What I don't know are the criteria for including a Historic route? I assume it must be signed. What else? Must the route be decommissioned or have a segment relocated?
Just signed. The other stuff adds a layer of complexity as to whether a route is included or not that a driver won't easily know about. Ideally, one would only see signs on decomissioned/bypassed sections, but alas that isn't the case.
The idea of a Historic route having a concurrency with the same numbered route that still exists seems like an oxymoron (how can it be a historic route if it is still a current route? I can understand for the segments that deviate from the current route).
I agree, but it seems that some people want to sign existing routes as historic routes and so have done so. My favourite example for this nonsense is the US6 Historic Route in Provincetown, MA - where it's clearly a bypass (MA6A going through the town) and is current US6.
One route I know is signed but not included is Historic US395 in Riverside, CA.
Added, though it seems to peter out at the north end.
At least with most other systems, there usually some sort of official list maintained by the state DOT.
The issue is that these routes are created or maintained by the state. In some cases they are, in others it's cities and counties (and, obviously, some are just businesses or campaigns).
US 99W signs somewhere along I-5BL(Orland -- a poorly-signed BL that was really borderline for staying in the HB).
I only found one sign on GMSV, in Willows, but added. There's also two in Williams, which is annoying as same first three-letters, so I'm going with
Wi
llo
ws and
Wil
lia
ms for the abbreviations
The Chico 99E segment followed in part the decommissioned CA99 Business route through Chico, but continued south on Midway where the business route turned east on Park Ave.
The late 2016 GMSV shows CA99 signs northbound on Main, but not His-99E signs either way on the old Bus-99 route, and I can't see it on Midway - this is a recent route, added in the last 10 months. I need more info to add it, though you can add it.
Is there a more systematic way of identifying CA's generally well-signed historic US routes, other than randomly through reports on this forum?
it seems to mostly be cities/counties signing these routes, so there's nothing really unified.
Just because some group erected "Historic Route" signs, what makes a route worth including?
How can a driver tell whether it's a state, county, city, lobby group/non-profit, or business that erected a sign? No one seems to have a problem if a state DOT is the one putting up signs (especially if has its beaurocracy Vogonishly catalogue the routes), what's the problem with signs put up by other entities if drivers can't tell the difference?
Is the some sort of "official designation" by state DOTs for historic routes?
I don't believe so. IA seems to be heading down that path, though - hence the US20 presentation to get the route designated, with Iowa DOT getting cities and counties signing the route.
If not, who determined which routes are included?
the contributors - I've gone with if it's signed, it's included.
How will we know if the route list is complete? Is there some "master" list?
We won't - to some extent. But think of it more of a grab-bag, rather than a coherent and complete system, and why does it matter? The point is to map these routes (and also doing the job of documenting them), where we've discovered them, and to map our travels on them.
For gbna, SABRE, is the master list that the DfT directs people too, and most of the changes I've made in the last year or two, I've also made on the 'official' list of SABRE, therefore the master list is basically TM contributor findings (from posts on road geek forums, signage on streetview/photos, etc) - ie the same as this system.
For a lot of European systems, I've found no official list for and used wikipedia or wegenwiki, along with mapping data, to make the routes.
Will early US "auto routes" like the Lincoln Highway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Highway (which covered parts of US30, US50, and others) be included especially in places where is deviates from the existing alignment? (I know a great deal of signage exists in the Midwest on parts of this route).
While I personally have no objections to signed Lincoln Highway segments being included in this system, the feedbank I've recieved so far that it doesn't belong in this system.
What about routes that had different alignments over time?
If there signed. cf US66's different routings.
I just wonder whether enough consideration was given to the above questions. The system is already in "preview," so there is probably little chance of going back now.
I've certainly considered all those questions. The move to preview has a lot to do with making the routes more accessible and getting other people to engage and consider questions like these - the system was devel status for two years and there was mostly silence on this.
