Ohio State Route 242

State Route 242 (SR 242) was an east–west state highway in the west-central portion of Ohio. The western terminus of the route was at U.S. Route 127 approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Greenville. Its eastern terminus was at a T-intersection with SR 121 adjacent to Darke County Airport about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southwest of Versailles.

State Route 242
Map of SR 242 c. 2012
Route information
Maintained by ODOT
Length3.67 mi[1] (5.91 km)
Existed1924–2013
Major junctions
West end US 127 near Greenville
East end SR 121 near Versailles
Location
CountiesDarke
Highway system
← SR 241→ SR 243

Created in the middle of the 1920s, SR 242 ran through very flat farm country in the northeastern portion of Darke County. The highway abutted the western and northern edges of Darke County Airport along the way. The entire route was turned over to county and township control around 2013 in conjunction with a plan to extend the runway of the Darke County Airport.

Route description

SR 242 was nestled entirely within the northeastern quadrant of Darke County. The route was not inclusive in the National Highway System.[2]

The route began at the rural Richland Township intersection of US 127 and Reed Road. The vast majority of the state highway passed through farmland, with the occasional home appearing along the way. Heading due east from the U.S. Route 127 intersection, SR 242 immediately intersected Greenville-St. Marys Road, then proceeded among the vastness of crops, meeting Schroder Road and Younker Road en route before arriving at the Horner Road intersection. Here, SR 242 turned north onto the alignment of Horner Road, with the road continuing east from the intersection being Chase Road. As it headed northward, the route traveled along the western edge of Darke County Airport. The state route next arrived at its intersection with Plessinger Road. At this point, SR 242 turned east again, with the road heading north from this intersection becoming known as Shaffer Road. Running due east along the north side of the county airport, the route entered Wayne Township prior to arriving at its endpoint at its junction with SR 121, where the intersecting state highway forms the southern and eastern legs of the T-intersection.[3]

History

SR 242 was first designated in 1924 replacing what was then designated SR 199.[4][5] The highway was assigned to the routing that it occupied throughout its entire nine-decade history.[6] The entire route was asphalt-paved by 1939.[7][8]

In 2012, the Darke County Airport proposed expanding its one runway 300 feet (91 m) to the west. With the expansion, the north-south segment of SR 242 would have to be removed. As one of the shortest state highways in the state, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) proposed abandoning the entire route with jurisdiction of the road being transferred to Darke County and the two townships through which the route traveled.[9] Earlier proposals for the route included ODOT taking over the entire length of Chase Road (which runs along the southern edge of the airport) to SR 121.[9] ODOT gave up control of the route in 2013 with the portion from US 127 to Horner Road becoming Darke County Route 242 and the remainder becoming maintained by Richland and Wayne Townships.[10] For the maintenance of the road, ODOT also gave US$800,000 to the Darke County Engineer.[10]

Major intersections

The entire route was in Darke County.

Locationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Richland Township0.000.00 US 127 / Reed Road
Wayne Township3.675.91 SR 121
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

KML is from Wikidata
  1. Ohio Department of Transportation. "Technical Services Straight Line Diagrams" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  2. National Highway System: Ohio (PDF) (Map). Federal Highway Administration. December 2003. Retrieved 2010-07-29.
  3. Google (November 14, 2015). "Overview Map of State Route 242" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  4. Map of Ohio Showing State Routes (MrSID) (Map). Cartography by L.A. Boulay, Director. Ohio Division of Highways. 1923. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
  5. Map of Ohio Showing State Routes (MrSID) (Map). Cartography by L.A. Boulay, Director. ODOH. 1924. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
  6. 2007-2009 Official Ohio Transportation Map (MrSID) (Map). Cartography by James G. Beasley, Director. ODOT. 2007. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
  7. Official 1938 Ohio Highway Map (MrSID) (Map). Cartography by John Jaster, Jr., Director. ODOH. 1938. Retrieved August 19, 2013.
  8. Ohio Highway Map 1939 (MrSID) (Map). Cartography by Robt. S. Beightler, Director. ODOH. 1939. Retrieved August 19, 2013.
  9. "DC Engineer Jim Surber's Thoughts on the Planned 242 Changes". Darke Journal. April 25, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  10. "Meeting Minutes of The Board of Darke County Commissioners" (PDF). April 22, 2013. pp. 129–130. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
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