Winchester

[Petrovar Ambassador 15]

yea, i agree with hal...you could try and see if you like the new section, then move there if you want...this CJ section isnt going anywhere. That's what I'm going to do, I'll try moving some of my updates over there and if I like it, then I might permanently move on over there.

[Raysfan16 5]

1) If you keep having a link to it in your sig, that will be what I click on most of the time to go into Winchester.

2)I will probably keep Loretto Valley in the regular section, but I might start a completely new CJ also, and it will go into the new section if I know for sure it's bug-free.

[Benedict 3,119]

I'll continue updating my CJs here until they conclude, but am also migrating stuff slowly to the new section as it is a nice way to keep things organized. I'll be more likely to read your CJ here, but will also make the effort to look at my favorite ones wherever they end up.

[deathtopumpkins 43]

It looks like I'll be sticking to the forums to update my CJ, and I must admit, I do not have time to check BOTH the forums and CJ section, and as such have not been following CJs that move. That is not likely to change anytime soon.

[dfnva 34]

All,

Thanks for the comments... I've decided to keep updating here in the forum unless there is a dropoff in usage. If/when I start posting the Tidewater CJ I may do so in the new CJ area.

Danielcote: Thanks. I did a lot of the abandonment on purpose as I wanted the area to be realistically run-down looking.

Hawkeye9: Thanks!

Mother of Invention: I've actually never been to the South Park mall in Colonial Heights. Is it in the condition of Cloverleaf Mall nearby? I used the name South Park as it seemed to capture the quintessential essense of suburbia (i.e. tv show South Park).

Bruce (Schulmanator): Thanks. I think I've done some walk signals before but not for a while. There will be some more today. As for advance signage before an interchange, I agree with you. Often the signage is too close so people move lanes at the last minute.

Raysfan16: Thanks. It's not too bad with the Super center as it's the only thing, usually, that grows with that big a zoned area.

Haljackey: Thanks... the steep incline is unfortunately necessary for the bridge over South Wanata drive, but so there can still be a jug handle to connect the roads.

Edmonton_Stinks: Ha... for some reason I've noticed Safeway do that. Not sure why. It's the same way with some Safeways near me, now with the "Lifestyle Safeway" motif. But Food Lion becomes Bloom. Giant becomes Super Giant, yet nothing really changes.

Ironicepitome: If I could I would blame it on Bush...

Computerguy890100: Thanks.

Benedict: Thanks!

Selles: Thanks. I love roadgeekery so that's why I've gotta have it in my CJ.

De Ja Vu: Thanks! Glad you like the Jefferson Ave bridges.

Jacqulina: Thanks! Glad you like the seawalls and river park areas.

Remanh: Thanks. I probably would not move older updates to the new area just because it would take a lot of time, but would link to them.

Bruce (Schulmanator) #2: Thanks for the info.

Haljackey #2: Thanks for your ideas.

Petrovar Ambassador: Thanks.

Raysfan16 #2: Thanks.

Benedict #2: Thanks.

Death to Pumpkins: I can see where it would be hard to go back and forth to read CJs. Thanks.

And now...

Continuing north on MP-39/S. Jefferson Ave, we approach the interchange with I-79/US-27.

Just before the interchange are some small overhead lane-use signs showing which lane to use for which direction. The state DOT did not put BGS's here because of taller buildings and sight distances.

At the intersection for the northbound on/off-ramps are some newer signals. Notice the lack of inclusion of US-27 on the signage despite its duplex with I-79.

After crossing over a sunken I-79/US-27, we approach E. Cambria St. which is used as access to/from the southbound highway.

Here's a zoomed-out pic to show the interchange in context. We are now in downtown Winchester.

Continuing north on MP-39/S. Jefferson Ave. MP-39 slims to 1 lane each direction past E. Moore St. Since this is a traffic-clogged area, There are some proposals to split MP-39 onto one ways as it is not feasible to widen MP-39 through here.

Lane-use signs show which lanes continue and which ones must turn at E. Moore St.

Continuing on, we pass E. Dalton St. and some bigger office buildings. E. Dalton St. is one of the major east-west streets through downtown and is one way west of here. To the right here (the building w/ the blue awning) is where a downtown location of Belvedere's Department Store once stood. It closed in 1975 after it moved to Winchester Mall, a location which itself closed down in 2005.

We're going to turn here at E. Carson St. to head west for our journey next time. S. Jefferson Ave. continues north to cross US-84 and eventually becomes Kings Hwy.

An older style signal assembly is here at Carson St with newer signals painted black to match the other newer-style ones.

That's it for now, we'll continue along Carson St to see some downtown residential areas and the new/improved Winchester Hospital campus next time.

Thanks for visiting!

-Dan

[deathtopumpkins 43]

Nice short little drive there. Downtown looks pretty good, and it'll be really interesting to see how you widen MP-39.

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Nicely done. Your attention to detail and quality makes this another perfect update. I just wish RL places spent as much time and atention on their signage and infrastructure!

[antsel 841]

That's a nice drive along the MP-39. It's only too bad the road narrows after E. Moore St. because it really does look like a bottleneck! I guess widening the road would require destroying some buildings... I'd like to see how you incorporate the one ways, if that is how you intend to eliminate the traffic problem.

[ecoba 28]

Looks Great Dan, But I Suggest Getting A Maxis Highway Textures Mod, I Think It Would Make Your Highways Look Cosmatically Better, But You Do NOT Have To Listen To Me, Do What You Want!

[Raysfan16 5]

Hey Dan!

I've been having login troubles, but I wouldn't miss downtown Winchester for the world!

Good downtown, it is very realistic with a good balance of buildings.

[Benedict 3,119]

Great update; I like the in-town signs, traffic lights and all!

[Petrovar Ambassador 15]

nice drive along Jefferson Blvd, sorry I missed your past updates. But they look terrific!

[rainyday 2]

Nice update. I haven't seen any if the urban areas in you CJ yet. It looks great!

EDIT: MY 300TH POST 

[dfnva 34]

DeathtoPumpkins: Thanks. The MP-39 OWR separation has hit a snag. A few buildings would have to be torn down, but oh well.

Schulmanator: Thanks. Glad you liked the update.

Selles: Thanks. There is a traffic bottleneck there, but some buildings would have to be torn down to incorporate the OWR's, I discovered.

Ecoba: Thanks. While I like several of the highway textures, particularily the one that matches the RHW, I haven't used them because they don't incorporate all highway puzzle pieces, and thus in the end my highways would look worse.

Raysfan16: Sorry about the login troubles. Glad you liked the update.

Benedict: Thanks. I like how downtown areas use fancier motifs for signage and traffic signals, so I try to incorporate that.

Petrovar Ambassador: Thanks!

Rainyday: Thanks, glad you liked the update. Congrats on 300 posts.

And now....

And thus we drive west down E. Carson St. after turning from MP-39/S. Jefferson Ave. E. Carson St. is one way and has three lanes.

There's no traffic signal at S. Hamilton Ave. when we cross it, just a sign. Most of the street signs erected since 1995 for the City of Winchester use a white-on-blue motif, some older black-on-white signs still exist in places.

Continuing on...

Traffic signal at S. Patriot Av:

We pass the recently renovated Winchester General Hospital and new Winchester Medical Building, full of doctors' offices. Notice all the parking. While all this surface parking may not look nice in a downtown, I'm being realistic to how parts of Roanoke, Charlottesville, and even Richmond (Shockhoe Bottom) look.

A brand new "ultra-modern" signal assembly with backlit sign at S. Baron Ave. built after the hospital renovations. I've seen several of this style in Richmond, though, ironically they're OLD lol.

Down S. Baron Ave. just to the left is the Winchester Beer Brewery museum.

Continuing on we pass the Winchester PD HQ and the Winchester Federal Building which houses some local offices of federal agencies.

Finally, we approach US-27 Bus/ S. Union Ave, where we are going to turn right to explore further. Past US-27 Bus, E. Carson St. becomes W. Carson St. and has two way traffic.

I didn't make a signal drawing for the S. Lewis Av. intersection, but here is the one at US-27 Bus/ S. Union Ave. Notice the trailblazer for I-79 but no signage for US-27 or US-27 Business, neither of which are posted too well in downtown Winchester.

Well I guess that means, Downtown Winchester Part III will be next time!

Thanks for visiting.

-Dan

[Benedict 3,119]

I like the 'retro is the new modern' style lights. I was in Miami recently and the horizontal traffic lights threw me for a few minutes - it's all about perspective, I guess!

[lgbrave4life 1]

Fantastic CJ. Very well organized and very poportinate looking cities. I also esspecially like the traffic lights and signs. It's so realistic, I feel like im actually driving through the city of Winchester. Can't wait for more!

Also quick question, anybody know what the building is on the far left four pictures up?(the same pic. with the federal building.)

[Raysfan16 5]

Wow, that traffic light is almost dead-on to what we have in downtown Tampa. The only difference is that they have lame signs, telling everyone where the points of "interest" are.

You have great choices of BATs in downtown Winchester...maybe I'll head into the Brewery Museum to get drunk check out what's going on!

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Always a good time to come through Winchester. Ya know, the ultra modern lights look awesome. I would love to see those installed in cities everywhere. The impossible to find street signs would then by replaced with easy to find (even at night) signage. I wonder what those cost - they should put them up here!

[Petrovar Ambassador 15]

cool modern lights! can't wait to see more of the downtown! xDD

[Equilibria 16]

I'm tempted to wait until after part 3 to respond, but all of this looks good. I like the lack of tall buildings in downtown. Too often we forget in this game that real downtowns don't have to be all skyscrapers. They can be spread out, with lots of lower apartment blocks and surface parking. You've really cleaned the place up too...

[ecoba 28]

Really.. They Don't Include All Puzzle Pieces.. *Scratches Head*, *Thinks*, Mutters To Self: I'm Pretty Sure.. Think Think, Oh.., I Remember Stuff That Isn't included The New Jan. 09 Interchanges, Oopsies, Had A Spaceout, Downtown Looks Nice, Good Job! : )

Was This A Bump....?

[Raysfan16 5]

Yes, this was a bump. The last post on this thread before was on April 7th. I don't know where Dan has been though....

Dan, where are you?

Marco...!

[dfnva 34]

Raysfan and Ecoba... this is not dead by any means. Unfortunately, I hit a point where my focus was on my "Tidewater" themed region which still is nowhere near presentable and then got swamped with work. I intend an update soon, though. Thanks for your continued interest!

-Dan

[antsel 841]

Hey friend! It's been a while since you've updated, but no fear! I'll be sure to tune in when you've got something new for us. I love the road geekery you present us. It's a very clever form of presentation. I love what you have going here.

[Raysfan16 5]

Oh, then the Dan-ster pops out of nowhere! Looking forward to an update from this, or Tidewater!

Now if only selles could come back...lol

[Mayorm 14]

Wow ur Downtown is awesome

[A.Aperson 0]

I love Winchester! It brought out a roadgeekery side I never knew I even had.

[A.Aperson 0]

I love Winchester! It brought out a roadgeekery side I never knew I even had.

[pickled_pig 7]

Dan! Just checking in here again. I really enjoyed the rural areas you presented a few pages back. Back when I played (it's been a looong time) I felt my rural areas were missing something. Perhaps it's those ginormous, homogenized farms you implement; I always stuck with smaller farms simply due to how it looked on the region map.

All those parking lots in downtown as well... it's certainly representative of anything south of Washington D.C. (you make that point as well) but it just seems so unlivable. Coming back to North Carolina from college in Pittsburgh, the distance you have to drive from one end of downtown to the other in Charlotte seems staggering. It's all those parking lots and enormous buildings.

[dfnva 34]

Wow... an actual update from me... YAY!

Benedict: I find it interesting that 'modern' architecture actually looks dated now. So are we post-modern now? Or post-post-modern?

LGBrave4life: Thanks. Unfortunately, I can't remember off the top of my head the name of the building you asked about.

Raysfan16: Ha... I thought about putting up some lame points of interest signs. Glad you like the downtown area.

Bruce (Schulmanator): I agree about street signs being hard to find. I like the back lit ones that are being put up in some areas.

Petrovar Ambassador: Thanks!

Equilibria: Thanks. I often hate how unrealistic it looks with a small city with huge skyscrapers. I tried to go for the look of Roanoke with this town, which has some, but not a lot of tall buildings.

Ecoba: Thanks.

Raysfan16: I'm back yay...

Selles: Thanks!

Raysfan16: I agree on that one.

MayorM: Thanks.

A.Aperson: Thanks, glad you like the roadgeekery.

Pickled_Pig: Nice to hear from you. Glad you liked the rural areas and surface parking. I don't necessarily like the look of surface parking, however it's realistic to what I'm going for. A new CJ for you perhaps? Hope college is going well.

And now.... the long awaited....

Here is where we left off, just having turned onto Northbound US-27 Business/S. Union Ave. Notice city hall, the court building and various other offices. 

US-84 briefly multiplexes onto North US-27 Business here...

Continuing on, we approach US-84/Hartford Blvd, where US-84 east diverges. Recently, a westward extension to Hartford Blvd was completed.... here's what it looked like before:

And after... now Hartford Blvd extends to N. Lee Ave.

And in grand tradition, a new shopping center opens shop at the intersection of N. Lee Ave. and Hartford Blvd.

Continuing on our way, though, here is the signal at the intersection of US-27 Business and Hartford Blvd. Notice the truck route sign as N. Union Ave. continues through a residential area.

US-27 Business/N. Union Ave slims to two lanes...

Newer olde-style street sign for E. Cherry St.

Continuing through the residential neighborhood.

Sign in advance of upcoming intersection:

Here is the intersection with MP-39 which ends here. US-27 Business turns left to join the venerable Kings Hwy.

Now, proceeding north on US-27 Business/Kings Hwy... We've been through this nice residential area before, but not since, say, page 11.

Fairly new signal here at Lomond Dr.

Continuing on...

To the left here is the former area of Winchester Mall.

Leeland Rd signal... fairly mundane...

Just after Leeland Rd, we see this sign for the upcoming interchange with SR-617/Backlick Rd.

Here's more of Uptown Village's apartments and offices which replaced Winchester Mall.

Here is the interchange with SR-617/Backlick Rd. Back on page 2, you can see this area with Winchester Mall and when this intersection was at-grade.

Upon passing Backlick Rd, US-27 Business enters Piedmont County and widens to three lanes each direction.

US-27 Business passes through some nice tree-lined residential areas here.

This signal at Grandey Drive is one of the few older span-wire assemblies still in use in this portion of US-27 Business. Most of the other ones have been replaced. Two were taken down when the SR-617/Backlick Rd intersection was grade-separated.

Some signs for the upcoming intersection with MP-165/Deltown Rd....

Much of this area was built up in the '70s and is called Piedmont Heights.

Here is the interchange with MP-165/Deltown Rd.

Here is one more zoomed-out view of the area around the interchange.

We'll do some more exploring of Piedmont Heights next time... hopefully before I go out of town next week!!

Thanks for visiting and your patience!

-Dan