U.S. Route 78

	U.S. Route 78
Length:	715 mi (1151 km)
Formed:	1926
West end:	I-240 / SR-4 at Memphis, TN
Major; junctions:	US 45 at Tupelo, MS; I-20 / I-59 at Birmingham, AL; I-65 at Birmingham; I-75 / I-85 at Atlanta, GA; I-95 at St. George, SC
East end:	US 17 at Charleston, SC
	United States Numbered Highways
	List – Bannered – Divided – Replaced

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U.S. Highway 78 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 715 miles (1,151 km) from Memphis, Tennessee, to Charleston, South Carolina. Between Memphis and Birmingham, Alabama, it is being upgraded to become Interstate 22.

The highway's western terminus is at Second Street (southbound State Route 14) in Memphis, Tennessee. Its eastern terminus is at U.S. Highway 17 in Charleston, South Carolina.

[edit] Route description

[edit] Tennessee

Map showing the west end of US 78 in downtown Memphis.

U.S. Highway 78 runs along Linden Avenue, Somerville Street, E. H. Crump Boulevard, and Lamar Avenue through Memphis, Tennessee. Between Memphis and Tupelo, Mississippi, the highway is designated Elvis Presley Memorial Highway. In Tennessee, U.S. 78 is historically known as Pigeon Roost Road, and some aborted sections of the highway in Mississippi also claim that name as well as Lamar Avenue.

[edit] Mississippi

U.S. Highway 78 is completely controlled-access freeway from the Tennessee state line all the way to Graysville, Alabama. Although not currently a part of the U.S. Interstate system, it is now on its way to becoming Interstate 22, which will run from Memphis to Birmingham. At the time the highway was reconstructed to freeway standards, conversion to an interstate was not considered likely. As a result of that and the fact that Tennessee has never upgraded its portion from the state line to Interstate 240, at least two projects are required to raise Mississippi's entire U.S. 78 segment to interstate standards: reconstruction of a substandard interchange at New Albany and the addition of a new interchange at or near Memphis to tie the freeway to another interstate. According to information available at the Project Updates and Media Room sections of the Mississippi Department of Transportation's website (www.gomdot.com), this new interchange will be in Mississippi and operational once construction of the relevant segment is complete on the new Interstate 269.

Mississippi's portion of U.S. 78 is defined in Mississippi Code Annotated § 65-3-3.

[edit] Alabama

Main article: U.S. Route 78 in Alabama

U.S. 78 is paired throughout the state with State Route 4. Except for completed sections of Corridor X (Future I-22), State Route 4 is an unmarked route. As of July 2007, U.S. 78 is routed along Corridor X between the Mississippi state line and Graysville, a distance of 85 miles (137 km).

East of Birmingham, U.S. 78 varies between running concurrent with, or parallel to I-20 to the Georgia state line.

[edit] Georgia

Hwy 78 enters Georgia in Haralson County, and then proceeds through Carroll County and Douglas County. In Douglasville, located in Douglas County, Hwy 78 runs through the downtown, historical part of the city. It is the original thoroughfare for these Georgia counties.

There is another short freeway portion east of Atlanta, leading from just inside (west of) I-285 (the Perimeter) eastward to the suburb of Stone Mountain, Georgia. This portion is named the Stone Mountain Freeway, and has an excellent view of Stone Mountain while traveling eastbound.

The route then continues eastward through DeKalb, Gwinnett, Walton, and Oconee counties. In Oconee county US 78 leaves Moina Michael Highway at the Georgia 316 interchange, turning right and running concurrent with Ga. 316/US 29. (From this point, Moina Michael Highway is signed as US 78 Business, which follows the original route of US 78 through Athens, Ga.) At the terminal eastern interchange of Ga. 316 both US 78 and US 29 turn right and join with Ga. 10 Loop, a mostly interstate-grade bypass that rings Athens-Clarke County. US 78 exits the bypass and turns right at the Lexington Road interchange. From there US 78 passes through Oglethorpe, Wilkes, McDuffie and Columbia Counties into Augusta and then onto one of the twin bridges across the Savannah River into South Carolina.

[edit] South Carolina

From the Savannah River bridge opposite Augusta, Georgia, the route continues eastward through Aiken, Barnwell, Bamberg, Orangeburg and Dorchester Counties into Charleston County, terminating in the City of Charleston.

[edit] History

In western Alabama, the historical name of U.S. 78 is the Bankhead Highway. It is also known by this name in portions of Georgia, including Atlanta, and the Bankhead neighborhood takes its name from that stretch of road. Also, the old section of U.S. 78 (now MS-178) that runs through downtown New Albany, Mississippi is named as Bankhead Street.

[edit] Future

There is a freeway portion of US 78 that begins from the Tennessee / Mississippi border near southeast Memphis and continues through Mississippi to Graysville, Alabama, and the freeway is under construction all the way to Birmingham, Alabama, where it will junction with Interstate 65 and U.S. Highway 31. Although there are major Interstate highways near this freeway's endpoints, it is a discrete segment of controlled-access freeway. This will change over the next few years as it is upgraded to become the new Interstate 22. It is uncertain whether US 78 will be decommissioned west of Birmingham or the old route recommissioned as US 78 upon completion of Interstate 22.

If the old route is recommissioned as US 78 after the opening of I-22, parts of I-22 and US 78 would be forced to overlap. A stretch from just west of Hamilton, Alabama to the first exit in Mississippi, as well as a stretch from MS 25 in Fulton, Mississippi to the next exit west of Fulton after crossing the Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway. The Hamilton area overlap would be due to the old US78 routing no longer exists west of Hamilton having been upgraded to I-22 from Weston westward into Mississippi. The second overlap would be necessary because the old US 78 no longer exists west of downtown Fulton, Mississippi due to the Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway and no bridge in place to carry US 78 traffic on the former route.