Interstate 490 (Ohio)

Interstate 490
Clark Freeway
Route information
Maintained by Ohio DOT
Length:	2.43 mi[2] (3.91 km)
Existed:	1990[1] – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-71 / I-90 in Cleveland
	I-77 in Cleveland
East end:	East 55th Street, Bower Avenue in Cleveland
Highway system
Auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System Main • Auxiliary • Business Ohio highways Interstates • U.S. Routes • State Routes ← I-480 I-670 →

Interstate 490 (I-490) is a 2.43-mile (3.91 km) Interstate Highway in Cleveland, Ohio. The western terminus is a junction with I-90 and I-71 on Cleveland's west side. After spanning the Cuyahoga River, the eastern terminus is a junction with East 55th Street, just east of I-77.

In 2008, the Ohio Department of Transportation closed I-90 to trucks over the Innerbelt Bridge due to weight concerns. Trucks traveling eastbound are detoured onto I-490 east, then exit at I-77 north and rejoin I-90 east at I-77's northern terminus. Traveling westbound, trucks exit I-90 west at I-77 south, then exit at I-490 west before rejoining I-90 at I-490's western terminus.^[3][4]

History

The original plans of the Cleveland and other city and federal highway authorities called for the highway – also known as the Clark Freeway and, at various times and in various sections, as Interstate 80N^[5] and Interstate 290 – to bisect the east side of the city and the eastern suburbs; the I-290 designation would have continued north along I-271. A referendum in Shaker Heights in the late 1960s, however, barred the city from allowing the highway to pass through the city.^[6][7] This put a large and impassable hole in the plans and made the completion of the highway as a whole impossible. A segment at the western end opened in 1990 as I-490.

The interchanges between I-490 and West 7th Street and between I-90 and West 14th Street/Abbey Avenue were designed to complete the missing movements at the stack interchange at what is now the termini of both I-71 and I-490; I-71 was to continue along the Innerbelt to Dead Man's Curve (in addition to the original Clark Freeway plans), while I-290 was to have used a portion of present I-90 meet the Parma Freeway. After the freeway revolts killed the Clark Freeway east of East 55th Street and the Parma Freeway, I-90 was realigned to follow the Innerbelt and part of I-290.

In April 2011, the ramps between I-77 and I-90 to the west were removed, making I-490 the official route between those highways and between I-77 and I-71.^[8]

Incomplete I-490 in Cleveland, looking east from W. 14th St., photo taken in July, 1973.

Opportunity Corridor

There have been subsequent proposals to employ part of the I-290 routing. The current plan, part of the Innerbelt project, proposes an expressway to University Circle, named the "Opportunity Corridor". After temporary rejections in 2002^[9] and 2006 – the latter due to Secretary of State Ken Blackwell's loss in the 2006 gubernatorial campaign after he had reintroduced the plan as part of a plan to lease the Ohio Turnpike^[10] – the plan is active again. In June 2008, the start date for the project was planned to be 2015,^[11] earlier than the 2025 or later date previously planned.^[12] In 2009, a plan to incorporate the highway as a toll road was proposed.^[13] That same year, a director of the project was named,^[14][15] and the Opportunity Corridor Steering Committee was formed,^[14] holding its first meeting on May 15.^[16] As of July 2011 the earliest date of construction is 2016, providing that funding is available.^[17]

Exit list

The entire route is in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County.

Mile	Exit	Destinations	Notes
0.00	—	I-90 west – Toledo	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; Western terminus of I-490
0.06	1A	I-71 south / SR 176 south – Columbus	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
0.92	1B	West 7th Street/Houston Ave.	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
1.65	2A	SR 14 (Broadway) / SR 43	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
1.72	2B	I-77 – Downtown Cleveland, Akron	Exit 161 on I-77
2.43	—	East 55th Street	Eastern terminus of I-490; At-grade intersection
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi      Concurrency terminus •      Closed/Former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

References

1. ^ Thoma, Pauline (1990-09-12). "Ceremony gets I-490 on road; Long-awaited bridge opens for business". The Plain Dealer. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/plaindealer/access/94935737.html?FMT=ABS. Retrieved 2008-02-25. 
2. ^ "Route Log and Finder List - Interstate System: Table 2". FHWA. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/reports/routefinder/table2.cfm. Retrieved 2007-09-24. 
3. ^ ODOT’s Innerbelt Bridge Safety Plan to reduce Commuter Congestion and keep Cleveland Commerce flowing (press release, 2008-11-12). Ohio Department of Transportation District 12.
4. ^ "Innerbelt Ban On Trucks Goes Into Effect". WEWS-TV. 2008-11-18. http://www.newsnet5.com/news/18010785/detail.html. Retrieved 2009-05-21. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ Ohio Department of Highways (via Roadfan.com). "1957-1958 Biennial Report excerpt". http://www.roadfan.com/clevmap.html. Retrieved 2007-09-24. 
6. ^ O'Malley, Michael (2006-09-25). "Women saved Shaker Lakes from freeways". The Plain Dealer. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%20114629EB9B7AF920%20)&p_docid=114629EB9B7AF920&p_theme=aggregated4&p_queryname=114629EB9B7AF920&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=V49F4AIBMTE4NjUzMjA0OC4zNDk1MTE6MToxMTo2Ni4yMTMuNjMuMA&&p_multi=CPDB. Retrieved 2008-02-26. 
7. ^ Cleveland Heights Historical Society. "Feature Stories: When Bad Ideas Happen to Good Suburbs: The Clark, Lee and Heights Freeways". http://chuh.net/chhistory/features/freeways.html. Retrieved 2008-02-26. 
8. ^ "Two Interstate 77/90 Ramps to Close Permanently as Part of Innerbelt Work" (press release). Ohio Department of Transportation District 12, 2011-04-05. Retrieved on 2011-07-19.
9. ^ Exner, Rich (2002-02-15). "East Side highway options hit wall; State, federal officials urge scrapping plan". The Plain Dealer. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F87C5CB63A1BAA3%20)&p_docid=0F87C5CB63A1BAA3&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F87C5CB63A1BAA3&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=P6CU55QSMTIwMzk4Mzg4NC4xNjE2MTk6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB. Retrieved 2008-02-25. 
10. ^ Wendling, Ted (2006-08-18). "Foe blasts Blackwell's 'summit' with contractors". The Plain Dealer. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%201139A496A31E1CC0%20)&p_docid=1139A496A31E1CC0&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=1139A496A31E1CC0&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=C67U50GNMTIwMzk4Mzg1MC41MjM1NzY6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB. Retrieved 2008-02-25. 
11. ^ Nichols, Jim (2008-06-27). "Cleveland's Opportunity Corridor project gets back on track". The Plain Dealer. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/06/clevelands_opportunity_corrido.html. Retrieved 2008-06-30. 
12. ^ Larkin, Brent (2008-03-30). "City must have road to its future". The Plain Dealer. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%2011FC7967396E9748%20)&p_docid=11FC7967396E9748&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=11FC7967396E9748&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=U49V4CCHMTIwNzA1NjkyOC4yNTUyODA6MToxNDo2Ni4yMTMuMTIyLjEyOA&&p_multi=CPDB. Retrieved 2008-03-31. 
13. ^ Farkas, Karen (2009-02-05). "Opportunity Corridor in Cleveland could be a toll road, ODOT says". The Plain Dealer. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/02/opportunity_corridor_in_clevel.html. Retrieved 2009-05-21. 
14. ^ ^{a b} "Cuyahoga County Planning Commission Weblog: April 2009 Archives". Cuyahoga County Planning Commission. 2009-04-24. http://planning.co.cuyahoga.oh.us/blog/2009/04/#008932. Retrieved 2009-05-21. 
15. ^ Farkas, Karen (2009-04-23). "Project director is named for Opportunity Corridor". The Plain Dealer. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%20127C5B39D77C40B8%20)&p_docid=127C5B39D77C40B8&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=127C5B39D77C40B8&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=T6AQ5AXUMTI0MjkzMTM5Mi41ODgzODM6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB. Retrieved 2009-05-21. 
16. ^ Farkas, Karen (2009-05-15). "Opportunity Corridor panel holds first meeting". The Plain Dealer. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/05/opportunity_corridor_panel_hol.html. Retrieved 2009-05-21. 
17. ^ Breckenridge, Tom (2011-07-18). "Opportunity Corridor's Latest Alignment Would Uproot more than 90 Families, a Dozen Businesses". The Plain Dealer. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/07/post_498.html. Retrieved 2011-07-19. 

Further reading

• Breckenridge, Tom (2010-09-18). "Homes, businesses in Cleveland neighborhoods would be leveled to make way for Opportunity Corridor". The Plain Dealer. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/09/homes_businesses_in_cleveland.html. Retrieved 2010-09-22. 

External links

Opportunity Corridor project page (Ohio Department of Transportation)