Prineville Oregon to Springfield Oregon, best route?

20 west once your over the hump you can turn south down the McKenzie river. Nice drive and if your not in a big hurry, stop at Belknap hot springs for a night

20 to I-5 south is an easy pull.

We live in Lapine, south of Bend. We go to Salem all the time by going down 97 to Crescent. In the middle of Crescent (you can't miss it) is a turn to the west -- called Crescent Cutoff road. Take that till you get to Hwy 58 and then head west till you get to I5. Turn north for a couple of miles, then turn into Springfield. A LOT easier route for twists, turns, and passing lanes and it's safer, too. We've done it in a 36 ft DP and a Dodge Dakota pulling a 27 foot 5th wheel. It's easy-peasy.

Good for you for ignoring 243 and going thru Sweet Home is the LOOOOONGest drive yet.

Google Maps gives me 2 choices - 126 the whole way, or 58 (with the Crescent Cutoff). The later is 30 miles and 26 minutes longer. The 58 route uses a slightly lower pass, and over all might be straighter. But otherwise the choices are similar.

If you have the time, a slightly longer route using Cascade Lakes National Scenic Byway is worth considering. This heads west from Bend, past Mt Bachelor, views 3 Sisters, and past various lakes and lava flows.

In the west US20 looks twistier than OR126 (though I've only driven the latter).

Don't forget that map programs just calculate the fastest route. They won't differ much on distance, but times will differ depending on their speed estimates.

When I tweak the GM route to use 242, I see that is a bit shorter, but quite a bit slower. Evidently GM is using a lower speed estimate for this road. Bing is 30 minutes faster on this route. Evidently some human has told GM to use a slower speed on this leg, or it actually takes the road geometry (curves, grades) into account.

If you do opt for going through Sweet Home, Lane County parks are a great choice to overnight, particularly River Bend. Extremely clean campground with excellent facilities. They do take reservations, but we have usually seen spaces available for first come, too.

Thanks to all for your input. Travel safe... :)