Interstate 77 in Cleveland

Interstate 77 has a northern terminus located at Interstate 90 (Innerbelt Freeway) in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. The freeway is carried through the city by the Willow Freeway which has origins as a 1927 concept to realign US Route 21. Much of the Willow Freeway was constructed prior to the passage of the 1956 Federal Aid Highway Act which established of the Interstate System. The Willow Freeway was planned as part of Interstate 79 after the Interstate System was established. The corridor was quickly renumbered as part of Interstate 77 and Interstate 177 (north of planned Interstate 80N) during 1958. Interstate 177 would ultimately be consolidated into the parent corridor.

Part 1; the history the Willow Freeway and Interstate 77 in Cleveland

Upon the commissioning of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) on November 11, 1926, the corridor of downtown Cleveland was served by US Route 21. US Route 21 can be seen entering downtown Cleveland on the 1927 Rand McNally city insert map. The highway is shown following Brecksville Road, Canal Road, 49th Street, Broadway, Orange Avenue and Ontario Street to a terminus at Public Square in downtown.

The Willow Freeway was first proposed in 1927 as the new routing of US Route 21. Planning for the freeway began in May 1935 and was intended to begin at the site of Willow Station near Independence and extend north into downtown Cleveland. Construction on the corridor broke ground in 1938 with interchange separation between US Route 21 and Ohio State Route 17. Said interchange would be complete by October 1940 (now part of Ohio State Route 21).

The US Route 21/Ohio State Route 17 interchange can be seen complete on the 1944 Rand McNally map of Cleveland. Construction of the Willow Freeway corridor would be shelved during World War II.

Construction of the Willow Freeway would resume in late 1946. The freeway corridor can be seen completed north from Ohio State Route 17 to Havard Avenue on the 1948 Rand McNally map of Cleveland. US Route 21 is shown using a jog from the northern freeway terminus on Havard Avenue to reach 49th Street.

Construction of the Willow Freeway north to Broadway would begin during early year 1950. The corridor can be seen completed as the new alignment of US Route 21 to Broadway on the 1956 Rand McNally map of Cleveland.

The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 was signed into law on June 29 of said year. The act birthed the Interstate Highway System and would add the construction of the remaining segment of the Willow Freeway as a chargeable corridor.

The Willow Freeway corridor was originally assigned as a segment of Interstate 79. The number appears on the August 14, 1957, "Official Route Numbering For The National System Of Interstate And Defense Highways "map created by AASHO.

During the finalization of the Interstate route numbers the Willow Freeway corridor would be assigned as Interstate 77 and Interstate 177. The segment of Interstate 177 was intended to connect the Troy Lee James Freeway north to the Innerbelt Freeway.

The rerouting of Interstate 77 into downtown Cleveland appears in a State of Ohio Department of Highways numbering proposal letter to AASHO dated August 8, 1958. Interstate 77 was intended to be carried west from the Cleveland area towards Toledo west which included multiplexes of Interstates 80N, Interstate 80 and Interstate 90. Interstate 77 was proposed in the same letter to be realigned into downtown Cleveland onto the Interstate 177 segment of the Willow Freeway. Interstate 177 was intended to end at the Innerbelt Freeway (then planned as Interstate 71).

The renumbering proposal letter included a map depicting the layout of the planned Interstate System in Cleveland. Interstate 77 was proposed to enter the city of Cleveland northbound via the Willow Freeway. The highway would intersect Interstate 80N (Troy Lee James Highway) near Industrial Valley and continue to a terminus at Interstate 71 (Innerbelt Freeway) in downtown.

The AASHO Executive Committee advised the State of Ohio Department of Highways that their renumbering proposal was approved in a letter dated November 10, 1958. This measure functionally made the corridor of Interstate 77 ending in downtown Cleveland active. During the late 1950s the Willow Freeway would be extended over Kingsbury Run to the then under construction Innerbelt Freeway.

The completed Willow Freeway north of Kingsbury Run can be seen in detail on the 1963 United States Geological Survey map of Cleveland South. Interstate 77 and US Route 21 can be seen running concurrent into Cleveland towards Broadway. US Route 21 is shown splitting away into downtown via Broadway.

On May 9, 1966, the Ohio Director of Highways submitted an application to AASHO for the deletion of US Route 21 in the state pending the completion of Interstate 77. Conditional approval was granted by the AASHO Executive Committee on October 14, 1967. AASHO required US Route 21 be only truncated to US Route 50 Alternate in Murietta near the Ohio/West Virginia state line. Ultimately US Route 21 signage in Ohio was first omitted in the state on the 1971 State Map edition. This effectively meant that the lengthy concurrency between US Route 21 and Interstate 77 in Ohio was void. The last section Interstate 77 to open was in Independence during 1976.

Part 2; scenes along Interstate 77 in the Cleveland area

Pictured is westbound Rockside Road intersecting Interstate 77 in Independence.

From Rockside Road northbound Interstate 77 traffic can also merge onto Interstate 480.

Northbound Interstate 77 passes through Cuyahoga Heights and Newburgh Heights before entering Cleveland proper at Fleet Avenue. The freeway intersects Ohio State Route 14 (Broadway Avenue) at Exit 161A.

Interstate 77 northbound Exit 161B intersects Interstate 490 (westbound) and Ohio State Route 10 (eastbound). Interstate 490 is signed as a connector route to Interstate 71.

As northbound traffic approaches Exit 162A (Woodland Avenue and 30th Street) an overhead gantry announces Interstate 77 as ending within 1.5 miles. Exit 162A is signed as access to westbound Ohio State Route 10.

Northbound Interstate 77 enters downtown Cleveland and intersects numerous Exits for surface streets. Interstate 77 terminates at a ramp onto eastbound Interstate 90/Innerbelt Freeway with little ceremony. The highway ends at a vista of the Cleveland skyline.