- 1. Overview
- 2. Etymology
- 3. Cultural Impact
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Alaska Routes
The labyrinthine network of roads in Alaska is a testament to its vastness and its indifference to conventional order. Here, routes are not merely numbered; they are given names, often more than one, and their designations can seem as arbitrary as a thrown die. There have been a mere twelve state highway numbers ever issued—1 through 11, and the enigmatic 98. The logic behind their assignment is, shall we say, elusive. Take Alaska Route 4 (AK-4), for instance. It snakes north and south, a defiance of directional expectation. Then there’s AK-2 , which, despite its generally east-west trajectory, plunges north and south, even passing through and beyond the city of Fairbanks . The Klondike Highway , a relatively recent addition forged in 1978, remained unnumbered until 1998, a full century after the Klondike Gold Rush it now commemorates. Yet, paradoxically, many Alaskan highways that dwarf the Klondike Highway in sheer length remain stubbornly unnumbered, left to the whims of local nomenclature.
In these remote territories, mileposts serve not just as markers but as the de facto system for road designations and official addresses, especially in the sparsely populated hinterlands. Landmarks, rather than numbers, are the true currency of navigation.
Locals, with a pragmatic disdain for official designations, invariably refer to roads by their names or their ultimate destinations. The numbers, when they exist, are merely a secondary consideration, if that.
The numbered routes themselves are chameleons, often encompassing multiple named highways. AK-1 , for example, is a designation that can apply to any number of arteries: the Glenn Highway , the Seward Highway , the Sterling Highway , or the Tok Cut-Off . Conversely, stretches of the Seward Highway might bear the markings of AK-1, AK-9, and even Interstate A3 (A-3), a bewildering overlap that speaks volumes about the state’s unique infrastructural tapestry.
Highways
U.S. Highways
There was a proposal, a whisper in the administrative ether, to designate the Alaskan portion of the Alaska Highway as part of U.S. Highway 97 . This never materialized, a ghost of a plan. However, certain editions of USGS topographic maps , primarily from the 1950s, bear the US-97 highway shield, a faint echo of this unfulfilled ambition, tracing its path along or near segments of the current AK-2 .
Alaska Numbered Highways
| Number | Length (mi) | Length (km) | Southern or western terminus | Northern or eastern terminus | Local names | Formed | Removed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AK-1 | 545.92 | 878.57 | Marine Highway in Homer | AK-2 (Alaska Highway ) in Tok | Sterling Highway , Seward Highway , Glenn Highway , Richardson Highway , Tok Cut-Off | — | — | Longest numbered state highway in Alaska |
| AK-2 | 456.91 | 735.33 | Dead end in Manley Hot Springs | Hwy 1 (Alaska Highway ) at the Alcan–Beaver Creek Border Crossing in Alcan Border | Elliott Highway , Steese Highway , Richardson Highway , Alaska Highway | — | — | |
| AK-3 | 323 | 520 | AK-1 (Glenn Highway ) in Gateway | AK-2 (Richardson Highway ) in Fairbanks | George Parks Highway | 1971 | current | |
| AK-4 | 266 | 428 | Marine Highway in Valdez | AK-2 (Alaska Highway ) in Delta Junction | Richardson Highway | — | — | |
| AK-5 | 109 | 175 | AK-2 (Alaska Highway ) in Tetlin Junction | Front Street in Eagle | Taylor Highway , Top of the World Highway | — | — | Formerly continued north to end of Taylor Highway at Eagle . |
| AK-6 | 161 | 259 | AK-2 (Elliot Highway ) in Fox | River Road in Circle | Steese Highway | — | — | |
| AK-7 | 31.7 | 51.0 | Dead end in Ketchikan | Dead end in Ward Cove | South Tongass Highway, North Tongass Highway | — | — | Ketchikan segment; connected by the Marine Highway |
| AK-7 | 34.21 | 55.06 | Dead end on Mitkof Island | Sandy Beach Road in Petersburg | Mitkof Highway , Nordic Drive | — | — | Petersburg segment; connected by the Marine Highway |
| AK-7 | 39.01 | 62.78 | Franklin Street in Juneau | Dead end in Juneau | Egan Drive, Old Glacier Highway (Out the road) | — | — | Juneau segment; connected by the Marine Highway |
| AK-7 | 39.7 | 63.9 | Front Street in Haines | Hwy 3 at the Dalton Cache–Pleasant Camp Border Crossing near Mosquito Lake | Haines Highway | — | — | Haines segment |
| AK-8 | 135 | 217 | AK-3 (George Parks Highway ) in Cantwell | AK-4 (Richardson Highway ) in Paxson | Denali Highway | — | — | |
| AK-9 | 36.49 | 58.72 | Railway Avenue in Seward | AK-1 (Sterling Highway ) at Tern Lake junction | Seward Highway | — | — | |
| AK-10 | 83.5 | 134.4 | AK-4 (Richardson Highway ) in Copper Center | Dead end in McCarthy | Edgerton Highway , McCarthy Road | — | — | |
| AK-10 | 49.5 | 79.7 | Marine Highway in Cordova | The Million Dollar Bridge | Copper River Highway | — | — | |
| AK-11 | 414 | 666 | AK-2 Elliott Highway in Livengood | East Lake Colleen Drive in Deadhorse | Dalton Highway | 1978 | current | |
| AK-98 | 13.4 | 21.6 | Marine Highway in Skagway | Hwy 2 near Fraser, BC | Klondike Highway | 1998 | current | Shortest numbered state highway in Alaska |
Alaska Named Highways
These are the roads that are spoken of, the ones that carry the weight of geography and narrative, yet they bear no official number.
| Name | Length (mi) | Length (km) | Southern or western terminus | Northern or eastern terminus | Formed | Removed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Peninsula Highway | — | — | Naknek | King Salmon | — | — | |
| Chena Hot Springs Road | — | — | Old Steese Highway north of Fairbanks | Chena Hot Springs | — | — | |
| Douglas Highway | — | — | Douglas Island | Douglas Island | — | — | |
| Hope Highway | 17.861 | 28.744 | AK-1 (Seward Highway ) near Hope | Porcupine Campgrounds in Hope | c. 1928 | current | Forest Highway 14 inside Chugach National Forest |
| Johansen Expressway | 4.2 | 6.8 | University Avenue in College | AK-2 (Steese Expressway ) in Fairbanks | c. 1950 | current | Only highway in Alaska to have exit numbers |
| Kenai Spur Highway | 38.787 | 62.422 | AK-1 (Sterling Highway ) in Soldotna | Bay Beach Road in Nikiski | c. 1951 | current | On the Kenai Peninsula |
| Minnesota Drive Expressway | 7.560 | 12.167 | Old Seward Highway in Anchorage | West 15th Avenue in Anchorage | c. 1950 | current | |
| Nome–Council Highway | 71.970 | 115.824 | Nome Bypass Road / Front Street in Nome | Dead end at Niukluk River in Council | 1906 | current | |
| Nome–Taylor Highway | — | — | Nome | Taylor | — | — | |
| Nome–Teller Highway | 72 | 116 | Nome | Teller | — | — | Also called the Bob Blodgett Highway |
| Palmer–Wasilla Highway | — | — | Palmer | Wasilla | — | — | |
| Portage Glacier Highway | 11.59 | 18.65 | AK-1 (Seward Highway ) in Portage | Marine Highway in Whittier | 2000 | current | |
| Salmon River Road | 11.710 | 18.845 | Wharf near Canada–United States border in Hyder, Alaska | Canada–United States border near Premier, British Columbia (Granduc Road) | — | — | Known as NFD 88 Road inside Tongass National Forest |
| Tofty/Tanana Road | 50 [3] | 80 | Yukon River near Tanana | AK-2 (Elliott Highway ) in Manley Hot Springs | 2016 | current | Tofty and Tanana Roads are separately designated but share continuous milepost numbering. Tofty road ends at mile marker 15. Western terminus functions as a boat ramp or ice road landing depending on season, providing access to Tanana. [4] |
| Taylor Highway | 64 | 103 | AK-5 (Top of the World Highway ) near Jack Wade | Front Street in Eagle | — | — | Formerly part of AK-5. |
| Zimovia Highway | 14 | 23 | Wrangell | McCormick Creek Road in Wrangell | — | — |
Marine Highway System
The Alaska Marine Highway , alongside other Alaskan highways and routes, is recognized by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) as eligible for federal funding. This aquatic artery was christened a National Scenic Byway by the FHWA on June 13, 2002, and subsequently elevated to the status of an All-American Road on September 22, 2005.
The system is segmented into distinct service regions: Southeast, Cross-Gulf, Prince William Sound, South-Central, and Southwest. [8] [9] [10]
Gallery
The Glenn Highway , pictured eastbound near Glennallen , forms a segment of Interstate A1.
An interchange where the Richardson Highway , part of Interstate A2, meets Badger Road in Fairbanks .
The Sterling Highway , on its westbound course near Homer , is designated as part of Interstate A3.
The George Parks Highway , which constitutes the entirety of Interstate A4.
The Denali Highway is a hybrid of pavement and gravel, with only 23 miles (37 km) paved. The remaining 123 miles (198 km) are unpaved. This route is impassable during the winter months.
The Sterling Highway exemplifies the typical road infrastructure found in Alaska; four-lane, restricted-access highways are largely absent outside of the major urban centers.
Anchor Point proudly claims the title of the westernmost point on the contiguous highway system in North America.
The Alaska Peninsula Highway approaches the settlement known as “downtown” Naknek.
A view of the Alaska Peninsula Highway, just outside of King Salmon.
Tanana Road, captured after its opening in August 2016.