Science Fair Project Encyclopedia

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Beltway

A beltway (American English), ring road or orbital motorway (British English) is a circumferential highway found around many cities. Often it originally enclosed the built up area and was later encroached upon by developed areas - and some cities have proposed or built second and even third beltways. In the United States, many beltways are part of the Interstate highway system. The concept of a ring road also includes a road in the downtown area, distributing traffic and keeping it from the very center.

The main purpose of beltways is deflecting some traffic from the center of the city.

List of world beltways

Africa

South Africa

South Africa has the most advanced road system of any African country, a legacy of the Apartheid government. Most of the major cities' ring roads were built in the 1970s. Well constructed, they are on par with the best in the Western world.

Americas (North and South)

Canada

Perimeter Highway , Winnipeg, Manitoba

United States

Interstate 264 (Henry Watterson Expressway), Louisville, Kentucky
Interstate 265 (Gene Snyder Freeway), Louisville, Kentucky
Interstate 270, Columbus, Ohio
Interstate 275, Cincinnati, Ohio
Interstate 285 (The Perimeter), Atlanta, Georgia
Interstate 435, Kansas City, Kansas/Kansas City, Missouri
Interstate 440, Raleigh, North Carolina
Interstate 465, Indianapolis, Indiana
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway), Washington, DC
Interstate 494/Interstate 694, Minneapolis-St. Paul
Interstate 540, Wake County, North Carolina (unfinished)
Interstate 610 (The 610 Loop), Houston, Texas
Interstate 695 (Baltimore Beltway), Baltimore, Maryland
Massachusetts State Highway 128, Boston, Massachusetts
Beltway 8 (Sam Houston Tollway), Houston, Texas
Tennessee State Route 840, Nashville, Tennessee (unfinished)
Interstate 495, Outer suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts

Asia

China

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Ring Roads, Beijing
1st, 2nd and 3rd Ring Roads, Chengdu
Shenyang Round City Expressway , Shenyang
Tangshan Round City Expressway , Tangshan
Inner , Middle and Outer Ring Roads, Tianjin

Australia

New South Wales

Sydney Orbital Motorway, Sydney

Queensland

Brisbane Orbital, comprising:
- Gateway Motorway (eastern orbital)
- Logan Motorway (southern orbital)
- Western Bypass Motorway (proposed western orbital)
Inner City Bypass (inner north ring road)

Victoria

Metropolitan Ring Road, Melbourne
Geelong Ring Road , Geelong

Western Australia

Perth Inner Orbital:
- Reid Highway (northern)
- Tonkin Highway (eastern)
- Leach Highway (southern)
Perth Outer Orbital:
- Roe Highway (eastern)
- Roe Freeway (southern)
Bunbury Ring Road (proposed outer bypass), Bunbury