U.S. Route 78 (US 78) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 715 miles (1,151 km) from Memphis, Tennessee, to

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. From

Byhalia, Mississippi Byhalia , is a town in Marshall County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,302 as of the 2010 census. History Byhalia was founded in the 1830s and named after Byhalia Creek, which flows past the site. Geography According to the U ...

to Birmingham, Alabama, US 78 is concurrent with Interstate 22. The highway's western terminus is at U.S. Route 64/

U.S. Route 70 U.S. Route 70 or U.S. Highway 70 (US 70) is an east–west United States highway that runs for from eastern North Carolina to east-central Arizona. It is a major east–west highway of the Southeastern United States, Southeastern, Southern Unite ...

U.S. Route 79 U.S. Route 79 (US 79) is a United States highway in the Southern United States. The route is officially considered and labeled as a north-south highway, but its path is actually more of a diagonal northeast-southwest highway. The highway's nort ...

(Second Street) in Memphis, Tennessee, and its eastern terminus is on Line Street, in Charleston, South Carolina. One of its related routes, US 278, is actually longer in length than US 78.

Route description

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Tennessee

US 78 runs along Linden Avenue, Somerville Street, E. H. Crump Boulevard, and Lamar Avenue through Memphis, Tennessee. In Tennessee, US 78 is historically known as Pigeon Roost Road, and some aborted sections of the highway in Mississippi also claim that name as well as Lamar Avenue. Throughout the Tennessee portion, US 78 is overlapped in its entirety by State Route 278 (SR 278), along Linden Avenue and Somerville Street, and State Route 4 (SR 4) along E. H. Crump Boulevard and Lamar Avenue.

Mississippi

US 78 is a freeway for its entire length in Mississippi. The section from its intersection with Interstate 269 in

to the Alabama state line is concurrent with Interstate 22. The highway runs across the northeastern rural part of the state, connecting several population centers. Mississippi's portion of US 78 is defined in Mississippi Code Annotated § 65-3-3. The old routing of US 78 through the state is signed as MS 178.

Alabama

US 78 is a major east–west U.S. highway across the central part of Alabama. It is internally designated State Route 4 (SR 4) by the

Alabama Department of Transportation The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) is the government agency responsible for transportation infrastructure in Alabama. The Department is organized into five geographic regions, with a Central Office located in Montgomery, AL Montg ...

, though the only section of State Route 4 that is signed is along portions mainly west of Jasper. The section from the Mississippi state line to near Graysville is concurrent with Interstate 22; from Graysville south to Birmingham, US 78 takes its original routing. East of Birmingham to the Georgia state line, US 78 has been replaced as a major through-route by

Interstate 20 Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs beginning at an interchange with Interstate 10, I-10 in Scroggins Draw, Texas, and ending at an interchange with Interstate 95, I-95 in Flo ...

. The two routes roughly parallel each other, with junctions at Leeds and

Pell City Pell City is a city in and one of the county seats of St. Clair County, Alabama, United States, other seat being Ashville. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,939. At the 2010 census, the city-limit population jumped to 12,695. It was hom ...

. West of Jasper, old US 78 is signed as AL 118 to Guin, and the segment from Guin northward to I-22 at Hamilton is signed as US 43/US 278.

Georgia

US 78 enters Georgia in Haralson County, and then proceeds through Carroll County and Douglas County. In Douglasville, located in Douglas County, US 78 runs through the downtown, historical part of the city. It is the original thoroughfare for these Georgia counties. The route then continues eastward through

Cobb Cobb may refer to: People * Cobb (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Cobb * Cobb Rooney (1900–1973), American professional football running back Places New Zealand * Cobb River * Cobb Reservoir * Cobb Power ...

and Fulton counties into Atlanta. After crossing Peachtree Street, where US 78 marks a boundary between

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

and Midtown, US 78 is largely conterminous with Ponce de Leon Avenue. As it proceeds due east, this section of the route passes Ponce City Market and crosses the Eastside Trail of the BeltLine before skirting a number of Frederick Law Olmsted-designed parks in the Druid Hills Historic District at the eastern edge of the city. After entering Decatur in

DeKalb County DeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johan DeKalb: * DeKalb County, Alabama * DeKalb County, Georgia * DeKalb County, Illinois * DeKalb County, Indiana * DeKalb County, Missouri ...

, US 78 departs from Ponce de Leon Avenue to head northeast. South of the site of North DeKalb Mall, another short freeway portion begins — leading from just inside the eastern rim of Interstate 285 (the Perimeter) to the

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

s of Clarkston,

Tucker Tucker may refer to: Places United States * Tucker, Arkansas * Tucker, Georgia * Tucker, Mississippi * Tucker, Missouri * Tucker, Utah, ghost town * Tucker County, West Virginia Outer space * Tucker (crater), a small lunar impact crater in the s ...

, Stone Mountain, and

Snellville Snellville is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States, east of Atlanta. The population was 18,242 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the estimated population was 20,077. It is a developed suburb of Atlanta and a part of the Atlanta metr ...

. This portion is named the Stone Mountain Freeway, and provides an excellent view of Stone Mountain for eastbound motorists. The route then proceeds east across

Gwinnett Gwinnett County ( ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. It forms part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the second-most populous county in Georgia (after Fulton C ...

, Walton, and Oconee counties. In Oconee County, US 78 leaves Moina Michael Highway at the SR 316 interchange, turning right and running concurrent with SR 316/

US 29 U.S. Route 29 (US 29) is a north–south United States highway that runs for from Pensacola, Florida to the western suburbs of Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland in the Southern United States, connecting the Florida Panhandle to the Baltimore-Was ...

. (From this point, Moina Michael Highway is signed as US 78 Business, which follows the original route of US 78 through Athens, Ga.) At the terminal eastern interchange of SR 316 both US 78 and US 29 turn right and join with SR 10 Loop, a mostly interstate-grade bypass that rings Athens-Clarke County. US 78 exits the bypass and turns right at the Lexington Road interchange. From there US 78 passes through Oglethorpe, Wilkes, McDuffie and

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

Counties into Augusta and then onto one of the twin bridges across the

Savannah River The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the norther ...

into South Carolina.

South Carolina

US 78 provides the most direct route between Augusta and Charleston, through the South Carolina Lowcountry. Crossing

into the state, it goes northeast into Aiken before going southeasterly through the cities and towns of Williston, Blackville, Denmark,

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

, Branchville, and

St. George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...

. East of Dorchester, it parallels Interstate 26 into downtown Charleston, where it ends.

History

In western Alabama, the historical name of US 78 is

Bankhead Highway The Bankhead Highway was a United States cross-country automobile highway connecting Washington, D.C., and San Diego. The Bankhead Highway's beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the h ...

. It is also known by this name in portions of Georgia, including Atlanta, and the Bankhead neighborhood takes its name from that stretch of road. Also, the old section of US 78 (now MS 178) that travels through downtown

New Albany, Mississippi New Albany is a city in and the county seat of Union County, Mississippi, United States. According to the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,626. History New Albany was first organized in 1840 at the site of a grist mill and saw mil ...

, is named Bankhead Street. Throughout the 2000s, US 78 has been gradually upgraded into a four-lane freeway in Mississippi and Alabama and signed as Interstate 22. US 78 is completely concurrent with I-22 from

to Birmingham, Alabama.

Future

After the completion of Interstate 22 throughout the 2010s, it is uncertain whether US 78 will be decommissioned west of Birmingham or the old route recommissioned as US 78 upon completion of Interstate 22. If the old route is recommissioned as US 78, parts of I-22 and US 78 would be forced to overlap. A stretch from just west of Hamilton, Alabama to the first exit in Mississippi, as well as a stretch from MS 25 in Fulton, Mississippi to the next exit west of Fulton after crossing the Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway will overlap. The Hamilton area overlap would be due to the old US 78 routing no longer exists west of Hamilton having been upgraded to I-22 from Weston westward into Mississippi. The second overlap would be necessary because the old US 78 no longer exists west of downtown Fulton, Mississippi due to the Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway and no bridge in place to carry US 78 traffic on the former route.

Major intersections

;Tennessee : in Memphis : in Memphis : in Memphis : in Memphis ;Mississippi : west-northwest of Byhalia. Begin I-22 Concurrency. : in Tupelo ;Alabama : in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

: near Adamsville : near Birmingham. End I-22 Concurrency. : in Birmingham : in Birmingham. The highways travel concurrently through Birmingham. : in Birmingham : in Leeds : in Leeds : northwest of Chulavista. The highways travel concurrently to

. : in Pell City : in

Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...

: in Oxford. ;Georgia : in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

: in Lithia Springs. The highways travel concurrently to Druid Hills. : in Atlanta : in Atlanta. The highways travel concurrently through Atlanta. : in Atlanta. US 29/US 78 travels concurrently to the Scottdale–

North Decatur North Decatur is a census-designated place (CDP) in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 16,698 at the 2010 census. Geography North Decatur is located at (33.803054, -84.290123). According to the United States Census Bureau ...

city line. : in Atlanta. The highways travel concurrently to Decatur. : on the Scottdale– Clarkston city line : southeast of Bogart. The highways travel concurrently to Athens. : in Athens. The highways travel concurrently through Athens. : in Washington : north of

Thomson Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson Mic ...

: southeast of

. The highways travel concurrently to

Clearwater, South Carolina Clearwater is a census-designated place (CDP) in Aiken County, South Carolina. It lies near North Augusta, South Carolina, and is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area. Clearwater is located in historic Horse Creek Valley. The population ...

. : in Harlem : in Augusta : in Augusta. The highways travel concurrently to Aiken, South Carolina. : in Augusta. The highways travel concurrently to North Augusta, South Carolina. ;South Carolina : in North Augusta : in Denmark : in

: in Branchville. The highways travel concurrently through Branchville. : in

: in St. George : east of Dorchester : in North Charleston : in North Charleston. The highways travel concurrently through North Charleston. : in North Charleston : in North Charleston : King Street/Line Street in

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

References

External links

Evermore Community Improvement DistrictHigh Priority Corridors @ aaroads.comHighway 78 CIDHighway 78 on OpenStreetMap.org

{{DEFAULTSORT:78 United States Numbered Highway System U.S. Highways in Tennessee U.S. Highways in Mississippi U.S. Highways in Alabama Roads with a reversible lane