Stark Raving Madison
South Portland to Madison, ME - 2005-12-08

Thumbnails open the snaps in a new window. Close to return here.
Stopped on Gorham Road, as ME-9 / Western Ave, along with a convoy of about 8 UPS trucks, enters from the left.
That's right folks, it's the first snowstorm of the `06-07 season!
I-295 in Falmouth, @ milepost 10 (+/- 1)
Looking north on US-1 at Desert Road in Freeport. Apparently US-1 is discontinuous here.
Ah well, it makes up for all the TO plates MDOT leaves off assemblies that need `em. Fa fa fa!
Owie. Number Two!
How is it between seasons ppl completely forget how to drive in winter?
The toll plaza at the northern terminus of I-295 in West Gardiner.
The roof here was actually the bridge of a peculiar interchange, no longer in service, directly between the Turnpike and what was at the time I-95.
This circuitous freeway-freeway connection is a bit much when traffic must stop for the toll anyway. The turnpike section to the south of here has by far the lightest traffic; U-turn movements here would be less used still. Me, I'd have left the trumpet as it was, and only made the diamond ramps in the southern 2 quadrants. With, at the time, a ticket tolling system and a barrier plaza to the north, if someone really wanted A U-turn, they could use the tiny surface road connection and interchange plaza.
Two shots of the ghost ramp that once traveled over the bridge in the above pic, and served I-95 N -> I-495 S.
The post-2004 equivalent movement would be I-295 N -> I-95 S, and is made via ME-9/126.
3DI-width I-95 shield, just after I-295 merges in.
This is from a vidcap at original resolution, so don't bother clicking the image.
Exit 109, the northern end of the Maine Turnpike. Ahead is just plain I-95.
The extra green space on the overhead sign is in case MDOT wanted to add a couple more routes to the multiplex. ;P
Well, seriously, it used to be signed "TO [3]" until ME-3 was rerouted directly to I-95 at exit 113 in late 2004.
Judging from aerial images and its almost nonexistant median, the double trumpet was always there, configured to allow I-95 to extend north. (Rather than shooting straight south onto the turnpike.) The turnpike extension to Augusta opened in 1955; historic topo maps show the I-95 segment to ME-8/11/27 under construction in 1956. I hate Augusta.
The north end of the double trumpet & the north end of the Turnpike.
A toll booth once stood where these BGSes are now. Hella weave, dude.
Yes, these 4 routes are all the same road.
It's worth noting that ME-11 and ME-100 are both north/south routes.
Headed back west on 202/11/17/100/US56 after stopping for fuel & food.
Will be bearing right & looping back onto the turnpike here shortly.
Ironically I had to make this pic a tad more blurry to remove a horizontal banding artifact my camera makes under certain lighting conditions.
Waaauuugh gettin' dizzy!
There are several original turnpike interchanges left with only a yellow line dividing opposing directions of the trumpet ramps.
Merge & immediate split on the double trumpet heading back toward I-95.
Stupid camera.
Terminus Video!
Driving thru the ME-3 interchange @ Exit 113.
1.88MB AVI. Video: XVID. Audio: MP3. Linux/Mac friendly.
Plays back at double speed.
Winslow - Kennedy Memorial Drive - Exit 127.
NavTeq and even MDOT's AADT route logs refer to it as Carter Memorial Drive. WTF?
Hey-hey Yeah-ye-ye-yeah Yeah! It's our exit!
Crossing the Messalonskee Stream in Waterville.
Northbound on ME-104 as ME-139 joins in from the right for a 3-mile duplex.
I dare you to do a solid 10+ MPH under the posted speed limit.
NW on the 104/139 duplex. Mountains're nice.
104 takes a right toward Skowhegan; we continue straight on 139 to Norridgewock.
Ayuh. Ah reckon.
It's time once again for multiplexes and 100% redundant routes as we near the end of ME-139 in Norridgewock.
END! END! END!
To the right: looking north along US-2 west & 201A "south".
Facing back east on 139.
L: Facing south. This goes nowhere in particular after a short distance; the junction with ME-8 is about 100' west.
R: What hotel? Where?
This is me in the wrong lane at the west end of the US-2/201A/ME-8 multiplex.
There was some other spiffy signage here, behind the camera, but as you may have deduced, I was paying less than full attention.
The Norridgewock "Covered" Bridge carries ME-8 & US-201A across the Kennebec River.
MDOT has begun the process of replacing it.
An unusual shield treatment just north of the bridge. We'll see a few more of these.
Bah, I shoulda gotten out an' checked the date on that MDOT sticker!
Could this betray local consternation over losing the main alignment of US-201? I could swear I heard someone in a gas station in Madison refer to the route as just "201". It hasn't been mainline 201 since 1954. Prolly before he was born.
In the center of Madison, routes 43 and 148 join 8/201A, running west for a half mile to the other side of the bridge to Anson.
Note the lack of signage for ME-8, which multiplexes with US-201A for 19 miles between Norridgewock & Solon.
US-201A is multiplexed with US-2 or ME-8 for its entire length, while ME-8 is "only" 76% redundant.
Looking east into, and south, north, east & west out of, the intersection.
Driving west on the quadruplex.
Arriving at the west end of the bridge in Anson.
8/201A turns north, and 43 & 148 travel about another mile and a half west before parting ways.
Looking south on 8/201A at the western end of the quadruplex.
My traveling companion was impatient so I didn't get one facing north. =P
Da bridge.
Ward Hill Road in Madison.
Hey, that's a nice lookin far-- behind those trees.
Headed back south now, arriving back at the west end of the 2/8/201A triplex. Pretend this snap is visible.
Maine got a bulk discount on these Civil War memorials at Marden's and passed `em out to its small towns.
Looking west at ME-104's surface at north at its mirror image. Yeah!
Don't try this at home, kids. Don't try it on the road either.
Going south thru the ME-3 interchange.
Getting ready to depart the turnpike for 295 - the real route to Portland!
A stunning & spectacular view of the ghost ramp from the northbound turnpuke.
"Turnpuke." That was a typo but I like the sound of it.
Back to The Maine Drag.

Links:
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Route markers are courtesy of Barry L. Camp.