Interstate 280 (Ohio)

I-280 northbound at exit 1B (Bahnsen Road) in Lake Township

The southern end of I-280 is an interchange in Wood County with exit  71 along the Ohio Turnpike, which carries Interstate 80 and Interstate 90 at this point. South of this interchange, the I-280 freeway transitions to State Route 420 (SR 420), a divided highway without access control, that also provides access to a truck stop and other businesses. Continuing north, I-280 runs through farm land and through an interchange with Bahnsen Road, which also provides access to other motorist- and trucking-related businesses. North of the SR 795 interchange, the freeway turns to the northwest. At the Walbridge Road interchange in Walbridge, Ohio, I-280 turns back due north. On either side of the Interstate, the surroundings transition from farms to residential subdivisions. I-280 crosses a major Norfolk Southern railroad line also used by the Capitol Limited and Lake Shore Limited passenger train routes operated by Amtrak. North of this crossing, the freeway passes into Lucas County.[3][4]

I-280 turns northwesterly again in the city of Oregon. This area is suburban residential neighborhoods as the freeway approaches the Maumee River. The Interstate crosses the river on the Veterans' Glass City Skyway, an 8,800-foot (2,700 m), cable-stayed bridge. On the opposite bank of the river, I-280 turns northward and passes through an intersection with SR 25. There is one final interchange with I-75 where I-280 terminates.[3][4]

The highway that would eventually carry I-280, the Detroit-Toledo Expressway,[5] opened as a relocated SR 120 between US 20 and SR 51 by 1955.[6] The highway was extended to Summit Street in Toledo by 1957,[7] and by 1959 was extended into Michigan.[2] By this time, the I-280 designation had been added,[2] but the portion carrying I-280 was not fully converted to Interstate standards until 1990.[5]

Initially, the freeway had several at-grade intersections with crossroads: Hanley and Latcha roads near Perrysburg; Ayers, Lemoyne, and Walbridge roads near Walbridge; and Curtice Road in Northwood. The Walbridge intersection was later upgraded to a traffic signal, one of the few on the Interstate Highway System at the time, while the intersection underwent study for conversion to an interchange.[8] Hanley and Latcha roads were truncated to dead-end just before the freeway, but access to both roads was retained by construction of a new interchange and service drives in the early 1970s; the Ayers and Lemoyne crossings were also upgraded to overpasses at this point. The removal of direct access to Hanley and Latcha was originally disputed by business owners who owned motels and gas stations along those roads.[9] The crossing at Curtice Road was upgraded to an interchange concurrently with the upgrade of the nearby interchange with Woodville Road.[10]

Originally, I-280 was carried across the Maumee River by the Robert Craig Memorial Bridge, a drawbridge that frequently caused backups along the route. In addition, a ramp leading from northbound Summit Street to southbound I-280 merged directly onto the bridge with no acceleration room, so it was removed in the mid-1990s.[11] On June 24, 2007, the Veterans' Glass City Skyway opened, replacing the drawbridge. After the Glass City Skyway opened, the Craig Bridge was reconstructed, and it now carries SR 65. Its construction also led to the reconstruction of the Front Street exit, and removal of the Summit Street interchange entirely; access from I-280 to Summit Street is now provided by the Front Street exit and the Craig Bridge.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Interstate 280 (Ohio).

• Interstate 280 at Ohio Highway Ends