U.S. Route 127

U.S. Route 127 marker

U.S. Route 127
Route information
Auxiliary route of US 27
Length: 758 mi[1] (1,220 km)
Existed: 1926 – present
Major junctions
South end: US 27 at Chattanooga, TN
 

I-40 at Crossville, TN
I-64 at Frankfort, KY
I-71 near Glencoe, KY
US 25 at Florence, KY
I-71 / I-75 at Cincinnati, OH
US 27 at Cincinnati, OH
I-70 near Eaton, OH
US 30 at Van Wert, OH
US 20 at Fayette, OH
I-94 at Jackson, MI
I-69 / I-96 / I-496 at Lansing, MI

US 10 at Clare, MI
North end: I-75 near Grayling, MI
Highway system

U.S. Route 127 (US 127) is a 758-mile-long (1,220 km) north–south U.S. Highway in the eastern half of the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at US 27 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The northern terminus is at Interstate 75 (I-75) near Grayling, Michigan. Since 1987, it has been the core of the annual World's Longest Yard Sale, also known as the Highway 127 Corridor Sale (127 Yard Sale), which now stretches 690 miles (1,110 km) from Addison, Michigan, to Gadsden, Alabama. The sale, held every August, was created to demonstrate that the older U.S. Highway System has something to offer that the Interstate Highway System does not.[2]

In Michigan, US 127 tripled in length in 2002 at the expense of its parent, US 27.

Route description

Tennessee

In Tennessee, US 127 traverses rural areas of the Cumberland Plateau in eastern Middle Tennessee and western East Tennessee, passing southward through the cities of Jamestown and Crossville, then follows the Sequatchie Valley, passing through the cities of Pikeville and Dunlap. Near Dunlap the route turns southeastward to cross Walden Ridge, passing Signal Mountain and ending at its junction with US 27 in the northern Chattanooga suburb of Red Bank. Before receiving a federal designation, the road was Tennessee State Highway 28 to Dunlap; that route still runs from Dunlap to I-24 at Jasper. Extension of Tenn. 111 as a four-lane highway across Walden Ridge east of Dunlap has taken most interstate traffic off 127 from Dunlap to Chattanooga.

Kentucky

In Kentucky, US 127 is cosigned with US 42 through Cincinnati's Northern Kentucky suburbs until 5 miles (8 km) east of Warsaw, then passes south through Owenton. This was the road driven by Buddy Rich when he wrote "Blue Grass makes me Blue" in 1947.[3] At the state capital of Frankfort, it becomes a four-lane highway, then skirts Lawrenceburg, Harrodsburg, and Danville. It enters the hilly Knobs Region at Junction City, where it becomes a two-lane route, and continues through Hustonville, crossing the drainage divide between the Kentucky and Green river watersheds and roughly following the scenic upper Green River valley through Casey County, crossing the river at Liberty. South of Dunnville it climbs onto the Eastern Pennyroyal Plateau and cuts through Russell Springs and Jamestown. It crosses Wolf Creek Dam, which creates Lake Cumberland. It runs very briefly with KY 90 north of Albany and crosses into Tennessee at Static. In 2009 construction began on a new route, in phases, through Clinton County. Until as late as 1958, US 127 was known as KY 35 and TN 28. It gained a federal number in conjunction with improvements to the road in Casey County (widening and straightening, although not to today's standards) and Albany (curb, gutter and sidewalks). A remnant of KY 35 remains south of Warsaw. Much of the route was improved to modern standards during and after the 1987–91 administration of Gov. Wallace Wilkinson, a native of Liberty.

Ohio

US 127 serves several cities and rural communities along the extreme western edge of Ohio, including Bryan, Paulding, Van Wert, Celina, Greenville, Eaton, Somerville, Seven Mile, New Miami, and Cincinnati. In Cincinnati, it shares a short concurrency with its parent route, US 27, along with US 42. From there, it heads north through Fairfield and Hamilton. The highway is a four-lane, divided by-pass around Greenville. US 127 crosses the Ohio Turnpike near West Unity, but does not intersect with it. It also joins with US 36 for about 5 miles (8 km). The last city that US 127 goes through before reaching Michigan is Bryan. The last city US 127 goes through before entering Kentucky is Cincinnati.

Except for Defiance County, US 127 passes through (or formerly passed through, in the case of Greenville) the county seats of all nine counties in Ohio (which are all nine counties of Ohio that share a border with Indiana) it traverses.

In total, US 127 traverses 194.2 miles across Ohio.

Michigan

US 127 through Lansing, Michigan. Much of the route is a four-lane freeway through this state.

In Michigan, US 127 runs from the Ohio border south of Hudson north to the junction with I-75, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Grayling, a distance of 214.12 miles (344.59 km).[4]

The highway is the primary route connecting Lansing and central Michigan to Northern Michigan and the Mackinac Bridge; it serves the cities of Jackson, Lansing, and Clare. From the south side of Jackson northerly, it is mostly a four-lane freeway, with the notable exception of a 16-mile (26 km) stretch from north of St. Johns to just south of Ithaca, where access to the road is not limited and speeds were initially restricted to 55 miles per hour (89 km/h),[4] but are now, as of April 5, 2010, only limited to 65 miles per hour (105 km/h).[5]

Prior to 2002, US 127 ran from I-69 north of East Lansing southerly to the Ohio border near Hudson, a total of 83 miles (134 km). From the Ohio border until Jackson, the highway follows the course (with minor deviations) of the Michigan Meridian used to survey Michigan in the early 19th century. That stretch is generally named Meridian Road.

A proposed I-73 would incorporate US 127 between Jackson and Grayling.[6]

History

Southern terminus

US 127 originally terminated at Toledo when it was commissioned in 1926. At that time, the southern portion ran from Somerset to Toledo along the route of present day U.S. Route 223. In 1930 the southern terminus moved to Cincinnati, and in 1958 it was extended to its present southern terminus at Chattanooga.[7]

Northern terminus

The northern terminus of US 127 was in or near Lansing, Michigan, from its inception in 1926 to 2002. In 2002, the terminus was moved to an intersection with I-75 south of Grayling in Crawford County, Michigan, replacing all of US 27 north of Lansing.[8]

Major intersections

Tennessee
US 27 in Chattanooga
US 70 in Crossville
US 70N in Crossville
I-40 in Crossville
Kentucky
Future I-66 in Russell Springs
US 150 in Danville. The highways travel concurrently through Danville.
US 68 northeast of Harrodsburg
US 62 in Lawrenceburg
I-64 in Frankfort
US 60 in Frankfort
US 421 in Frankfort. The highways travel concurrently through Frankfort.
I-71 in Glencoe
US 42 north-northeast of Glencoe. The highways travel concurrently to .
I-71 / I-75 in Florence
US 25 in Florence. The highways travel concurrently to the Ohio state line.
I-275 in Crestview Hills
I-71 / I-75 in Fort Mitchell
I-71 / I-75 in Covington
Ohio
US 27 / US 52 in Cincinnati. The highways travel concurrently through Cincinnati.
I-75 / US 50 in Cincinnati
I-75 / US 50 in Cincinnati
US 22 in Cincinnati
I-74 in Cincinnati
I-75 in Cincinnati
I-275 on the Pleasant Run–Mount Healthy Heights–Forest Park line.
US 35 in Eaton
I-70 west-southwest of Lewisburg
US 40 west of Lewisburg
US 36 west-northwest of Jaysville. The highways travel concurrently to Greenville.
US 33 southeast of Rockford
US 30 / US 224 in Van Wert. US 127/US 224 travels concurrently to north-northeast of Van Wert.
US 24 east of Cecil
US 6 south of Bryan
US 20 east of Alvordton. The highways travel concurrently to west of Fayette.
Michigan
US 223 southeast of Somerset
US 12 east of Somerset
I-94 northeast of Jackson. The highways travel concurrently to north-northwest of Jackson.
I-96 / I-496 at Michigan State University south-southeast of Lansing. I-496/US 127 travels concurrently to East Lansing.
I-69 north-northwest of East Lansing
US 10 in Clare. The highways travel concurrently to north-northwest of Clare.
I-75 south of Grayling

See also

References

  1. ↑ Droz, Robert V. (April 6, 2006). "Termini and Lengths in Miles". U.S. Highways: From US 1 to (US 830). Self-published. Retrieved November 15, 2006.
  2. ↑ Burk, Tonja (August 2, 2010). "Update: Vendors open shop early for World's Longest Yard Sale". Knoxville, TN: WBIR-TV. Retrieved August 2, 2010.
  3. ↑ General Highway Map: Owen County, Kentucky (Map). 1:125,000. Kentucky Department of Highways. 1948. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Bessert, Christopher J. (January 1, 2008). [http://www.michiganhighways.org/listings/MichHwys120-139.html#US 127 "Highways 120 through 139"]. Michigan Highways. Self-published. Retrieved May 24, 2008.
  5. ↑ Edmonds, Jamie (May 30, 2010). "MDOT To Increase Speed Limit on US 127". Lansing, MI: WILX-TV. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  6. ↑ Office of Planning, Environment, & Realty (June 18, 2012). "High Priority Corridors". National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
  7. ↑ Sanderson, Dale (November 14, 2009). "End of US Highway 127". US Ends.com. Self-published. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
  8. ↑ Garnell, Dan (November 3, 2003). "US 127 Ends". Michigan Highway Ends. Self-published. Retrieved May 26, 2008.

External links

Browse numbered routes
← KY 126listKY 128 →