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ORoads: Oregon Route 202

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Oregon Route 202
US Route 101 Business
OR-202 Navigation:
Info/Map | Definition | History | Evolution | Rediscovering OR-202 | Route Log | ODOT Traffic Cameras | Pictures (coming soon)
Oregon Route 202 Info and Map
OR-202's Routing from near Farewell Bend State Park to near Homedale, ID
Lengths: 46.01 miles (current alignment)
46.12 miles (1965 alignment)
44.70 miles (1936 alignment)
90.09 miles (1935 possible alignment)
Type: Undivided Highway
Lifespan: 1935-present
Western Terminus: US-101 at Astoria
Eastern Terminus: OR-47 at Mist
Cities Served: Astoria, Jewell, Mist
Intersects: OR-103
Multiplexes:

US-101 Business

(within Astoria; Hwy #102 MP 0.00-1.42, 1.42 miles)

Oregon Highway Name/Numbers: Nehalem Highway #102
Oregon Route 202 Official Definition

"Over the Nehalem Highway from its junction with the Oregon Coast Highway, US101, in Astoria (common with US101 Business in Astoria), southeasterly via Jewell to its junction with the Mist-Clatskanie Highway, OR47, at Mist. (Rev. 5/25/2005)"

~ ODOT, Descriptions of US and Oregon Routes, March 2007

Oregon Route 202 History

OR-202 was created at the inception of Oregon's secondary route numbering system in 1935, running between Astoria and Mist in northwest Oregon. I have this theory that, for one year, OR-202 actually ran all the way down to Forest Grove, meeting OR-47 (Tualatin Valley Highway #29); this is because OR-47 was extended north all the way to Clatskanie in 1936, and I don't think that Oregon would end OR-202 at a county road while its associated state highway continued southward. Since I have no maps from that long ago to back it up, it's just conjecture at this point. If you have a map from 1935 that shows this, please e-mail me and let me know.

What clearly is not conjecture is that in 1965, when a new routing of US-101 across Youngs Bay, US-101 Business was created over the old route, and OR-202 was extended along its northern portion. A milepost resynchronization was added sometime between 1980 and 2000, shortening the highway by 0.11 miles to its current length. I have found no grand cause for this, my guess is that measuring technology became better and ODOT didn't want to replace all of the mileposts along the route.

Google Earth (while good for finding old alignments from the air but not good for accurate road numberings) mislabels a portion of OR-47 between Mist and the Columbia-Washington County Line as being cosigned with OR-202.

Oregon Route 202 Evolution
1956  •  1977
This map shows OR-202's alignment in 1956.

OR-202 has always began at US-101 in Astoria, but, as shown in this 1956 map, it ended just south of Astoria. US-101's new bridge across the bay hasn't been built yet.

This map shows OR-202's alignment in 1977.

After the bay bridge was built, US-101 was extended onto it, creating US-101 Business through Warrenton and Astoria. OR-202 was cosigned with US-101 Business' northern leg.

It is important to note that all map segments are copyrighted by their respective owners, and that these map segments are used for educational and historical purposes only. Hosted by ImageShack.

Rediscovering Oregon Route 202

Coming soon