U.S. Route 127

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U.S. Route 127

Length:

758 mi^[1] (1220 km)

Formed:

1926

South end:

US 27 at Chattanooga, TN

Major
junctions:

I-40 at Crossville, TN

I-64 at Frankfort, KY

I-71 near Glencoe, KY

US 25 at Florence, KY

I-71/75 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-96/69/496 at Lansing, MI

North end:

I-75 near Grayling, MI

United States Numbered Highways
List - Bannered - Divided - Replaced

U.S. Route 127 is a 758 mile (1,220 km) long north-south United States highway in the eastern half of the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 27 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The northern terminus is at Interstate 75 near Grayling, Michigan.

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

1 Route description
2 History
- 2.1 Southern terminus
- 2.2 Northern terminus
3 See also
- 3.1 Related routes
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Route description

[edit] Tennessee

In Tennessee, US 127 traverses rural areas of the Cumberland Plateau in eastern Middle Tennessee and western East Tennessee, passing 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 Red Bank.

[edit] Kentucky

In Kentucky, US 127 is cosigned with US 42 through Cincinnati's Northern Kentucky suburbs until five miles west of Warsaw, then passing south through Owenton, Frankfort, bypassing Lawrenceburg, Harrodsburg and Danville, veering south-southwest toward Lake Cumberland and crossing into Tennessee in Clinton County. This was the road being driven by Buddy Rich when he wrote "Blue Grass makes me Blue" in 1947.

[edit] Ohio

Within Ohio, US 127 serves multiple rural communities along the extreme western edge of Ohio before entering Cincinnati through its northwestern suburbs. US 127 crosses the Ohio Turnpike near West Unity, but does not have an intersection with it. The last city that US 127 goes through before reaching Michigan is Bryan.

[edit] Michigan

Main article: U.S. Route 127 in 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 km) south of Grayling, a distance of 214.12 miles (344.59 km).^[2]

The highway is the primary route connecting Lansing and central Michigan to Northern Michigan and the Mackinac Bridge. It serves the cities of Hudson, Jackson, Lansing, St. Johns, Ithaca, St. Louis, Alma, Mount Pleasant, Clare, and Houghton Lake. 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 are restricted to 55 miles per hour (89 km/h).^[2]

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 called Meridian Rd.^{[citation needed]}

A proposed I-73 would incorporate US 127 between Jackson and Grayling.^[3]

[edit] History

[edit] 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.^[4]

[edit] 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.^[5]