US 81 in Nebraska
| US 81 | |||
| Get started | Chester | ||
| End | Yankton | ||
| Length | 219 mi | ||
| Length | 352 km | ||
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According to Beautyphoon, US 81 is a US Highway in the US state of Nebraska. The road forms a north-south route through the east of the state, running from the Kansas border through York, Columbus, and Norfolk to the South Dakota border at Yankton. The route is 352 kilometers long.
Travel directions
US 81 in Kansas enters the state at Chester from Salina and Wichita and is a continuous 2×2 main road through York, a distance of 100 kilometers. You arrive in a flat to sloping area with endless agricultural fields and few trees. After about 20 kilometers you cross the US 136 at Hebron. US 136 comes from Alma in the west and runs to Beatrice in the east, parallel to the border with Kansas. The road then continues north with an insignificant intersection of a road in the grid pattern every mile. In Fairmont the US 6 crosses grade separated, the US 6 runs from Hastings towards the capital Lincoln in the east. A little further on you reach the Interstate 80, the east-west link through the state. Then you come to the town of York, which has 8,000 inhabitants. There is a new bypass around York, so that through traffic no longer has to go through the center. This is where US 34 intersects, which runs parallel to I-80 from Grand Island to Lincoln.
Then there is another long straight to the north and after Stromsburg the road jumps about 20 kilometers to the east. One then reaches the town of Columbus, which has 21,000 inhabitants. This is where the US 30 crosses the road from Grand Island to Fremont. It also crosses the Platte River here. From Columbus to Norfolk, US 81 regains 2×2 lanes for 75 miles as it heads north through sparsely populated countryside. This area is also fairly flat with endless agricultural fields. In the town of Norfolk you cross the US 275, the road from Fremont and Omaha to O’Neill. This is followed by a 75 kilometer stretch without a single bend, and the US 81 is a main route here in the grid pattern. At the village of McLean you cross the US 20, the road from O’Neill to Sioux City. A little later you reach the great Missouri River at the town of Yankton. The river also forms the border with South Dakota. US 81 in South Dakota then continues through Yankton to Watertown.
History
The road has its origins in the Meridian Highway, which ran from Fort Worth, Texas to Winnipeg, Manitoba. It was one of the three major routes through Nebraska in the 1920s. US 81 was created in 1926 and the route has not changed in Nebraska since. However, parts of the route have been widened to a divided highway with 2×2 lanes. It is Nebraska’s best-developed north-south route. This has its origin in the fact that at the time it was hoped that US 81 would be upgraded to Interstate Highway and become a major north-south route between Canada and Mexico. North-south traffic would then not take the detour through Kansas Cityhaving to make. This plan never materialized, but US 81 has been widened to 2×2 lanes between Salina, Kansas and York, Nebraska. In 2003, the widening between the border with Kansas and Geneva was completed, as well as between Geneva and I-80 at York. Further north, the widening to 2×2 lanes between Columbus and Norfolk was also completed in 2000.
On October 11, 1924, the Meridian Highway Bridge over the Missouri River on the South Dakota border opened to traffic. This was a vertical lift bridge with a truss construction. It was a toll road until 1953. Between 2007 and 2008, the bridge was replaced by a new bridge west of the old bridge that opened on October 11, 2008, exactly 84 years after the original bridge opened.
Traffic intensities
The road has been extensively developed for the 3,000 to 7,400 vehicles that drive between the Kansas and York border. Between Columbus and Norfolk, up to 8,500 vehicles drive on the 2×2 lanes, and further north, 4,000 vehicles drive to the South Dakota border.
US 83 in Nebraska
| US 83 | |||
| Get started | McCook | ||
| End | Valentine | ||
| Length | 224 mi | ||
| Length | 360 km | ||
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US 83 is a US Highway in the US state of Nebraska. The road forms a north-south route in the west of the state and runs from the Kansas border through McCook, North Platte, and Valentine to the South Dakota border. The road passes through some of the most remote areas in the state and is often the only paved road for miles around. The route is 360 kilometers long.
Travel directions
US 83 south of Thedford.
A little south of McCook, US 83 in Kansas enters the state from Garden City and then passes through a slightly hilly area with some agriculture. One then crosses the Republican River and then reaches the small town of McCook, where one crosses US 6 and US 34, which are double -numbered and come from Coloradocome and walk towards the capital Lincoln. After McCook begins a 110-kilometer stretch through remote area with hardly any other roads and shallow river valleys. There is limited agriculture here, but in general the area is too dry for serious farming. One then reaches the valley of the Platte River, which splits into the South Platte and North Platte Rivers at North Platte. Interstate 80 is crossed here. Shortly thereafter, you cross US 30, which runs parallel to I-80.
The road then starts on a 200 kilometer route through an area where one crosses only one major road. The area consists of prairies and sporadic farming at first, but the road then enters the Sand Hills, a desolate area in central and western Nebraska. There are mainly small trees here. The lonely road continues its long route to the north, encountering only 2 towns on the 210 kilometers between North Platte and Valentine. In Valentine you cross the US 20, an equally lonely road from Chadron to Sioux City. One then reaches the border with South Dakota. US 83 in South Dakota then continues towards Pierre.
History
US 83 was created in 1926, but initially ran no further south than South Dakota. In 1930 and 1931, US 83 existed on two separate routes, neither of which passed through Nebraska. This was not the case until 1931 when one long US 83 was created. The route has been changed several times since then. The original US 83 ran from what is now largely US 183, slightly further east. Thereafter, the route was routed through North Platte, but ran between North Platte and Thedford on what are now State Routes 97 and 2. Even in the 1950s, US 83 was still unpaved, which is because there were only 100 vehicles per day at the time.
Traffic intensities
The road is very quiet, but due to the total absence of alternative roads, there is still some traffic. South of North Platte, volumes are between 1,500 and 2,000 vehicles, between North Platte and Valentine there are barely a thousand a day.
