Expressway
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Admiral Norton
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[[Image:San Tomas Expressway.jpg|thumb|right|San Tomas Expressway in [[Santa Clara County, California]]. [[California]] is among those [[U.S. states]] that legally distinguish between expressways and freeways. Note the presence of [[traffic light]]s under California's classification of expressways.]]
An '''expressway''' is a [[divided highway]] for high-speed traffic with at least partial [[control of access]]. However, as explained below, the degree of access allowed varies between [[country|countries]] and even between regions within the same country. In some jurisdictions, expressways are divided [[arterial road]]s with limits on the frequency of [[driveway]]s and intersecting cross-streets. In other jurisdictions, access to expressways is limited only to grade-separated [[Interchange (road)|interchanges]], making them the full equivalent of [[freeway]]s.
The term ''expressway'' is currently used in [[Australia]], [[Canada]], [[China]], [[India]], [[Iran]], [[Japan]], [[Malaysia]], [[New Zealand]], [[Nigeria]], [[Pakistan]], [[Philippines]], [[Qatar]], [[Singapore]], [[South Korea]], [[Thailand]], and the [[United States]] (where the term originated).{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
== United States ==
[[Image:Bicyclistonexpressway.jpg|thumb|left|Riding a [[bicycle]] on the expressway is popular, and legal, in [[California]]]]
In the United States, an ''expressway'' is defined by the [[Federal government of the United States|federal government]]’s [[Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices]] as a divided highway with partial control of access.<ref>Section 1A.13, Paragraph 27, ''[[Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices]]'', 2003 ed., rev. 1.[http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/HTM/2003r1/part1/part1a.htm] </ref> In contrast, a ''[[freeway]]'' is defined as a divided highway with full control of access.<ref>Section 1A.13, Paragraph 29, ''[[Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices]]'', 2003 ed., rev. 1.[http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/HTM/2003r1/part1/part1a.htm] See also 23 CFR 750.153(k).</ref> The difference between ''partial'' and ''full'' access control is that expressways may have a limited number of driveways and at-grade intersections (thus making them a form of high-speed arterial road), while access to freeways is allowed only at grade-separated interchanges. Expressways under this definition do not conform to [[interstate highway]] standards (which ban practically all driveways and at-grade intersections) and are therefore usually numbered as [[state highway]]s or [[U.S. highway]]s.
This distinction was first developed in 1949 by the Special Committee on Nomenclature of what is now the [[American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials]] (AASHTO).<ref>American Association of State Highway Officials, ''AASHO Highway Definitions'' (Washington D.C., American Association of State Highway Officials, 1962), 1-3.</ref> In turn, the definitions were incorporated into AASHTO's official standards book, the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which would become the national standards book of the [[U.S. Department of Transportation]] under a 1966 federal statute. The same distinction has also been codified into the statutory law of seven states: [[California]],<ref>Cal. Sts. & High. Code § 257.</ref> [[Mississippi]],<ref>Miss. Code Ann., § 65-5-3, subds. (b) and (c).</ref> [[Missouri]],<ref>Mo. Rev. Stat., § 304.010.</ref> [[Nebraska]],<ref>Neb. Rev. Stat., §§ 60-618.01 and 60-621.</ref> [[North Dakota]],<ref>N.D. Cent. Code, § 24-01-01.1 (2006).</ref> [[Ohio]],<ref>[http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/4511 Ohio Rev. Code Ann., § 4511.01, subds. (YY) and (ZZ).]</ref> and [[Wisconsin]].<ref>Wis. Stat., §§ 59.84(1)(b) and 346.57(1)(am).</ref> However, each state codified the federal distinction slightly differently. California expressways do not necessarily have to be divided, though they must have at least partial access control. For both terms to apply, in Wisconsin, a divided highway must be at least four lanes wide; in Missouri, both terms apply only to divided highways at least 10 miles long that are not part of the Interstate Highway System. In North Dakota and Mississippi, an expressway may have "full or partial" access control and "generally" has grade separations at intersections; a freeway is then defined as an expressway with full access control. Ohio's statute is similar, but instead of the vague word "generally," it imposes a requirement that 50% of an expressway's intersections must be grade-separated for the term to apply.
However, many states around the [[Great Lakes]] region and along the Eastern Seaboard have refused to conform their terminology to the federal definition. The following states officially prefer the term ''expressway'' instead of ''freeway'' to describe what are technically freeways in federal parlance: [[Connecticut]],<ref>Conn. Gen. Stat. § 13a-20(a).</ref> [[Florida]],<ref>Fla. Stat. § 348.0002(8).</ref> [[Illinois]],<ref>625 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/1-119.3.</ref> [[Indiana]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[Maryland]],<ref>Md. Transp. Code Ann. § 8-620(c).</ref> [[Massachusetts]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[New Jersey]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[New York]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[Pennsylvania]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[South Carolina]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[Virginia]],{{Fact|date=February 2007}} and [[West Virginia]].<ref>W. Va. Code § 17-4-2(a).</ref> In those states, the term ''freeway'' is not in common usage and it is common to find [[Interstate highway]]s which bear the name “expressway.” [[Minnesota]] officially uses "freeway" and "expressway" interchangeably (with both defined as what federal officials call freeways).<ref>Minn. Stat. § 160.02, subd. 19.</ref>
Most expressways under the federal definition have [[speed limit]]s of 45-55 mph (70-90 km/h) in urban areas and 55-70 mph (90-110 km/h) in rural areas. Urban expressways are usually free of private driveways, but occasional exceptions include direct driveways to [[gas station]]s and [[shopping center]]s at major intersections (which would never be allowed on a true freeway).
The vast majority of expressways are built by [[state government]]s, or by private companies which then operate them as [[toll road]]s pursuant to a license from the state government.
A famous example of a [[local government]] getting into the expressway business is [[Santa Clara County, California|Santa Clara County]] in [[California]], which deliberately built [[Santa Clara County expressway system|its own expressway system]] in the 1960s to supplement the freeway system then planned by [[Caltrans]]. Although the county planned to upgrade the expressways into full-fledged freeways, such a project became politically infeasible after the rise of the [[tax revolt]] movement in the mid-1970s.
== Canada ==
In some parts of Canada, ''expressway'' is synonymous with [[freeway]] and is used to mean limited-access divided-highways with no at-grade intersections, with both terms used interchangeably. Examples include the [[Gardiner Expressway]] through downtown Toronto. Where the expressway turns into a 6-lane [[arterial road]] ([[Lake Shore Boulevard]]) east of the [[Don River (Toronto)|Don River]], there is a sign warning of the end of the expressway. The [[Macdonald-Cartier Freeway]] is an example of a route that uses the freeway term.
The new [[Veterans Memorial Parkway]] in [[London, Ontario]], has intersections instead of interchanges, thus the Parkway is not considered a [[freeway]]. The Parkway was designed to be a limited access highway for the city but the lack of funding for the [[highway]] forced it to be built as at-grade intersections. Other examples include the [[Hanlon Parkway]] in [[Guelph, Ontario|Guelph]] and [[Highway 420 (Ontario)|Regional Road 420]] in [[Niagara Falls, Ontario|Niagara Falls]].
In other locations, such as [[Alberta]] and most of [[Western Canada]], an expressway is a high-speed arterial road along the lines of the California definition, while a freeway has no at-grade intersections.
In Quebec, the term ''freeway'' is never used, with the terms ''expressway'' (in English) and ''autoroute'' (in English and French) being preferred. English terms are rare, and only found on bilingual signage of expressways (abbreviated "expy") found in [[Montreal]] around bridges and on the [[Bonaventure Expressway]]; these signs are controlled by the federal government.
== United Kingdom ==
''Expressway'' is used in the United Kingdom to describe the road network in [[Runcorn]]. The network is a controlled-access dual carriageway, similar in construction to a [[motorway]], but designed to carry traffic around the town fast and efficiently. Its design and construction were the result of experimental transportation ideas being tested during the [[New Town]] movement in the 1960s and 1970s.
The [[A38(M) motorway|A38(M)]] in Birmingham is also known as the Aston Expressway.
The [[A814]] in Glasgow is known as the Clydeside Expressway.
== Croatia ==
An ''expressway'' in [[Croatia]] ({{lang-hr|brza cesta}}, literally ''express way'') is a road similar to a [[freeway]], although it lacks the [[hard shoulder]]. Expressways are usually marked with letters B or D. They have much lower speed limits than highways, usually {{convert|110|km/h|abbr=on}}. All expressways must have at least two lanes in each direction and all interchanges and exits must be grade separated.<ref name=croatia_expy_law>Croatian: Zakon o sigurnosti u prometu, čl. 2., t. 4.</ref> The longest such road in Croatia is [[B9 (Croatia)|B9]], connecting [[Umag]] and [[Pula]]. All expressways are toll-free except for [[B8 (Croatia)|B8]] and [[B9 (Croatia)|B9]], parts of the [[Istrian Y]] network.
Some expressways are tailored for local traffic, such as the [[D28 (Croatia)|D28]] (Vrbovec Expressway) and some are built as bypasses or beltways, such as the [[D31 (Croatia)|D31]] (East Velika Gorica Bypass).
==See also==
*[[Limited-access highway]]
*[[Controlled-access highway]]
*[[Supercorridor]]
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
== External links ==
* http://www.expresswaysite.com/
{{Road types}}
[[Category:Road infrastructure]]
[[Category:Limited-access roads]]
[[cs:Rychlostní komunikace]]
[[de:Autobahnähnliche Straße]]
[[fr:Voie express]]
[[hr:Brza cesta]]
[[nl:Expressweg]]
[[pl:Droga ekspresowa]]
[[pt:Via expressa]]
[[sr:Брзи пут]]
[[zh:快速道路]]