Interstate 270 (Ohio)

Interstate 270
Route information
Maintained by ODOT
Length:	54.97 mi[1] (88.47 km)
History:	Late 1950s–present; completed in 1975
Major junctions
Beltway around Columbus, Ohio
	I‑71 north I‑70 west US 23 SR 161 US 33 SR 315 I‑71 south I‑670 I‑70 east
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Ohio Highways Interstate U.S. State Scenic ← SR 269 I‑271 →

Interstate 270 (abbreviated I-270) is the beltway loop freeway in the Columbus metropolitan area, commonly known locally as "The Outerbelt," or the "Jack Nicklaus Freeway." The "western" (and "eastern") terminus of I-270, at least in terms of the zero-milepost, is at the junction with I-71 east of Grove City, Ohio. I-270, along with I-670, provides access to Port Columbus International Airport. The entire length of I-270 is 54.97 miles (88.47 km). It is one of four interstate loops not to share with another interstate freeway, the others being I-295, I-485, and I-610.

History

I-270 at exit 33

Planning

Planning for an outerbelt around Columbus began in the late 1950s. By the early 1960s detailed planning for the route had begun, and several controversies arose. The first involved the location of the northern segment, which was originally planned to pass south of Worthington, passing through the Ohio School for the Deaf and just north of the then ten-year-old Graceland Shopping Center. Through vigorous lobbying throughout 1961, and with the help of Ohio Governor Michael DiSalle, residents were able to get the outerbelt relocated to pass north of Worthington.^[2]

Another contentious issue involved the routing of the eastern portion of the outerbelt between Port Columbus International Airport and the city of Gahanna. While the airport wanted the outerbelt pushed out towards Gahanna so as to leave land for future runway expansion, the residents of Gahanna wanted it pushed back towards Columbus. The final compromise led to an interesting kink in I-270 as it jogs around the airport.^[3]

Construction

Northwest of I-270; Exit 15: Tuttle Crossing Blvd

Construction of the outerbelt began in 1962, and work was begun on various disconnected sections. The first portion to be completed connected US Route 23 (US 23) with I-71 south of Columbus.^[4] The portion between US 23 and I-71 on the north side opened in August 1967.^[5]

The section between I-70 on the West Side and I-71 on the south side opened in August 1970.^[6] In late 1970, sections opened on the east side between US 33 and I-70, and between State Route 3 (SR 3) in Westerville and SR 161 on the east side. It was now possible to bypass Columbus using I-270 by going around the south side of the city.^[7]

In June 1971, the section between Morse Road and SR 161 on the east side opened. In October 1971, another section on the east side between I-70 and East Main Street opened. It would take four more years to complete the northeast portion of the outerbelt.^[8]

The last section of I-270, on the east side, between Hamilton Road and East Broad Street, was opened on August 20, 1975.^[9] The total cost of the 10-year construction project was $175 million, compared to the original 1961 estimate of $104 million.

Accidents and incidents

Southwest of I-270

• In December 1965, during the construction of the northern section of I-270 across the N&W and NYC railroad tracks between US 23 and I-71, the New York Central's Ohio State Limited was wrecked after it hit a piece of earthmoving machinery, resulting in the operator's death and the injury of several passengers and crew. The train was dumped into the cornfield resulting in a major operation to clean it up.^[10]
• On November 4, 1968, David R. Booth, age 29, became the first person to die on I-270 when he hit another car while merging onto US 23 from I-270.^[11]
• In February 1974, three trucks traveling on I-270 on the south side near US 33 were struck by gunfire during a violent Teamsters Strike.^[12]
• Ohio highway sniper attacks: The highway was again the subject of national media attention in 2003 when 24 sniper shootings were reported along the southern portion of the Interstate and other neighboring highways. Sixty-two-year-old Gail Knisley was shot to death on November 25, 2003, making her the only fatality associated with the string of shootings. Charles A. McCoy, Jr., who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 1996, was accused of the shootings and stood trial in 2005. The first trial with death penalty charges resulted in a hung jury on May 9, 2005, most likely due to McCoy's severe mental illness. Rather than face a retrial, McCoy accepted a plea arrangement where he avoided the death sentence. He was sentenced to 28 years in prison on August 9, 2005.

Expansion and noise barriers

In 1978, the first noise barriers were constructed on the portion of I-270 passing near Gahanna. Noise barriers have been slowly added around the length of the 55-mile (89 km) long belt as development has crowded up to the noisy road.^[13]

Massive development followed the construction of I-270, especially around the north and northwest sides. The northern suburbs of Westerville, Worthington and Dublin, and Hilliard to the west benefited the most. As in other sizeable cities across America, the effect of this outerbelt driven development was to hasten the decline of the Columbus core. The south portion of I-270 was much slower to develop due to the location of sewage treatment and landfill facilities, as well as quarries and the flood prone Scioto River. Grove City began to develop in the 1990s with the addition of office/warehouse space, and the conversion of Rickenbacker Air Force Base to a civilian air freight facility.

Exit list

The entire route is in Franklin County.

Location	mi[1]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Grove City	0.00– 54.97	0.00– 88.47	55	I‑71 – Columbus, Cincinnati	Signed as exits 55A (north) & 55B (south); I-71 south exit 101, north exit 101A-B.
Urbancrest	2.13	3.43	2	US 62 / SR 3 – Grove City
Columbus	4.97	8.00	5	Georgesville Road	Cardinal direction change: westbound becomes northbound & southbound becomes eastbound
	6.91– 7.04	11.12– 11.33	7	US 40 (Broad Street)	Signed as exits 7A (west) and 7B (east) southbound
	8.69– 8.71	13.99– 14.02	8	I‑70 – Columbus, Dayton	I-70 west exit 93, east exits 93A-B.
	10.50	16.90	10	Roberts Road	diverging diamond interchange [14]
Hilliard	12.63– 12.64	20.33– 20.34	13	Fishinger Road – Upper Arlington Cemetery Road – Hilliard, Franklin County Fairgrounds	Signed as exits 13A (Fishinger Road) and 13B (Cemetery Road) northbound
	13.8	22.2	14	Davidson Road	Proposed
Columbus	15.63	25.15	15	Tuttle Crossing Blvd
Dublin	17.29– 17.31	27.83– 27.86	17	US 33 / SR 161 – Dublin, Muirfield, Marysville, Plain City	Signed as exits 17A (east, north) and 17B (west, south); Cardinal direction change: northbound becomes eastbound & westbound becomes southbound
Columbus	19.82	31.90	20	Sawmill Road – Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Zoombezi Bay, Muirfield (WB)	First SPUI in Ohio
Worthington	22.78	36.66	22	SR 315	Signed as exits 22A (south) and 22B (north)
	23.78	38.27	23	US 23 – Worthington, Delaware, Toledo	Signed as exits 23A (south) and 23B (north)
Columbus	25.83	41.57	26	I‑71 – Columbus, Cleveland	Signed as exits 26A (south) & 26B (north) eastbound; I-71 north exit 119, south exits 119A-B.
	27.38	44.06	28	SR 710 west (Cleveland Avenue)	Signed as exits 28A (south) and 28B (north/west); Eastern terminus of SR 710
Westerville	28.71	46.20	29	SR 3 – Westerville	Cardinal direction change: Eastbound becomes southbound & northbound becomes westbound; SR 3 known as State Street north of I-270 and Westerville Road south of I-270
Columbus	30.53	49.13	30	SR 161 – Worthington, New Albany	Signed as exits 30A (south) and 30B (north); shares C-D roads with exit 33
	32.27	51.93	32	Morse Road	No connection to exits 30 or 33
	32.92	52.98	33	Easton Way – Easton	Shares C-D roads with exit 30
Gahanna	35.16– 35.51	56.58– 57.15	35	I‑670 west / US 62 west – Airport US 62 east – Gahanna Johnstown Road	Signed as exits 35A (I-670/US 62 west), 35B (US 62 east) and 35C (Johnstown Road) southbound; Only access to Johnstown Road is northbound exit
	37.36	60.13	37	SR 317 (Hamilton Road)
Columbus	39.53	63.62	39	SR 16 (Broad Street) / Taylor Station Road – Whitehall	Signed as exits 39A (west) and 39B (east); Only access to Taylor Station Road is northbound exit (via Old Morrison Road and Westbourne Avenue)
	41.32	66.50	41	US 40 (Main St) – Whitehall, Reynoldsburg	Signed as exits 41A (west) and 41B (east); shares C-D roads with exit 43
	42.82	68.91	43	I‑70 – Columbus, Wheeling	Signed as exits 43A (west) & 43B (east); shares C-D roads with exit 41; I-70 east exit 108, west exits 108A-B.
	46.13	74.24	46	US 33 – Bexley, Lancaster	Signed as exits 46A (west) and 46B (east)
Obetz	48.98	78.83	49	Alum Creek Drive – Obetz, Rickenbacker Int'l Airport	Cardinal direction change: Southbound becomes westbound & eastbound becomes northbound
Columbus	52.72	84.84	52	US 23 / South High Street – Columbus, Circleville	Signed as exits 52A (north) and 52B (south) westbound; Access to Scioto Downs (SB)
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access       Unopened

See also

List of unused highways in Ohio

References

Route map: Bing / Google

1. District 6 staff (January 2006). "ODOT Straight Line Diagram, Franklin IR 270" (PDF). Ohio Department of Transportation. pp. 1–11. Retrieved 2011-08-24.
2. "Meeting Decries 'Near' Outerbelt". Columbus Dispatch. February 9, 1961. p. 1A.
3. "Ohio Dept of Highways Completes Work on a Proposed New Alignment through Gahanna for the Outerbelt Expressway which Would Permit Future Expansion for Port Columbus". Columbus Dispatch. March 30, 1967. p. 1B.
4. "Ohio Highway Department Reports on the Status of 6 Columbus Expressway Projects: Outerbelt, Ft Hayes Interchange, East Freeway, Parsons and Fulton Expressways". Columbus Dispatch. June 16, 1963. p. 14A.
5. "The Outerbelt Expressway (I-270) Between the North Freeway and N High St Is Opened at Ceremonies Led by the Worthington Chamber of Commerce". Columbus Dispatch. August 15, 1967. p. 1B.
6. "8.5 Mile Stretch of Outerbelt, I-270, Between I-70 West and South Freeway, Will Open 8/17". Columbus Dispatch. August 13, 1970. p. 1B.
7. "A Missing Link in the Cols Outerbelt Opens to Traffic Nov 20, Allowing East–West Traffic to Pass Cols; the 3.2 Mile Link Between Rt 33 and I-70 Beats a Thanksgiving Deadline". Columbus Dispatch. November 19, 1970. p. 1A.
8. "The Opening of E Main St (Rt 40) over the Outerbelt Is Scheduled for 6/21, and Work on E Main St–NOE–Bixby Rd Intersection May Also Be Completed by that Date". Columbus Dispatch. June 13, 1971. p. 19A.
9. "Outerbelt Finish Set for Aug. 20". Columbus Dispatch. July 9, 1975. p. 1C.
10. "Dana B. Bolin, 49, of Athens, Ohio, Is Killed and about 30 People Are Injured in the Crash of New York Central's Ohio State Limited Passenger Train in Worthington". Columbus Dispatch. December 19, 1965. p. 1A.
11. "David R. Booth, 29, 1066 Corwin Ave, Dies when his Car Collides with Another just North of I-270 Exit onto Rt 23, South of Columbus". Columbus Dispatch. November 4, 1968. p. 1B.
12. "Three Trucks Traveling in Convoy on the Columbus Outerbelt near US 33 Are Struck by Gunfire as Violence Continues in the Strike by Independent Truckers". Columbus Dispatch. February 4, 1974. p. 1A.
13. "Noise from the Outerbelt Are Erected in Gahanna; City Threatened To Sue Ohio Dept of Transportation if Barriers Were Not Erected". Columbus Dispatch. June 1, 1978. p. 10B.
14. "I-270/Roberts Road Interchange Improvement Project". Ohio Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2 August 2013.