 U.S. Highway 26 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 US 26 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byODOT | ||||
| Length | 471.56 mi (758.90 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  US 101 nearSeaside | |||
| Major intersections |  OR 217 inBeaverton
 US 20 inVale | |||
| East end |  US 20 /US 26 at theIdaho state line | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Oregon | |||
| Counties | Clatsop,Tillamook,Columbia,Washington,Multnomah,Clackamas,Wasco,Jefferson,Crook,Wheeler,Grant,Baker,Malheur | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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U.S. Route 26 (US 26) is a major cross-stateUnited States Numbered Highway with its western terminus in the U.S. state ofOregon, connectingUS 101 on theOregon Coast nearSeaside with theIdaho state line east ofNyssa. Local highway names include theSunset Highway No. 47,Mount Hood Highway No. 26, andJohn Day Highway No. 5 before continuing into Idaho and beyond.
The western terminus of the highway (and of US 26) is at an interchange withUS 101 between Seaside andCannon Beach. The highway heads east from there through theOregon Coast Range, providing access toSaddle Mountain and passing through the valleys of theNecanicum andNehalem rivers. It then crosses over theOregon Coast Range, where it passes through theDennis L. Edwards Tunnel, descending into theTualatin Valley, into the community ofBanks.[1]
East of Banks, the highway merges withOregon Route 6 (OR 6) and becomes afreeway, which passes through thehigh-tech regions ofWashington County. The freeway enters thePortland metropolitan area in the northeast corner ofHillsboro, then passes through the northern part of the city ofBeaverton and the communities ofCedar Hills andCedar Mill near the intersection with the northern terminus ofOR 217. Also at this point,MAX Light Rail is adjacent on the north side of the highway for nearly two miles (3.2 km) until it submerges into theRobertson Tunnel.
The highway enters thePortland city limits near theSylvan-Highlands neighborhood, where it is also joined byOR 8; east of here, the highway descends a steep grade through a canyon which penetrates Portland'sTualatin Mountains; this stretch of the Sunset is coincident withCanyon Road. The highway skirts the southern edge of Portland'sWashington Park, providing access to theOregon Zoo and other attractions. At the bottom of the grade, the highway passes through theVista Ridge Tunnels intoDowntown Portland. Immediately east of the tunnel is an interchange withInterstate 405 (I-405); this interchange is the end of the Sunset Highway.
In Portland, the routeoverlaps I-405 (Stadium Freeway No. 61) for a short distance before exiting onto city streets, including Arthur Street, to reach theRoss Island Bridge. US 26 leaves the bridge, which is at the beginning of theMount Hood Highway No. 26, and follows Powell Boulevard, a surface street, toGresham.
Anexpressway begins near Gresham and carries US 26 southeast to nearSandy. From Sandy to nearGovernment Camp and Bennett Pass, where US 26 intersectsOR 35, it closely follows the historicBarlow Road through theMount Hood Corridor, and is part of theMount Hood Scenic Byway. The Mount Hood Highway branches off to the north along OR 35, and theWarm Springs Highway No. 53 carries US 26 southeast through Wapinitia Pass (where it crosses thePacific Crest Trail), Blue Box Pass, theWarm Springs Indian Reservation, andAgency Plains toMadras. After a short overlap withUS 97 (The Dalles-California Highway No. 4), the shortMadras-Prineville Highway No. 360 continues southeast to a junction withOR 126 inPrineville.
At that junction, US 26 picks up theOchoco Highway No. 41, which also follows OR 126 west to US 97 inRedmond. The Ochoco Highway ends atOR 19 nearDayville, from which US 26 follows theJohn Day Highway No. 5 throughJohn Day toUS 20 inVale. The remainder of US 26 in Oregon overlaps US 20 on theCentral Oregon Highway No. 7 to the Idaho state line.
An ancient trail passed through the section of theWarm Springs Indian Reservation as part of an extensiveIndian trade network linking peoples of the northernGreat Basin andColumbia Plateau to those living west of theCascade Range.Obsidian,bear grass, and slaves were transported over these trails to major trading locations along theColumbia River in exchange for driedsalmon,smelt,sturgeon, and decorative sea shells. The long established route was later used byPeter Skene Ogden'sfur trapping expeditions in 1825 and 1826. Fur traderNathaniel Jarvis Wyeth was here in the 1830s. CaptainJohn C. Frémont followed this route on his 1843 explorations for the U.S. and LieutenantHenry Larcom Abbot headed aPacific Railroadsurvey party along it in 1855.[2]
The Sunset Highway portion, then also known asOregon Route 2, was under construction by January 1933.[3][4] Both theWorks Progress Administration[5] andCivilian Conservation Corps participated in the construction during theGreat Depression.[3] Portions of highway officially opened to the public on September 19, 1941. In 1949, the highway was completed.
The highway was originally named theWolf Creek Highway after a nearby creek of the same name. The Oregon State Highway Commission renamed it the Sunset Highway at their January 17, 1946, meeting by a unanimous vote. The name is drawn from both the nickname and insignia of the41st Infantry Division, which was largely drawn from Oregon,[6] and because the highway leads towards the setting sun.[7] The highway was rededicated in honor of the 41st Infantry Division in 1995.[8]
In 1952, US 26 would be expanded to the coast. To achieve this, parts ofUS 28, all of Oregon Route 2 and Oregon Route 50, and part ofOregon Route 27 would become parts of the new US 26 Route. The remaining parts of US 28 would becomeUS 126.[4]
In the 1960s, Powell Boulevard in Portland was proposed as the corridor of theMount Hood Freeway, which would have replaced US 26. It was cancelled in 1974 following aprotests and local opposition. A fewramp stubs fromI-5 on theMarquam Bridge were built to prepare for the new freeway and remained in place until the 2010s.[9][10] The state and county government later considered moving US 26 to Division Street between I-205 and Gresham to improve freeway access.[11] The cancelled freeway included plans to bypass Sandy, which were later revived in the 2000s and 2010s to address congestion issues in the area.[12]
US 26 formerly terminated at a junction withUS 30 in Astoria, sharing an alignment with US 101 north of Cannon Beach. The highway was truncated by theAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in 2005 following a request from theOregon Department of Transportation (ODOT).[13] Prior to 2005, US 26 ran throughDowntown Portland on theone-way couplet of Market and Clay streets, which carried the Sunset Highway to its end at Naito Parkway (Pacific Highway West No. 1W), turning south there to reach the Ross Island Bridge.[citation needed]
In 2020, US 26 was designated POW/MIA Memorial Highway by the state legislature following a request from theBend Heroes Foundation andOregon Veterans Motorcycle Association.[14]
Milepoints are as reported by ODOT and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. Z indicates overlapping mileage due to construction longer than established route, and – indicates negative mileage behind established beginning point.[16] Segments that are locally maintained may be omitted. For routes traversing multiple named state highways, each milepoint is preceded by the corresponding state highway number.
| County | Location | Milepoint[15] | Exit | Destinations | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clatsop | Cannon Beach Junction | 47 -0.10 | US 101 –Seaside,Astoria,Cannon Beach,Tillamook | Interchange; Western terminus | ||||
| Necanicum Junction | 47 9.42 |  OR 53 –Wheeler,Tillamook | ||||||
| Jewell Junction | 47 21.78 |   OR 103 north –Mist,Jewell | Interchange | |||||
| Tillamook | No major junctions | |||||||
| Washington | No major junctions | |||||||
| Columbia | No major junctions | |||||||
| Washington | | 47 40.91 | Dennis L. Edwards Tunnel | |||||
| Staleys Junction | 47 45.51 |  OR 47 north –Vernonia,Clatskanie | West end of OR 47 overlap | |||||
| Davies Junction | 47 49.47 |  OR 47 south –Banks,Forest Grove | Interchange; east end of OR 47 overlap | |||||
| Tillamook Junction | 47 53.33 |  OR 6 –Banks,Tillamook | Interchange; no westbound entrance | |||||
| | 47 53.62 | West end of freeway | ||||||
| | 47 55.19 | 55 | Dersham Road –Mountaindale | |||||
| North Plains | 47 57.16 | 57 | Glencoe Road –North Plains | |||||
| | 47 58.74 | 59 | Jackson School Road | |||||
| Hillsboro | 47 61.06 | 61 | Helvetia Road, Brookwood Parkway[17] | |||||
| 47 62.46 | 62 | Cornelius Pass Road – Cornelius Pass,West Union | Signed as exits 62A (south) and 62B (north) westbound | |||||
| 47 64.29 | 64 | 185th Avenue –PCC-Rock Creek | ||||||
| Beaverton | 47 65.67– 64.91 | 65 | Bethany Boulevard,Cornell Road | |||||
| 47 67.14 | 67 | Murray Boulevard | ||||||
| 47 68.34 | 68 | Cedar Hills Boulevard –Beaverton | ||||||
| 47 69.19 | 69A |    OR 217 south toI-5 south –Beaverton,Tigard,Salem | ||||||
| 47 69.21 | 69B | Park Way, Barnes Road | ||||||
| 47 70.83 | 71A |  OR 8 (Canyon Road) | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |||||
| Multnomah | Portland | 47 71.30 | 71B | Sylvan | Signed as exit 71 eastbound | |||
| 47 72.18 | 72 | Oregon Zoo,World Forestry Center | ||||||
| 47 73.39 | 73 | Jefferson Street –Providence Park | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance, formerly signed as Canyon Road | |||||
| 47 73.53 | Vista Ridge Tunnels | |||||||
| 47 73.75 | 74 | Market Street –Portland City Center | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | |||||
| 47 74.05 61 1.41 |     I-405 north toI-5 north /US 30 –St. Helens,Seattle | West end of I-405 overlap, exit 1D | ||||||
| 61 1.39 | 12th Avenue | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||||||
| 61 1.29 (city street) |   I-405 south toI-5 south /I-84 east /US 30 –The Dalles,Salem,Portland Airport | East end of I-405 overlap, exit 1C; eastbound exit & westbound entrance | ||||||
| | East end of freeway | |||||||
| | Broadway Drive –Council Crest | No access from US 26 west | ||||||
| | 6th Avenue, Terwilliger Boulevard –Portland City Center,Keller Auditorium,Oregon Health & Science University, University and V.A. Hospitals | |||||||
| (city street) 26 0.01 | Naito Parkway (Pacific Highway West north) | Interchange; westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||||||
| 26 0.18 |   OR 10 west (Barbur Boulevard) | Interchange | ||||||
| 26 0.45 |  OR 43 south (Macadam Avenue) toI-5 south –Lake Oswego,Salem | Interchange | ||||||
| 26 0.76 | Ross Island Bridge over theWillamette River | |||||||
| 26 1.01 |  OR 99E –Milwaukie,Oregon City | Interchange; eastbound exit to OR 99E north is via 17th Avenue south | ||||||
| 26 1.60 | 17th Avenue south | Interchange; eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||||||
| 26 1.76 | 17th Avenue north | Westbound exit only | ||||||
| 26 5.04 |  OR 213 (82nd Avenue) | |||||||
| 26 5.74 |  I-205 / Division Street –Seattle,Salem | I-205 exit 19. | ||||||
| Gresham | 26 14.18 | ToI-84 / Burnside Road, Powell Valley Road | ||||||
| Clackamas | | 26 19.54 |  OR 212 –Boring,Oregon City | Interchange | ||||
| Sandy | 26 24.40 |  OR 211 –Estacada,Molalla | ||||||
| | 26 54.23 | Timberline Lodge National Historic Landmark (OR 173) | ||||||
| | 26 57.45 53 57.45 |  OR 35 north –Hood River | Interchange | |||||
| Wasco | | 53 71.27 |  OR 216 –Bear Springs Ranger Station,Maupin,The Dalles | |||||
| Jefferson | Madras | 53 117.71 4 92.08 |  US 97 north –The Dalles,Biggs | West end of US 97 overlap | ||||
| 4 92.46 | D Street (OR 361) –Metolius,The Cove Palisades State Park | |||||||
| | 4 97.29 360 0.09 | US 97 south –Redmond,Bend | East end of US 97 overlap | |||||
| Crook | Prineville | 360 26.28 41 18.16 |  OR 126 west –Redmond,Bend | |||||
| 41 18.75 |  OR 27 –Bowman Dam | |||||||
| 41 19.75 | Prineville Reservoir,Paulina (OR 380) | |||||||
| Wheeler | Mitchell | 41 65.94 |  OR 207 –Spray,Service Creek,Fossil | |||||
| Grant | | 41 98.36 5 124.17 |  OR 19 north –Kimberly,Spray | |||||
| Mount Vernon | 5 154.03 |  US 395 north –Long Creek,Pendleton | West end of US 395 overlap | |||||
| John Day | 5 162.29 | US 395 south –Canyon City,Burns | East end of US 395 overlap | |||||
| Austin Junction | 5 190.67 |  OR 7 –Sumpter,Baker City | ||||||
| Baker | | 5 210.54 |  OR 245 –Hereford,Baker City | |||||
| Malheur | | 5 223.22 | Eldorado Pass | |||||
| Vale | 5 278.21 7 246.39 | US 20 west –Vale City Center,Burns,Adrian | West end of US 20 overlap | |||||
| Cairo Junction | 7 258.20 |  OR 201 north toI-84 –Ontario | West end of OR 201 overlap | |||||
| Nyssa | 7 265.97 | OR 201 south –Adrian,Lake Owyhee | East end of OR 201 overlap | |||||
| | 7 266.82 | Idaho state line US 20 east /US 26 east continue into Idaho | ||||||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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 U.S. Route 26 | ||
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