U.S. Route 20 | |
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Route information | |
Length: | 3,365 mi (5,415 km) |
Existed: | November 11, 1926 – present |
Major junctions | |
West end: | US 101 in Newport, OR |
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East end: | Route 2 in Boston, MA |
Location | |
States: | Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts |
Highway system | |
U.S. Route 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States highway. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a coast-to-coast route. Spanning 3,365 miles (5,415 km), it is the longest road in the United States, and the route roughly parallels that of Interstate 90 (I-90). There is a discontinuity in the official designation of US 20 through Yellowstone National Park, with unnumbered roads used to traverse the park.
It and US 30 break the general U.S. Route numbering rules in Oregon, since US 30 actually starts north of US 20 and runs parallel to the north throughout the state. The two overlap and continue in the "correct" positioning near Caldwell, Idaho. This is because US 20 was not a planned coast-to-coast route while US 30 was. US 20 originally ended at the eastern entrance of Yellowstone Park; it was extended in 1940.
The highway's eastern terminus is in Boston, Massachusetts, at Kenmore Square, where it meets State Route 2. Its western terminus is in Newport, Oregon, at an intersection with US 101, within a mile of the Pacific Ocean.
The highway passes through the following states:
US 20 begins at an intersection with US 101 in Newport, Oregon, and runs generally eastward towards Idaho. On the way it goes over the Central Oregon Coast Range, through several Willamette Valley cities including Corvallis and Albany, climbs the Cascade Mountains over Santiam Pass, goes through Bend, Oregon, and traverses the Oregon High Desert passing through Burns, Oregon. It eventually overlaps with US 26 in Vale, and the two roads continue concurrently to the Idaho border.