K-44 is a
state highway in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...
. It begins at
K-2 in
Anthony
Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...
and passes through
Harper and
Sumner counties in the south-central portion of the state, ending at
K-49 north of
Caldwell. The highway is long, and it was designated around 1932. Its alignment has not undergone a major change since then.
Route description
K-44 begins at a junction with
K-2 in
Anthony
Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...
, the county seat of Harper County; within the city limits of Anthony, K-44 is known as Main Street. From its western terminus, the route heads east as a two-lane road, coming to another highway junction, the northern terminus of
K-179, approximately east of K-2. K-44 then leaves Anthony, continuing east through hilly farmland in eastern Harper County, before crossing into Sumner County approximately east of Anthony. The highway crosses the
Chikaskia River
The Chikaskia River (usually pronounced ''chi-KAS-kee-uh'' but often pronounced ''chi-KAS-kee'' in southern Kansas) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 31, 2011 tri ...
north of Caldwell. Just east of the river crossing, the route curves slightly to the southeast and comes to an intersection with
K-49, where it ends.
All but of K-44's alignment is maintained by the
Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT). The entire section within Anthony is maintained by the city.
In 2013, KDOT measured traffic counts in terms of
average annual daily traffic
Annual average daily traffic, abbreviated AADT, is a measure used primarily in transportation planning, transportation engineering and retail location selection. Traditionally, it is the total volume of vehicle traffic of a highway or road for a ...
(AADT) on K-44 ranging from a high of 729 vehicles in Anthony to a low of 313 vehicles in western Sumner County.
History
K-44 first appeared on the 1927 Kansas state highway map. Its alignment when it was designated is identical to that which it follows today; however, the road was not yet paved.
This did not happen until sometime between 1948 and 1950,
and the highway has not been majorly modified since then.
Junction list
References
External links
{{Attached KML, display=title,inline
Kansas Highways Routelog—K-44
044
Transportation in Harper County, Kansas
Transportation in Sumner County, Kansas