Mapquest ranks each US Interstate Highway (construction, tax, moving)

[Champ le monstre du lac]

Mapquest ranked all 66 US Interstate Highways and named I-90 "America's Great Road" at #1

"On its way, it goes from Boston's Freedom Trail to almost within the spray of Niagara Falls, into rock'n'roll HQ in Cleveland then Chicago, across the plains to Wall Drug's throw-back free water and Mt Rushmore, to the world's first dude ranch, past Custer's last stand at Little Bighorn, over Idaho's Fourth of July Summit, and reaching birthplace of something called Starbucks."

The U.S. Interstate Highways, Ranked | MapQuest

Top 10 Interstates

1: I-90 Boston to Seattle
2: I-70 Baltimore to Fort Cove, UT
3: I-84 Portland, OR - Echo, UT
4: I-24 Chattanooga, TN - Purley's Mill, IL
5: I-80 San Francisco - Teaneck, NJ
6: I-55 Chicago - Laplace, LA
7: I-25 Las Cruces, NM - Buffalo, WY
8: I-15 San Diego to the Montana/Alberta border
9: I-94 Billings, MT to Port Huron, MI
10: I-8 San Diego to Casa Grande, AZ

and their worst US Interstate is...

I-95 Miami to the Maine/New Brunswick border; reason being something to the effect of a broken link around Philadelphia, multiple toll booths, and congestion.

How would you asses their rankings, and what are your favorite interstates to drive?

Best Scenery
Best urban drives
Fast Cruising
Best Cross Country Interstate
Best North-South Interstate corridor

[darstar]

I have to agree on I-90 even tho it's not my favorite .......wait a minute , what about I-80 ?. This is where transcontinental interstate highways all started, and with a heritage that goes all the way back to 1913 and the Lincoln Highway , then US 30 for the most part. Yes, I-80 is the road that holds the country together !

[new2colo]

My favorite interstate that isn't included is Interstate 17. I know it's only in Arizona and not very long, but the transition from the hottest major city in the country (Phoenix), surrounded by cacti, palm trees, and other desert plants to a Ponderosa pine forest in just about two hours in pretty amazing.

My favorite urban drive is 75/85 through Atlanta. The drive through Midtown and Downtown Atlanta is breathtaking every time.

Fast cruising: Interstate 8

Cross country: Interstate 70. The stretch from Denver through Glenwood Springs, CO makes Interstate 70. It's an engineering marvel pure and simple.

North/South: Interstate 17 (short), Interstate 5 (long).

[4122]

I'm surprised I-90 is the best. There's been construction on it between Chicago and Rockford for a few years or so and it was terrible. Some parts of it were only one lane. Whenever I need to go on it, a lot of times I would take route 176 for most of the way to 20 to avoid the construction and it was faster than taking 90 to 20. Now, they finished the construction, so it's much better. It's really cool how it goes all the way across the country. I never knew that. I like I-55. Not much congestion for the most part, easy to follow.

[WanderingImport]

I-40 from Wilmington, North Carolina to Barstow, California should be on the list, too.

Arguably the most curvy interstate stretch is between Asheville, NC and Knoxville, TN.

Beautiful arched bridge over the Mississippi and eastbound views of Memphis.

Amazing change of scenery from the hills of the Ozarks in eastern Oklahoma to the flat plains in western Oklahoma and the panhandle of Texas.

Incredible view west of Albuquerque of that city and the surrounding desert.

An equally impressive drop as you go west of Flagstaff in the high country to the low desert.

[Champ le monstre du lac]

Originally Posted by WanderingImport

Incredible view west of Albuquerque of that city and the surrounding desert. .

I love that view as well, especially at sunset when the setting rays color the granite face of the Sandia mountains pink, you can see the whole valley from the mesa escarpment. Albuquerque is the only sizable city on I-40 between Barstow, CA and Oklahoma City! What I really don't like about I-40 is its a very busy shipping route, and even in the most remote desert parts its still very truck heavy making it a less enjoyable drive.

Originally Posted by new2colo

My favorite interstate that isn't included is Interstate 17. I know it's only in Arizona and not very long, but the transition from the hottest major city in the country (Phoenix), surrounded by cacti, palm trees, and other desert plants to a Ponderosa pine forest in just about two hours in pretty amazing.

That's my favorite stretch of interstate as well. It seems like you could just throw the gear in neutral and coast down the mountain inclines about 80% of the way from Flagstaff to Phoenix. The rapid transitions in landscapes are very remarkable indeed. I-17 could use some upgrading in spots with more climbing lanes. It gets scary when a truck doing 40 mph on in incline in the right lane and jackasses passing at 85 mph in the left lane and you just want to travel at 70/75 mph.

[darstar]

Originally Posted by Desert_SW_77

I love that view as well, especially at sunset when the setting rays color the granite face of the Sandia mountains pink, you can see the whole valley from the mesa escarpment. Albuquerque is the only sizable city on I-40 between Barstow, CA and Oklahoma City! What I really don't like about I-40 is its a very busy shipping route, and even in the most remote desert parts its still very truck heavy making it a less enjoyable drive.



That's my favorite stretch of interstate as well. It seems like you could just throw the gear in neutral and coast down the mountain inclines about 80% of the way from Flagstaff to Phoenix. The rapid transitions in landscapes are very remarkable indeed. I-17 could use some upgrading in spots with more climbing lanes. It gets scary when a truck doing 40 mph on in incline in the right lane and jackasses passing at 85 mph in the left lane and you just want to travel at 70/75 mph.

Remember , the perfect Interstate is the one that uses tax dollars in the most efficient way. So , the best road is one where cars and trucks ( they are the kings of the highway system ) run side by side, using the highway as it was meant to be used. It's a beautiful site to see traffic moving along vehicles spaced properly , going with the flow, every Highway Department engineer,s dream.

[Champ le monstre du lac]

Originally Posted by darstar

Remember , the perfect Interstate is the one that uses tax dollars in the most efficient way. So , the best road is one where cars and trucks ( they are the kings of the highway system ) run side by side, using the highway as it was meant to be used. It's a beautiful site to see traffic moving along vehicles spaced properly , going with the flow, every Highway Department engineer,s dream.

Sure, from a functional standpoint I-40 is great and fulfills its purpose as a major shipping corridor. I'm just saying I enjoy driving less congested corridors like I-25 and I-15 a whole lot more where you have a better sense of the remote terrain and wide open spaces as they are a lot less congested with vehicles.

For one who enjoys the open road and setting their speed at cruise control, I-40 would not be a good choice, at least not in AZ & NM. The scenery is great, but the volume of freight transport kind of hinders the experience to the point to where I'd consider alternative routes when going to AZ.

I think Mapquest was probably thinking along the same lines, enjoying the ride. Outside of the large metro areas I-90 has a lot less traffic volume than I-80 or I-40.

[Gerania]

I like I-40, too. My husband and I chose that route for our CA to east coast trip. It's flat and predictable in some areas, yet has some nice elevation changes and scenery in others.

[santafe400]

Certainly, not the most scenic but the historical importance and relevance of Interstate 95 cannot be matched.

Also, I have a little bit of a soft spot in me for Interstate 81.