 A wrong-way multiplex; 97 south is 5 north is 1 east A wrong-way multiplex occurs in highway numbering systems when two roads, nominally going in opposite directions, are routed in the same direction along one stretch of road. Although logically consistent, such signage often leads to confusion among motorists. Further aggravating the bewilderment of travelers is the fact that the road is likely to be going in yet a third direction.
Famous wrong-way multiplexes include:
- A stretch of the Yankee Division Highway, a loop around Boston, Massachusetts. The southernmost portion of the loop proceeds east from the intersection of I-95 south (coming from Providence, Rhode Island) to the intersection of I-93 north (proceeding into downtown Boston) and MA Route 3 from Plymouth, Massachusetts and Cape Cod. Because the route provides a connection from I-95 to the portion of I-93 that enters Boston, the route is signed I-93 North. At the same time, the entire loop is signed as MA Route 128, which proceeds to this point from its northern terminus in Rockport, Massachusetts. Since travelers would reach this point in the loop primarily by driving south, the route continues to be signed Route 128 South. The result is a stretch of highway, proceeding east, marked as I-93 North and MA 128 South.
- Less famous but no less confusing is the I-77/I-81 wrong-way multiplex in southwestern Virginia, which is simultaneously North 81 and South 77. In the 80s and early 90s this section was particularly confusing due to poor (almost nonexistent) signage, but this problem was remedied around 1996.
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