US 730 was created with the original US Highway System on November 11, 1926, traveling on the existing Columbia River Highway, established in 1917, from US 30 in Umatilla to US 410 south of Wallula. The Washington section of US 730 was added to the state highway system in 1923 as a branch of State Road 3, later becoming a branch of Primary State Highway 3 (PSH 3) in 1937. The highway was concurrent with US 395 from 1937 until 1985, traveling from Cold Springs Junction to US 410. US 30 was moved to a new route bypassing Umatilla and Irrigon in 1946, allowing for US 730 to be extended southwest to Boardman, later to an interchange with I-84.
US 730 continues north from Oregon along Lake Wallula and around Clover Hill, reaching Wallula Junction in Walla Walla County. The highway intersects its spur route and turns east towards its eastern terminus at US 12 south of the community of Wallula.[14] In 2012, WSDOT calculated that the Washington section of US 730 served between 1,500 and 2,400nbsp;vehicles per day, on average.[15]
History
The highway that became US 730 within Oregon has been designated by the Oregon State Highway Commission as the easternmost segment of Columbia River Highway No. 2 since November 27, 1917, created as part of the initial named state highway system.[16] The segment of US 730 within Washington was added to the state highway system in 1923 as a branch of State Road 3 and kept its designation as a branch of PSH 3 during the creation of the primary and secondary highway system in 1937.[17][18] The United States Numbered Highway System was adopted on November 11, 1926, by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) and included US 730, traveling northeast along the Columbia River from US 30 in Umatilla to US 410 south of Wallula.[3][19] The highway was originally planned to be numbered as US 420, but was changed after US 30 was substituted in place of US 20 along the Columbia River.[20] US 395 was extended south from Spokane, Washington, to San Diego, California, in 1937, becoming concurrent with US 730 between Cold Springs Junction and its eastern terminus at US 410 south of Wallula.[21][22]
US 30 was moved to a new section of the Old Oregon Trail Highway No. 6, bypassing the cities of Irrigon and Umatilla, on November 25, 1946.[16][23] US 730 was subsequently extended west to a new junction with US 30 and later relocated uphill due to the construction of the John Day Dam.[24][25][26] The highway's western terminus was moved farther south to an interchange with I-80N in 1967.[27] During the westward extension of US 12 from Idaho into Washington, the Oregon state government suggested to AASHO a route that included the entirety of US 730 in 1962,[28] while Washington state suggested routing US 12 over US 410 and State Route 12 (SR 12) to Vancouver, Washington.[29][30] AASHO approved the extension of US 12 into Washington on June 20, 1967, routing it along US 410 and SR 14 to its present terminus in Aberdeen.[29][31] US 395 was re-aligned to a concurrency with I-82 in 1985,[32] crossing the Columbia River on the Umatilla Bridge and having a shorter concurrency with US 730.[8][33] The old route of US 395 from Cold Springs Junction to Pendleton, part of Pendleton-Cold Springs Highway No. 236, became Oregon Route 37.[16][34]
The highway's eastern terminus in Wallula is planned to be moved further north to a new interchange with US 12 after the completion of the Burbank–Walla Walla divided highway in the 2020s.[35]
U.S. Route 730 Spur (US 730 Spur) is a 0.30-mile-long (0.48 km) spur route in rural Walla Walla County, Washington, that connects it to US 12 westbound towards Wallula, while US 730 is directed towards eastbound US 12 towards the city of Walla Walla.[2][36] WSDOT included the road in its annual traffic survey in 2012 and calculated that 1,300 vehicles used the spur route.[15]
^Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderly, Kevin (August 26, 2010). "What is the National Highway System?". National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on September 24, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2010.
^Oregon Department of Transportation (July 7, 2010). State of Oregon: Oregon Railroads(PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Salem: Oregon Department of Transportation. Archived from the original(PDF) on March 19, 2013. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
^Oregon Department of Transportation (2011). "Traffic Volumes on State Highways"(PDF). Oregon Department of Transportation. p. 5. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
^ abWashington State Department of Transportation (2012). "2012 Annual Traffic Report"(PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. p. 208. Archived(PDF) from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^ abcSingh, Ron (January 2007). "History of State Highways in Oregon"(PDF). Oregon Department of Transportation. pp. 75–82, 103–108, 227–228. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
^Washington State Legislature (March 19, 1923). "Chapter 185: Primary and Secondary State Highways". Session Laws of the State of Washington (1923 ed.). Olympia, Washington: Washington State Legislature. p. 628. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
^Washington State Legislature (March 17, 1937). "Chapter 190: Establishment of Primary State Highways". Session Laws of the State of Washington (1937 ed.). Olympia: Washington State Legislature. pp. 934–935. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
^Department of Highways (1939). Highways of the State of Washington(DJVU) (Map). Scale not given. Olympia: Department of Highways. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^Rand McNally (1946). Northwest (Map). Scale not given. Chicago: Rand McNally. Archived from the original on February 7, 2012. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^Rand McNally (1967). Northwest (Map). Scale not given. Chicago: Rand McNally. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^"Washington Plan Opposed". Eugene Register-Guard. January 20, 1962. p. 8A. Retrieved March 30, 2013 – via Newspapers.com.
^ abWeingroff, Richard (April 7, 2011). "U.S. 12: Michigan to Washington". Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on October 24, 2011. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^United States Geological Survey (1981). Walla Walla (Map). 1:250,000. Reston, Virginia: United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^"New numbers for old roads". Tri-City Herald. April 12, 1985. p. B1.
^Rand McNally (1989). Washington (Map). Scale not given. Chicago: Rand McNally. Archived from the original on August 13, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
^Rand McNally (1989). Oregon (Map). Scale not given. Chicago: Rand McNally. Archived from the original on September 20, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2013.