R4CLucky14 wrote:I don't know anyone that would call a Tennessee Route "State Route XX" or even "Tennessee-xx".

Hi, I'm Dave and I actually do say both Tennessee-xx and State Route xx (and sometimes even TN-xx) while in TN or referring to TN roads. Pleased to meet you.

Of course I admit I am far from the average user.

On the evening news, US and state roads are always just "Highway xxx" and it freaking drives me nuts to hear it each time.

I know I am the Yankee who just moved to the south and I should adapt, but it is hard as a road geek. I mean I had the same type of "discussions" with people in NJ about NJ roads. (Where everything is "Route xxx".)

I was born in Queens, so I actually remember learning that roads had numbers in addition to names. Heck, I remember learning that there were NAMES and not just letters like the BQE, LIE, GWB, NJTP, GSP etc.

Took me a while to grasp the meaning behind the 3DI concept though since many of the roads on Long Island have I-78 as the parent 2DI but none actually touch I-78!

Anyway, in casual conversation with friends/family in NY, I'd say most people use the names (even old names like the Triborough Bridge which has been renamed the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge as of 2008). But in NJ it is just the numbers.

I guess in totally casual conversation I tend to just use the numbers for all but interstates. But if I am giving directions or trying to be very clear about a location, that is when I add in a prefix of US or TN for example.

Perhaps I am thinking too wishfully that people could actually learn something (that there is a difference between the federal and state systems) while driving to work

Hey we'd have the ultimate navigation for some people if we populate landmarks for businesses and Waze can say "turn left at the Burger King, then right at CVS"

I know my sister is that kind of driver (I did get her and my father to both start using Waze just recently)