U.S. Route 17

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U.S. Route 17
Length: 1189 mi[1] (1914 km)
Formed: 1926[1]
South end: US 41/FL 35/FL 45 in Punta Gorda, FL
Major
junctions:		 I-75 in Punta Gorda, FL
I-4 in Orlando, FL
I-95 (numerous locations)
I-16 in Savannah, GA
I-26 in Charleston, SC
Future I-73 in Georgetown, SC
Future I-74 in Myrtle Beach, SC
I-40 at Wilmington, NC
I-64 at Newport News, VA
North end: US 11/US 50/US 522 in Winchester, VA
United States Numbered Highways
List - Bannered - Divided - Replaced

U.S. Route 17 (also known as the Coastal Highway) is a north-south United States highway. The highway spans the southeastern United States and is close to the Atlantic Coast for much of its length. The highway's southern terminus is at Punta Gorda, Florida, at an intersection with U.S. Highway 41. Traveling north, US 17 joins up with US 50 in Paris, Virginia, and the northern terminus of US 17 is in downtown Winchester, Virginia. This is also the point at which the portion of US 50 called the Northwestern Turnpike begins.

Though U.S. Route 1 is generally considered to be the highway that runs alongside Interstate 95, US 17 runs parallel to I-95 for much of its extent, and even shares the same route for short spans in Fredericksburg and Ridgeland.

Contents

[edit] Route description

[edit] Florida

See also: U.S. Route 17/92
Major cities

In Sanford, Florida, US 17 crosses the St. Johns River via an unnamed bridge. The route traverses the waterway a second time via the Memorial Bridge in Palatka.

In Seminole County, the redevelopment of the 17-92 Community Redevelopment Area is handled by the US 17-92 Community Redevelopment Agency, a component unit of the County government.

A portion of US 17 in Florida is concurrent with U.S. Route 92.

[edit] Georgia

Main article: U.S. Route 17 in Georgia

In Woodbine, Georgia, US 17 crosses the Satilla River by way of the J. Edwin Godley Bridge. In Brunswick, the route traverses the South Brunswick River over the Sidney Lanier Bridge, then across the Altamaha River bridge between Glynn County and McIntosh County. At the South Carolina state line, US 17 crosses the Savannah River on the Eugene Talmadge Bridge.

The section of US 17 known as the "Gateway to Historic Brunswick and The Golden Isles" was included in The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation's 2006 list of Places in Peril.

In Kingsland, US 17 crosses over the St Mary's River and the Georgia/Florida state line via an unnamed bridge.

[edit] South Carolina

US 17 enters into South Carolina in Jasper County as a two-lane road and within eight miles (13 km) enters Hardeeville, where it becomes a four-lane configuration. US 17 intersects Interstate 95 in Hardeeville and runs parallel to Interstate 95 until Ridgeland, where it merges with the interstate until Point South. At Point South, US 17 leaves Interstate 95 and heads eastward into northern Beaufort County, sharing a concurrency with U.S. 21 until Gardens Corner. US 21 splits off to Beaufort while US 17 heads northeast into the ACE Basin and Colleton County.

The stretch of US 17 between Gardens Corner and Jacksonboro is a scenic yet rural two-lane road configuration that has proven to be a very dangerous and deadly stretch for motorists. SCDoT is working on improving portions of the roadway, including widening some portions and reducing the speed limits. Once in Jacksonboro, the road enters into Charleston County crossing over the Edisto River and regaining a four-lane configuration for the remainder of the state. The road passes through several rural communities as it approaches Charleston from the west. Just before the interchange with Interstate 526, major commercial development starts and continues into the West Ashley neighborhood of Charleston until the Ashley River.

In Charleston, US 17 traverses the Ashley River Drawbridges and enters into the Charleston "peninsula", being routed north of the historical areas of the city. The first portion is at-grade and has a few traffic-signals for flow purposes. Upon reaching the Interstate 26 terminus, US 17 becomes limited-access and above grade as it approaches the Cooper River via the Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge and the stretch of US 17 in Charleston is infamous among locals for its traffic congestion, especially on weekday mornings. The 3.6-mile (5.8 km) section running from S.C. Highway 171 to Sam Rittenberg Boulevard has been named the "Charleston Nine Memorial Highway", in honor of nine Charleston firefighters killed in the line of duty in the Charleston Sofa Super Store fire on June 18, 2007.[2]

Upon crossing the river, the highway enters Mount Pleasant at grade and is signalized for several miles up through the second interchange with Interstate 526 and connecting roads to the Isle of Palms and Sullivans Island. The road leaves the Charleston metro area by entering into the Francis Marion National Forest and going through the rural communities of Awendaw and McClellanville on its northeastern journey to Georgetown. US 17 makes a spectacular crossing of the marsh-lined Santee River as it enters Georgetown County. After going around the charming city of Georgetown, US 17 crosses eastward over the Waccamaw / Pee Dee river system before making a northward turn along the Grand Strand.

The last component of US 17 runs close to the Atlantic, beginning at the Hobcaw Baronry and DeBordieu, passing by Pawleys Island and going around Litchfield Beach. It then enters into Horry County and passing Surfside Beach, Murrells Inlet and arriving in Myrtle Beach. US 17 splits here between a business route and the standard route, which remains west of the beach and tourist areas served by Business 17. The roads rejoin north of the city and continue as US 17 through Atlantic Beach, North Myrtle Beach, and Little River before crossing into North Carolina over the Little River bridge. The portions from Murrells Inlet to the state line are quite congested at times, though the soon to be constructed Interstate 73 should assist in alleviating many traffic issues.

[edit] North Carolina

Historical Marker on U.S. Route 17
Historical Marker on U.S. Route 17

In Wilmington, North Carolina, US 17 (here concurrent with Interstate 140) crosses the Northeast Cape Fear River between New Hanover County and Brunswick County over the Dan Cameron Bridge. Between New Bern and James City, US 17 (concurrent with US 70 and NC 55) crosses the Trent River by way of the Freedom Memorial Bridge. Farther east, between James City and Bridgeton, US 17, still concurrent with NC 55, crosses the Neuse River over the Neuse River Bridge.

In Washington, US 17 crosses the Pamlico River over the Pamlico-Tar River Bridge. Farther along, in Williamston, US 17 (concurrent with US 13) uses the Roanoke River Bridge to cross the Roanoke River, then the Cashie River Bridge to cross the Cashie River at Windsor. At the Bertie County-Chowan County line, US 17 traverses the Chowan River on the Chowan River Bridge. South of Hertford, US 17 (here concurrent with NC 37) crosses the Perquimans River via the Perquimans River Bridge. Between Perquimans County and Pasquotank County, US 17 crosses the Little River over the Little River Bridge. Finally, the route crosses the Pasquotank River between Pasquotank County, North Carolina and Camden County, North Carolina on the Pasquotank River Bridge.

[edit] Virginia

Main article: U.S. Route 17 in Virginia

US 17 crosses the James River between Newport News and Isle of Wight County on the James River Bridge, a drawbridge which was formerly a toll bridge but is now toll-free, concurrent with U.S. Route 258. The route also crosses the York River between Gloucester County and York County at Yorktown on the George P. Coleman Bridge, a drawbridge which is also a toll bridge. Finally, US 17 traverses the Rappahannock River between Stafford County and Spotsylvania County at Fredericksburg as it overlaps Interstate 95.

[edit] History

On August 13, 2004, Hurricane Charley made landfall just before 4:00 p.m. local time near the southern terminus of US 17. Incredibly, Charley would either hit or threaten to hit the entire route of US 17, devastating almost the entire route in Florida, at least from Punta Gorda to well north of Orlando (when Charley followed the route of Interstate 4 out to sea). The Georgia stretch of US 17 was not hit, but was under a hurricane warning. When Charley made landfall again in South Carolina, its trail all the way through Virginia was close to the route of US 17.

[edit] Florida

From 1956 until 1993, US 17 signs in Florida featured black numbering on a yellow shield.[3] The "color-coding" of U.S. Routes by the Florida Department of Transportation was stopped when the state could no longer use Federal funds to replace the signs with anything but the standard black-and-white version; a few yellow US 17 signs remain.

[edit] Major intersections

[edit] Virginia

Main article: U.S. Route 17 in Virginia

[edit] North Carolina

[edit] South Carolina

[edit] Georgia

Main article: U.S. Route 17 in Georgia

[edit] Florida

[edit] See also

[edit] Related routes

[edit] Bannered and suffixed routes

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b US Highways from US 1 to US 830 Robert V. Droz
  2. ^ U.S. 17 stretch to honor firefighters who died in sofa store blaze The Post and Courier, March 25, 2008. Accessed March 27, 2008.
  3. ^ Florida in Kodachrome


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