Oregon Route 42
Oregon Route 42 is an Oregon state highway which runs between U.S. Route 101 on the Oregon Coast, near Coos Bay, and Green, a few miles south of Roseburg on Interstate 5. OR 42 traverses the Coos Bay–Roseburg Highway No. 35 of the Oregon state highway system. The route splits at Coquille, where Oregon Route 42S heads southwest toward Bandon.
The section of Oregon Route 42 between the junction with U.S. Route 101 south of Coos Bay and the junction with Oregon Route 42S in Coquille was once a part of U.S. Route 101. When U.S. Route 101 was moved to an alignment closer to the ocean in 1961-63, Oregon Route 42 was extended along the northernmost section and Oregon Route 42S was created along the southernmost section.
Route description
OR 42 is known internally by the Oregon Department of Transportation as the Coos Bay-Roseburg Highway No. 35. The entire highway is designated as part of the National Highway System, which includes roadways important to the national economy, defense, and mobility. The entire highway has also been designated as a freight route by ODOT.History
Coos and Douglas counties began lobbying the state government for major widening and straightening of OR 42 in the late 1940s due to unsafe conditions and heavy use. A group of 140 women from the area appealed directly to the Oregon State Highway Commission in 1957 for improvements, but were turned away.OR 42 was extended west in December 1960 after US 101 was realigned away from Coquille. A proposal to re-designate the old alignment as U.S. Route 101 Alternate was rejected by the American Association of State Highway Officials in 1971.