Interstate 271

Interstate 271
Outerbelt East Freeway
Route information
Maintained by Ohio DOT
Length:	46.06 mi[1] (74.13 km)
Existed:	1972 – present
Major junctions
South end:	I‑71 in Medina Township
	I‑77 / SR 21 in Richfield I‑480 / SR 14 in Oakwood I‑480 / US 422 in Bedford Heights
North end:	I‑90 in Willoughby Hills
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Ohio Highways Interstate U.S. State Scenic ← I‑270 I‑275 →

Interstate 271 (I-271) is an auxiliary interstate highway in the suburbs of Cleveland and Akron in the U.S. state of Ohio. The highway is officially designated the Outerbelt East Freeway, but rarely referred to by that name.

Route description

The highway runs from a junction with I-71 in Medina Township to I-90 in Willoughby Hills, intersecting I-480 (and running jointly with it for a short stretch). The width varies from point to point, but is mostly four to six lanes wide south of I-480 and eight to twelve lanes wide north of I-480; there it is divided into express and local lanes.

The local-express lanes begin at the southern interchange of US-422 and continue northward slightly beyond the end of I-271. The northbound express lanes allow access to all exits (excluding Chagrin Boulevard, Harvard Road, and SR 175, a southbound-only exit). The southbound express lanes bypass all exits except for one combined exit for Chagrin Boulevard (west US-422), Harvard Road, Richmond Road (SR 175) and US-422 (east) interchange. The lanes then become the mainline of I-480N which in turn becomes I-480 westbound.

Interstate 271 does not have a direct interchange with Interstate 80 – one of only a few examples of Interstate Highways that cross but do not intersect. Another example is in Toledo where Interstate 475 crosses Interstate 80/90 but does not intersect with it. The 271/480 section is the only instance of a concurrency of two three-digit Interstate Highways.

History

I-271/I-480 north of the Broadway/Forbes interchange in 2002

Interstate 290 was to have followed the northern end of I-271. I-271 itself was to have followed I-480N and I-480 westward to I-71.^[2]

Interstate 271's express lanes were added between 1993 and 1995, with related projects continuing through 1998.^[3][4]

For many years, the interchange with State Route 8 was only partially complete. The northbound exit and southbound entrance ramps connected with both directions of State Route 8, but southbound I-271 could only access State Route 8 southbound (though later both directions were accessible^[5]), and only northbound State Route 8 could access I-271 northbound. To compensate for the missing movements, a half-diamond was built at State Route 82. The I-271/State Route 8 interchange underwent reconstruction in 2008–2009 that turned it into a complete interchange allowing all movements.^[6][7][8]

Similarly, travelers going to and from the north on I-271 had to take surface streets to get to and from the west on I-480 in Cuyahoga County. This link is now covered by unsigned I-480N.

I-271 Rebuilding and Widening program

The need for the I-271 widening project between Miles Road and the Summit County line was identified in March 2002. Interstate 271 will be widened from two to three lanes north and southbound between Miles and Columbus Road and from three to five lanes north and southbound between Columbus and the I-480/I-271 split near the Summit County line. Construction will last two years and includes replacement of the existing pavement, noise walls, lighting and signing. A similar project to widen I-271 from two to three lanes will be constructed in Summit County between the Cuyahoga County line and SR 8 and will improve access to the Ohio Turnpike. That project is scheduled to begin in 2014 and be complete in 2016.^[9]

Exit list

County	Location	mi[10]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Medina	Medina Township	0.00	0.00	1	I‑71 south – Columbus	Southern terminus
		3.52	5.66	3	SR 94 (Ridge Road) to I‑71 north
Summit	Richfield	9.52	15.32	9	Brecksville Road to I‑77 south / SR 21 south	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
		10.15	16.33	10	I‑77 / SR 21 – Cleveland, Akron, Columbus	Same-directional movements only
		12.59	20.26	12	SR 303 (Streetsboro Road) – Richfield, Peninsula
	Macedonia	18.44	29.68	18	SR 8 – Boston Heights, Akron
		19.22	30.93	19	SR 82 (East Aurora Road) – Macedonia, Twinsburg	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Cuyahoga	Oakwood	21.84	35.15	21	I‑480 east / SR 14 east – Youngstown	Southern terminus of concurrency with I-480 / SR 14; southbound exit and northbound entrance
	Bedford	23.28	37.47	23	SR 14 west (Broadway Avenue) / Forbes Road	Northern terminus of concurrency with SR 14
	Bedford Heights	25.87	41.63	26A	Rockside Road	Signed as exit 26 southbound
		25.87	41.63	26B	I‑480 west – Cleveland, Toledo	Northern terminus of concurrency with I-480; northbound exit and southbound entrance
		27.01	43.47	27A	US 422 east – Warren	Southern terminus of concurrency with US 422
		27.94	44.97	27B	I‑480N west to I‑480 west – Toledo	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
		27.94	44.97	27B	Miles Road	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
		28.08	45.19	28A	SR 175 (Richmond Road) / Emery Road	Southbound exit and northbound entrance; remaining movements are via exit 27B
	Orange	29.01	46.69	28B	Harvard Road
	Beachwood	29.96	48.22	29	US 422 west / SR 87 east (Chagrin Boulevard)	Northern terminus of concurrency with US 422
	Lyndhurst	32.92	52.98	32	Cedar Road / Brainard Road
	Mayfield Heights	34.98	56.29	34	US 322 (Mayfield Road)
	Highland Heights	36.31	58.44	36	Wilson Mills Road
Lake	Willoughby Hills	40.22	64.73	40	I‑90 to SR 91 – Cleveland, Erie, PA	Northern terminus; exit 188 on I-90
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

References

1. "Route Log - Auxiliary Routes of the Eisenhower National System Of Interstate and Defense Highways - Table 2". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
2. Ohio Department of Highways. "1957-1958 Biennial Report excerpt". Retrieved 2008-04-02.
3. Thoma, Pauline (December 11, 1992). "Figgie Road Work to Begin". The Plain Dealer. p. 15C.
4. Segall, Grant (November 4, 1998). "Orange Barrels Finally on the Way Out". The Plain Dealer. p. 1B.
5. "Northern Summit County". Roadfan.com.
6. State Route 8 Phase I Project Overview. State Route 8 Connection. Ohio Department of Transportation District 4.
7. Armon, Rick (2009-07-30). "New Route 8 Ramp Eases Congestion". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved 2009-09-23.
8. "I-271 Southbound Ramp to SR-8 southbound is now OPEN". State Route 8 Connection, Ohio Department of Transportation District 4, 2009-09-04.
9. "Commuters on I-271 Get Congestion Relief with Widening Project". Ohio Department of Transportation. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
10. Mileages retrieved from Technical Services Straight Line Diagrams

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• Route 271