The Shortest US Interstates 

I have a shorts channel now if anybody's interested! It will include clips from videos as well as some new content on it ru-vid.com/show-UCDWaKINGDqI96pMkf6n-yng

Fun fact about the Detroit one, it’s actually I-375 as well (like the Florida one) but it just got a federal grant and got state money to be removed, so within the next 10 years it will be turned into a surface street. Also why it doesn’t do all the way around would probably be because Jefferson (the southern bit perpendicular to 375) is a surface boulevard

I-190 in Illinois is on under a mile long but it comes off of i-90 to the O'Hare International Airport terminals

Thank you, I am really enjoying your channel! I believe that I-878 is a relic of unbuilt expressways in New York City. I-78 was planned to cross Brooklyn and Queens and finally hook up with I-95 in the Bronx but was cancelled in the early 70's due, in part, to community opposition. I-878 would have connected to I-78 near JFK. The spurs into Butte and Great Falls reflect, in part, their size and prominence in the 1950's when the Interstate System was being planned (similar to Youngstown, Ohio). Keep up the good work sir!

I-705 in Tacoma carries traffic from I-5 at the Tacoma Dome to downtown. It is a spur route. It is 1.9 miles long. I always thought it was rather short, but it's basically twice as long as some of these other short interstates. I-705 is not useless though, IMO. Without it, commuting from I-5 into downtown would take a longer time.

Surprised I-395 in Maryland wasn't mentioned! It's 1.33 miles long and is basically just a long exit ramp that brings you into downtown Baltimore. I would argue it does have a purpose, it gives access to the Inner Harbor and to both Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium (where the Orioles and Ravens play, respectively), but then again U.S. 40, U.S. 1, and I-83 also all come through the city!

Before I-69 was built in Southern Indiana, there was a 21 mile spur from I-64, around the east of Evansville, ending at US-41 near Henderson, KY. I-164, as it was known, has since been incorporated into I-69.

Great video! I do want to point out that the red line you put for 395 in Miami is actually 195 that is about 5 miles long since it goes all the way across the bay. 395 is a couple of miles south of 195, but it’s designation defaults to A1A before it even gets past the port of Miami tunnel. Anyways, I love what you do with the channel. Keep up the good work!

You missed 579 in Pittsburgh, it’s basically the Veteran’s bridge and on ramps.

A little surprised I-189 in Vermont didn't make the list. It's only about 1 1/2 miles connecting I-89 to US 7, so not entirely useless, but does seem more like an extended exit ramp when driving it. I-790 in NY isn't much longer, and also just seems like the exit from the NY Thruway (I-90) into Utica.

great video! one thing of note that i wish was mentioned is i-380 in the san francisco metro area connection i-280 with us 101. it’s very short, being only 1.67mi long, but it is incredibly useful even if it might not seem so. it’s mainly a great tool to get people from the western suburbs of the sf peninsula to sfo (san francisco international) very quickly. it’s very short but it serves a great purpose

I had wondered if I-345 (unsigned) in Dallas would have made the cut, which connects the end of 45 at I-30 to US-75. That one actually is useful--contrary to what you'd hear from the city officials who want to demolish it!

That 395 one was actually I-195 which actually goes into Miami Beach uniquely enough. 395 is aprox. 1 mile south

honorable mention: i676 in Philadelphia. 1.8 miles without any exit numbers in the city, before it drops you onto city streets to navigate to the bridge to NJ. Some view it all as 676, others view it as two seprate 676s.

The 878 route in Queens was originally supposed to be a full freeway from its interchange with the Belt Parkway and 678 to Long Beach in Nassau County as a direct link between the Bronx and Nassau County via the Whitestone Bridge, 678, and eventually 878 had it been built as first envisioned. I-878 continues past the JFK Expressway as NY State Route 878 and is divided into 2 segments one in Queens and another in Nassau County. The section mentioned is the only segment where it was more or less built to freeway standards and the Nassau Segment is only a 4 lane divided arterial road the roadway between the two segments is known as Rockaway Boulevard and is also an arterial road.

Good to see that I-375 in St. Petersburg made the list, even if just barely. Glancing at the Wikipedia list of auxiliary Interstate Highways, it looks like I-175 would have been #12 if the list were expanded? I'm now kinda curious as to what other cities have multiple short spur routes and how they compare.

A couple of weird ones that I’ve driven are I-189 in Vermont (which for a long time went unsigned) and I-495 in Maine (which is unsigned and known as the Falmouth spur). Both highways have no intermediate interchanges, but I-189’s end is abrupt as it was originally planned to continue. At least I-495 in Maine connects two freeways (I-95 (Maine Turnpike) and I-295).

You might want to look at I-238 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Part of Ca-238, there is a 2.38 mile section that is now signed as I-238 and is a connector between I-880 and I-580 near San Leandro, Ca. My parents used to live in the area and I remember using this highway a lot.

Cool video! There's also 190 in Chicago, which connects 90 and 294 to Ohare Airport

I-564 in Norfolk, VA only serves to be a glorified exit ramp with exits 1) to cut around south of the naval station, 2) use an "Intermodal Connector" for trucks entering the Port of Virginia or naval station trucking gate, or 3) to go directly to the main part of the naval base where it ends.

Hip, hip, hooray for Illinois! Interstate 190 is all of 3.07 miles long, running from I 90 to O'Hare Airport, actually a useful Interstate, and important for funding because of the big airport.

I was hoping to see I-705 in Tacoma, WA but it seems like there are way more of these than I thought

I drove 115 in Butte on a Friday night to go check out the town, and returned the same way to my hotel - didn’t see a single car on it either direction

Any chance for a video that takes a deeper dive on the bad interstates in Illinois? As a Chicago native, I’m super curious. Though it not technically an interstate, one expressway in my area IL State route 390, better known as the Elgin-O’Hare Tollway… a really ironic name considering that for most of its existence, it never reached O’Hare (and it still doesn’t access the airport) and it still doesn’t even get into Kane County, where most of Elgin is. It’s also pretty useless, because it’s just a few miles south of I-90, another tollway that serves the same west/northwestern suburbs of Chicago AND ACTUALLY GETS INTO ELGIN AND O’HARE.

You should do state freeways that are NOT interstates but SHOULD BE.

I-189, opened in 1963, is almost 1.5 miles long. It connects I-89 in South Burlington VT to US 7 which runs north through downtown Burlington and runs south through a couple of suburbs and beyond.

Figured there would be a mention of western I-86 in this video, but nonetheless, I will argue that it might be more useful than almost any of these roads, for it being in the top 5 shortest two-digit interstates. Helps connect the fast growing of South Idaho with each other via I-15 and US-20, as well as the national parks of Wyoming via US-20 and US-26.

I live in Chicago and was waiting for somewhere in Illinois to be on here lol. You should do a video on Illinois as a whole, its kinda terrible when it comes to interstate highways here.

I-189 in Burlington Vt is 1.49 miles in length. Supposed to go further but only goes from intestate 89 to US7. Only recently have they got funding to extend it further using some of the unused road already built years ago(0.7 miles) which has started in June of last year.

You missed a very short one that's actually extremely useful... I-535. It is a short spur mostly consisting of a tall bridge over the harbor - but it vitally links NW Wisconsin with the Interstate system. Getting from Superior, WI to Duluth is casual and convenient, and then from there you can follow I-35 South or head up 61. If I-535 wasn't there, it's a much slower path to get there.

I'm surprised you also didn't mention Florida I 595 again in this video. It is only around 15 miles long and extremely useful with it connecting I 95 on one side. The other side being split 3 away with I 75 S, I 75 N/Alligator Alley, and the Sawgrass Expressway. I take it literally every day during the week to work.

I use the Bismarck one everyday, it’s actually very useful and well used

video idea: top 10 unique interstate interchanges. We've all seen the cloverleaf, the stack interchange, the diamond of course, but what crazy and cool unique interchanges are there out there?! other ideas: Widest interstaes. Most rural interstates. Most damaged / 'worst' interstates.

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I635 in Dallas is a lil short but has an expressway under its roads, which is nice.

I've driven the entirety of the North Carolina extension of I-87, and several small three-digit spurs/loops; including I-565 (Huntsville, Alabama) countless times, arguably the most important three-digit Interstate in the South.

Your bit on I-11 was fascinating. I've driven between Reno, Las Vegas and points further south in the past, and Nevada could really use more than two lanes (and no direct link) between its two metropolitan areas. That said, an actual direct link - say, where I-11 would connect to the existing I-580 in Carson City - would require crossing more than a few of the horsts and grabens (ranges and basins) that dominate much of Nevada's landscape, which would make it tough work, and likely prohibitively expensive. Therefore, a more likely route (IMO) would be following US-95 north from Las Vegas for most of its length before branching off at Schurz to follow the current US-95 ALT, then going rogue to bypass Yerington, rejoining US-95 ALT near Fort Churchill and connecting with Nevada SR-439 (aka USA Parkway) in Silver Springs to connect to I-80 at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, which is about fifteen miles east of the Reno/Sparks area. Close enough, I guess.

Newly completed I-885 connecting I40 and I85 here in the triangle area of NC; just completed this summer. It used to be NC 147 but now about 5 miles has been designated as an interstate highway

fun fact, the shortest stretch of interstate in any state(ish) is I-95 in Washington, DC, there is a 0.11-mile section of it where it clips the border on a bridge, that's only 600 feet! I-78 also only has a half mile in New York state, where it ends after the Holland Tunnel. Nice vid!

You missed 1-395 in baltimore, it's the shortest at about a mile yet the most useful since it connects i-95 to downtown baltimore and the inner harbor.

Hey I-194 isn’t as terrible as some people might think. I’m from Dickinson North Dakota and travel to Bismarck frequently. If you want any info from a local for your video coming up on it let me know! Bismarck is a huge commercial center for really the entire state of North Dakota with all the small towns that don’t have much for shopping and 194 turns into Bismarck Expressway which where 194 turns into Expressway is directly by the mall and leads to many other big destinations in Bismarck. It’s also the fastest way to get to the hospital which I think is important. Also the exit to get onto the memorial Highway which leads into downtown is off of 194. Traveling Westbound into Bismarck where it splits into 94 and 194 I’d say nearly half of the traffic that’s actually going into Bismarck and not just passing through gets into 194.

I-175 in St. Petersburg, FL will always hold a special significance to me as I took that road to the hospital when both of my kids were born.

Glad you didn’t include 345 or other concurrent interstates. In downtown Dallas it says “45 ends” and then it’s 345 for a bit (tho the sign says 75 north, not 345) That doesn’t count to me it’s the same road lol

Strange thing about I-11: in NV the mile markers begin at the dam, at the south, with MP 1, as it should. But on the AZ side, it begins at the dam (the north end of the state) and travels south but also begins with MP 1 as it travels south, a totally non-conventional numbering system.

Now we need a video on the shortest loops.

Contrary to the idea that I-878 in Queens IS very useful. I take it from the Van Wyck when I'm going to the Rockaways. Without that, I'd have to take the Belt which goes out of my way, or take the local streets, which down there, a lot of them are dead ends. So if one is traveling on the Van Wyck to the airport, this connection allows a direct route to points below the Belt.

1:36 As a Nevadan who's been to the I-11, I can confirm!

So there is a relatively new one in Washington DC called I-695. Connecting 395 at the capital to 295. This used to be a major headache but it’s now resolved. Or I-370 from I-270 to md-200 in Gaithersburg MD

I I-535 traveling from I-35/US 53 in Duluth, MN to US 53/WIS 35 Superior, WI and coming in at around 2.7 miles

Great Falls, MT represent here. I wasn't really aware of I-315, being new to the town, so it's a neat little trivia thing for me. The part that is considered I-315 does actually contain an exit, signed simply as Exit 0, connecting it to 14th St SW, which is a major business center for the town. I-315 is also part of the I-15 business loop, which runs past the 6th St SW/Fox Farm Rd intersections into town, before veering onto the 5th/6th St S one-ways, then at the 1st/2nd Ave N one ways, it takes another left (if you're on 6th going to 2nd). If you're on 2nd, you make a left onto Park Dr, before taking a right where 1st Ave N becomes a two way, cross back over the bridge until it becomes Central Ave W, then you are able to connect back to I-15 at the bridge. The I-15 Business Loop IS signed throughout its entirety.

As soon as you used the word "spur", I thought of a short interstate highway that actually had, and may still have, Spur as part of its designation, I-270 Spur in Maryland, connecting southbound I-270 to the Outer Loop of the Capital (Washington) Beltway and the Inner Loop of the Beltway to northbound I-270. I don't know how long it is, but it does have one exit in between the beginning and ending points, Democracy Blvd, despite being short. The merge from the southbound route (read this to rhyme with "fruit", not "spout", coming from me) to the Beltway was reconstructed in the 1990s. Going back even further, what is now I-270 was once known as I-70S, while the current I-70 between Frederick and the Baltimore Beltway was I-70N. What became I-270 Spur was just I-270. Online sources give the year of these changes as 1973, but signage didn't start to appear until February 1975. Someone I knew who commuted from Frederick to Chevy Chase saw these signs early that month, while I first saw them on February 27, 1975. Either (read this as EE-ther coming from my) you or Mileage Mike mentioned I-35E and I-35W in both Texas and Minnesota. They were allowed to keep their split 2-digit interstates, but Maryland wasn't. Maybe it's because they don't join each other again.

Someone else mentioned it too, but near Chicago, I190 is in the 3mile long ballpark

We have a similar one in Glendale, CA with the I-5 on the Colorado exit

How about I-370 in the DC suburbs of Maryland. It used to be a 2.5 mile long interstate that took traffic from I-270 to a terminus metro station. It was later extended to I-95 but that portion was designated as MD-200.

I have a 3 digit plus Letter interstate, a little southeast of Cleveland , signed as Ohio I-480N, because of all the pre-existing industry that was in place. It's a spur route of 2 spur routed. connecting I-480 to the west with the north/south I-271 at 2 different locations a mile apart from each other. Tge designation is only along the mile marker signs so that broken down cards can differentiate between the main I-480 which is the South spur, and I-480N, the north spur, which actually has one exit on its route organically. and is about a mile long. It was by the old Randall Park Mall, which is now an Amazon hub.

I-490 in Cleveland, Ohio is 2.4 miles long and connects 3 major highways so you can bypass downtown Cleveland and miss traffic. Also connects to I-176 to connect to a 4th major highway around Cleveland.

Another really short 3 digit interstate is I-126 connecting I-26 to Columbia, South Carolina.

I believe 1-375 funnels traffic from downtown Jefferson Ave., onto I-75, to the north. However, I’ve heard that Detroit is planning to remove this interstate spur.

I-296 is another unmarked interstate which is short. It's running on US-131 between I-196 and I-96 from downtown Grand Rapids, MI to the northern part of the city. About 3.5 miles in length. It used to be signed but they dropped the signing a number of years ago. But apparently it's still designated 296.

Durham, NC has a new highway designated as i885, it bypasses the Durham freeway and connects up to i85 north with quicker access.

There is also a I-189 in Burlington,NY which is a interstate spur route with no exits it comes off I-89 To US-7

I think you should try to include the actual back stories of these I i terstates.

Little Interstate 878 was supposed to be part of I-78 but this little section and the Clearview Expressway were all that was built of what was supposed to be Interstate 78 in NYC before the freeway revolts cancelled the highway.

I drove on I-11 in 2017 before it was designated as an interstate highway.

Surprised you didn’t bring up I-478, basically just the battery tunnel

You’ve done it again, Los Beaverizer

Here in my home town of Kansas City, we have I-670 which is just under 3 miles long, bisecting downtown KCMO.

Speaking of Illinois and this list: what about I-190? It's a 3.07 mile long spur of I-90 and serves as not only the direct link to O'Hare International Airport, but also serves as a road to link I-90 and I-294 with each other and O'Hare, and perhaps an important third important use would be directing O'Hare and I-90/I-294 traffic towards the large tourism and recreational district at Rosemont (the tiny municipality next to O'Hare that SHOULD just be annexed by Chicago but somehow has resisted it all this time). Oddly it is actually a *very useful and VERY busy interstate spur* and despite my hate for interstates I actually use it multiple times weekly, whether it's hitting up Rosemont for the movies, a convention, or a date night, picking a friend up at O'Hare, or simply using it to hop on I-294 to get to the suburbs (if the trains aren't running a favorable schedule)... yeah I use it a lot and if you ever visit Chicago and check it out yourself you'll see just how important this goofy little intestate spur really is. It almost makes up for the other idiotic interstate projects in Illinois 😂

can you please make a video on why there are roads inside of the main highway like in 0:10? ive never understood its purpose and ive seen it on many roads like the katy freeway in texas, it has many roads beside eachother and is just a mess of roads.

I-110 from D'Iberville MS to Biloxi MS is 8 miles long and has a drawbridge over Biloxi Bay!

I am surprised that I-865 in Indianapolis area was not mentioned. It is 3.6 miles long connects I-465 to I-65 just a 4.7 miles north of the interchange of those two highways. It use to be part of 465 but it confused people when you talked about being located on 465 and you were not on the loop around Indianapolis. So it was given the number 865 to distinguish it from 465.

Others beat me to it but you highlighted I-195 in Miami instead of 395. 395 starts at the west end of the MacArthur Causeway and connects to I-95 and becomes SR-836 (Dolphin Expressway) once you pass 95. That stretch of I-395 is only about 1.5 miles. Even though the designation is short, it is not at all useless. Both 195 and 395 are essential connectors between Miami and Miami Beach. Also I-370 in Maryland is very short too. After the construction of the Intercounty Connector, it got even shorter as now the branch going to Shady Grove Station is now undesignated and past that interchange, I-370 becomes MD-200. I-370 total is now just about 2 miles.

I381 is another interesting one. All it does is connect Bristol with I81, it's basically just a giant on ramp

What about the weird 535 bridge from Duluth MN to Superior WI

you forgot about I-194 its a tiny spur route going into downtown Battle Creek, Michigan

I was hoping that I-105 in Oregon would have made the list being less than five miles. It was created as a bypass until the I-5 bridge over the Willamette River was completed.

Kingston will always stand up when counted. :) I-587 is truly a oddity in this world.

@4:52 So which buildings would you demolish to extend the highway? Remember, cities weren't built for cars, they were destroyed for cars

What about the 1.4 mile long I-189 that is just a big off ramp from I-89 to US 7 in Burlington, VT

Dang, and I thought that I-277, the loop around downtown (or Uptown) Charlotte was short.

I-283 in Harrisburg connects I-83 a few miles before its northern terminus with I-76 and runs only 2.91 miles.

Missing two Texas examples I can think of: I-345 Dallas (unsigned), linking the terminus of I-45 with the terminus of US 75 (at the intersection with the Woodall Rogers Freeway), 1.7 miles. (I don't understand why they didn't just extend I-45, but hey.) And I-169 in Brownsville, currently 1.5 miles incomplete, intended to link the Port of Brownsville to I-69E.

And there was Interstate 895 (The Sheridan Expressway) in the Bronx. 1.2 miles long. Opened in 1963 but downgraded and converted to a blvd in 2019.

I'm surprised I-14 from Belton Texas to Copperas Cove didn't make the list.

surprised I-381 in Bristol TN/VA has not been mentioned, lol.

There are a few interstates that I want to make note of: I-781 in Watertown NY, I-581 in Roanoke VA, I-381 in Bristol VA, and I-124 in Chattanooga TN. I-781 connects I-81 and Watertown traffic with Fort Drum, which runs about 4 miles. I-581 connects I-81 with downtown Roanoke VA as well as the US-220 corridor, home of future I-73; I-581 runs about 7 miles. I-381 connects I-81 with downtown Bristol VA/TN, and also provides a rural connection to Bristol Motor Speedway, my town of Johnson City TN, and other parts of the Tri-Cities region via US-11E, I-26, US-19E, US-321, and US-421; I-381 only runs about 1 1/2 miles. I-124 is an unsigned Interstate with the designation for its number, signed as of today as US-27, which connects I-24 with downtown Chattanooga TN, and the northern side of the Tennessee River; I-124 runs only about 2 miles. Just thought I'd mention that.

I-394 Runs west out of Minneapolis past I-494 very useful 👍 👌 😀

The short interstates are also used to bypass congested inner cities where commuter traffic can get really horrendous. The one in Butte MT isn't that stupid when you go back in time. At one time Butte was the largest city in the state, back when Anaconda Copper still actively mined there and ran the smelter in nearby Anaconda (yes, the town was named after the companty(.

You left out I-695 in the Bronx, NY. Basically just a glorified ramp between I-295 and I-95 that does have one exit of its own but that’s it.

I-587 in kingston new york was the shortest for a long time and was a jeopardy question. But i totally agree its not needed

Not exactly an interstate but there’s a highway in Richmond va 146 which is only 0.86 miles long and connects 195 to the powhite parkway

Check out I-359 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and I-759 in Gadsden, Alabama. They are relatively short exit ramps also.

For interstate 87 in North Carolina and Virginia can Virginia it can join with the New York State section by using this route 13 SR 1 Delaware Turnpike Dover extension I-95 295 NJ Turnpike to exit 13 where it merges with 278 to exit 47 where it's NY state section ends. Becoming a Raleigh NC to Montreal Quebec Highway bypassing Washington DC. 4:48 It's I-375 not 376 which was extended in 2009

I'm surprised I-296 wasn't mentioned. It is unsigned, but is a very short stretch of freeway in Grand Rapids, MI

Honorable mention to I-195 in Saco, ME. I drove in it July just to drive it and I don't know why it's there.

I-705 in Tacoma, WA has no numbered exits and is only 2.41 kilometers long.

Auxillary interstates are specifically federal highways that are local routes

There are 2 in New Hampshire, and 3 in Massachusetts that qualify: In New Hampshire, there's I-293, which is the western side of a beltway that surrounds Manchester, beginning and ending at different points of I-93. And I-393, which is really part of US-202, abruptly beginning in the center of Concord, and disappearing to the east as part of RT 9 and US-202. I'm Massachusetts, there's I-190, which connects Leominster at RT 2 to the north, to Worcester at I-290 to the south, 19.8 miles in length. Then there's I-391, which starts at I-90, just east of Springfield. It dive bombs SW into Springfield, ending I-91. And I-291, which starts at I-91, just north of Springfield, then disappearing in Holyoke.

Interstate 585 in Spartanburg SC. 2.25mi, it's orphaned, it doesn't connect to I-85, only connects to Business Loop 85

look for the I189 in Vermont its a short one. and I293 in New Hampshire is short too