2). The only freeway sections would be in Fairbanks.

Route Location
US 97 in Alaska would follow the general route of AK 2 from the Yukon to its proposed extension west into Nome. In Nome, it would follow Front Street, West F Street, Seppala Drive, Center Creek Road and F.A.A. Road to its junction with Construction road at Nome Airport, where it would terminate. The reasoning for its location is to follow the entire path of AK-2 and to provide better tourism to Nome, which hosts part of the Iditarod Trail event every year. Doing this would make US 97 indisputably the northernmost U.S. Highway in existence.

=U.S. Route 97 Alternate in Alaska=

My Proposal
AK-11 is by far one of the most important highways in the state of Alaska. It carries the Dalton Highway which provides truck service and maintenance service to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.

Due to the heavy truck traffic that uses the archaic highway, it would make sense for it to become the Alternative route to US 97. Federal funding would improve the road to be truck friendly and less dangerous. Although this may bring an end to the popular show Ice Road Truckers, the benefits would outweigh the costs of this project. An alternate idea would be to make this the main trunk of US 97.

Unlike my proposed US 97, US 97 Alt. would be a North/South route due to its heading. If this where to become the main US 97, then US 97 would be designated North/South for its entire length in Alaska.

Construction
US 97 Alt. would require a lot of reconstruction. The mostly unimproved road would need to be reconstructed into a straighter four lane divided trunk road for much of its length. The Dalton would then become an all-weather highway leading to Prudhoe Bay.

Route Location
Not much needs to be said here. The main reasoning for why US 97 Alt. would use the Dalton is above. There may be a few sections where US 97 Alt. runs almost exactly parallel to the Trans-Alaska pipeline given the circumstances.

=Other Proposals=

U.S. Route 80

 * US 180 becomes the western extension of US 80. Even though US 180 travels north of US 60 and US 70 later on, it would be doing a similar action to US 30 and US 20. This would also place US 80 to end at the Grand Canyon. AZ 80 would have to be re-numbered along with NM 80 though. Doing this would eliminate bureaucratic nonsense in the system.
 * US 380 becomes US 269 due to its connection with US 69 and disconnection from US 80.

U.S. Route 88

 * US 190 would be re-numbered US 88. US 88 makes more sense than US 190. A mainline U.S. Highway number should be a larger priority than a secondary number (US 395 and US 101 are exceptions to this).

U.S. Highway Shields 1926
Note that the shields displayed below are meant to be a personal reference or something along those lines.

Major Intersections in 1956
As per a 1956 Shell Oil Company Map of Texas.

Vessels

 * SS Columbia (1880) (1904-1907) -
 * SS George W. Elder (1904-1905) -
 * SS Costa Rica (Dates unknown) -
 * SS Barracouta (1906) - Temporary replacement for the Columbia chartered from the Pacific Mail Steamship Company
 * SS Rose City 
 * SS Beaver (1910) 
 * SS Bear 

Arizona section
Through Arizona, the OST largely followed the route of the Bankhead Highway and Dixie Overland Highway. Today, Interstate 8, Interstate 10 and sections of historic US 80 take this route. The route of the OST was originally designated as the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway in 1911.

The OST crossed into Arizona from California over the 1914 Ocean To Ocean Bridge. The bridge is still open to traffic today. Between Yuma and Wellton, the OST travelled east along present day I-8 Business (old US 80) before taking a now non-existent roadway on the north side of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks. The remnant of this highway is now called Araby Blaisdell Road. The OST then travelled northeast along present day US 95 and an abandoned section of highway to the west of US 95. The OST then curved east with railroad tracks over the old Butterfield Overland Stage Coach route to Dome before heading southeast to meet up with former US 80 again in Ligurta. The OST travelled east along old US 80 to Roll Road. Through Wellton, the OST took an older roadway along the north edge of the railroad tracks. This alignment was destroyed in a 1931 flood. Today, the main route takes Los Angeles Avenue through town.

From 1919 to 1924, the OST travelled north on Roll Road across the Antelope Hill Bridge over the Gila River and followed Roll Road and Agua Caliente Road through Agua Caliente to Arlington. This route however was prone to damage by flooding, which was also often responsible for destroying the bridge on a constant basis. Following two particularily devastating floods in 1919 and 1920, the Arizona Highway Department built a new state highway from Wellton through Dateland and Gila Bend to Arlington. Though the highway was opened in 1922, the OST wasn't rerouted onto it until 1925. Thi alignment later became part of US 80, then I-8 and Arizona State Route 85. From Arlington, the OST followed old US 80, now MC 85 and Buckeye Road, into Phoenix.

Before 1925, the OST routing split from old US 80 in Mesa and followed AZ 87 south to Chandler, then went east on Hunt Highway where it rejoined old US 80 (now AZ 79) just north of Florence. Starting in 1925, OST followed the route of old US 80 (now US 60 and AZ 79) through Apache Junction and Florence Junction into Florence.

The OST continued south from Florence through Oracle Junction and present day Oro Valley into Tucson over old US 80 (now AZ 79 and AZ 77).

November 11, 1926 September 9, 1927 June 25, 1974