# The longest stretch of highway in the U.S. without an exit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 20, 2025, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001 "2025-11-20T05:50:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/21 "2025-11-20T18:49:41Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > That part of the highway cuts through the Everglades and is known as “Alligator Alley” Dang, out of gas! Well, I’ll just walk a ways, I’m sure I’ll run into something. 😳 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/22 "2025-11-20T18:54:22Z")
Some days math is harder than others. Happens to all of us. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/23 "2025-11-20T18:58:52Z")
I don’t know if this would qualify, but the Dalton Highway (the pipeline road) in Alaska only has three inhabited areas. The stretch between Coldfoot (pop. 34) and Deadhorse (pop. 25-50) is 240 miles. There are no services in that stretch of road, so it behooves one to gas up at both locations. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/24 "2025-11-20T18:59:03Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > > [@Jasmine](#): > > > > It looks like you really need to know where you’re going in Florida! LOL > > > > You miss your exit, and you could run out of gas in the middle of … what … the Everglades? 😳 > > Actually, yes. > > Those long stretches of I-75 mentioned upthread connect Naples (on Florida’s west coast) to Ft Lauderdale (on Florida’s east coast). That part of the highway cuts through the Everglades and is known as “Alligator Alley” And, except for Yeehaw Junction, much of the same for those stretches of Florida’s Turnpike: swamps, farms, and wildlife management areas. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/25 "2025-11-20T19:03:46Z")
I love #15 in PA; indicates there’s an emergency entrance / exit they can open up. There have been a few cases over the years where a snowstorm shut down the road; people stuck for something like 25 hrs & emergency services/National Guard running them emergency supplies of food/water/fuel. Do you think if they can’t manage to keep a high-volume interstate passable that the 2-lane local, rural road is going to be better or worse? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/26 "2025-11-20T19:09:33Z")
> [@phs3](#): > > When they built the NY Turnpike Nitpick: Thruway. Sorry…a fascinating post, and thanks! For real. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/27 "2025-11-20T19:23:55Z")
Why are there 2 lanes of water running parallel to the road? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/28 "2025-11-20T19:26:02Z")
Drainage canals. The Everglades (and all the way up to Lake Okeechobee) are a mass of water slowly moving southward through soil and grass. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/29 "2025-11-20T19:44:15Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I was coming in to say just this. You can drive quite a long way along I-15 North-South and encounter only exits for individual ranches – no towns. I-15 as it goes through the whole state of Arizona has only 2 exits over the entire stretch. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/30 "2025-11-20T19:50:23Z")
Two on each side, or two total? ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/31 "2025-11-20T20:14:14Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Were you there recently, or before or after the 2006 tornado? It was after, but I was only nearby, not actually there. I was on I-55 and stopped to take a picture of the exit sign. So I think I was about 5 miles east of town. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/32 "2025-11-20T20:14:51Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I-15 as it goes through the whole state of Arizona has only 2 exits over the entire stretch. I-15 only cuts through the north west corner of Arizona, just 30 miles, so it’s not surprising that there aren’t many exits. It looks like there are 4 exits (each on both sides of the highway) - Exit 6 - Beaver Dam Littlefield - Exit 9 - Desert Springs - Exit 18 - Cedar Pocket - Exit 27 - Black Rock Rd ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/33 "2025-11-20T20:15:38Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I-15 as it goes through the whole state of Arizona has only 2 exits over the entire stretch. Yeah it just nips a tiny NW corner of the state. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/34 "2025-11-20T20:17:42Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I don’t know if this would qualify, but the Dalton Highway (the pipeline road) in Alaska only has three inhabited areas. The stretch between Coldfoot (pop. 34) and Deadhorse (pop. 25-50) is 240 miles. There are no services in that stretch of road, so it behooves one to gas up at both locations. This drive is _ **still** _ on my list of Things toDo, Places to Go, and People to See! (I’ve only been talking about it for over 10 years…) ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/35 "2025-11-20T20:26:57Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The 2006 tornado had simply erased the town. I’ve been to [Centralia, PA](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centralia,_Pennsylvania); the roads are still there, but that’s it. Not a house left. More eerie than Erie ( PA)! ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/36 "2025-11-20T20:27:56Z")
I thought the longest stretch was between any two exits in L.A. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/37 "2025-11-20T20:39:59Z")
If you’re going on elapsed time rather than physical distance, you’re probably right. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/38 "2025-11-20T20:52:43Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > I-15 only cuts through the north west corner of Arizona, just 30 miles, so it’s not surprising that there aren’t many exits. > [@Bullitt](#): > > Yeah it just nips a tiny NW corner of the state. I know; drove it many times. Just trying to make it sound more impressive than it really is. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/39 "2025-11-20T20:54:54Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Nitpick: Thruway. Thanks. It kept looking wrong to me but I couldn’t figure out why! ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2025, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001/40 "2025-11-20T21:01:50Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > And yet many of these longest stretches on that list are in the east, not the west. Interesting. I think many of those routes in the northeast were originally built as toll roads. Thus they wanted to limit the places where drivers could enter and exit in order to reduce the number of toll plazas needed. I believe those routes do have service plazas where you can stop for gas and fast food. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-longest-stretch-of-highway-in-the-u-s-without-an-exit/1025001.md?page=3)