Not so long ago, I still found the prospect of an impending road trip as tantalizing as it was in 1971, when I started across the country in a $125 beater that took me to the West Coast and back. Planning my route and loading the car always revived early childhood recollections of long drives home up U.S. Route 1, from Navy bases in Virginia and Florida. We stayed in motel cabins with wooden screen doors that swung shut with a "slap," eating in diners reminiscent of Edward Hopper or "The Twilight Zone." Wherever we stopped, my mother usually found someone interesting to talk to while my father scoured the road map.
Even on a hundred or so research jaunts to distant libraries and archives over the past four decades, there would be intriguing historical sites to see along the way. Road trips were also the only occasion when I allowed myself bacon-and-egg breakfasts, which added considerably to the allure.
Unfortunately over crowding has killed every beautiful spot. Thank you internet. There are no bucolic little towns left, and the planners and boards ignor the local citizens pleas to halt the cancer of urban sprawl.
They just keep building and widening, before you know it we will have double decker roads running thru our town....
There is absolutely no enforcement of vehicle and traffic laws for fear if bring accused of profiling, or having protests and calls for the police to be defunded simply for doing thier job.
Is it even required to have a drivers license anymore ? Seems like people just get in a car, drive at any speed they like, turn and change lanes at a whim, without warning or signal. Its a complete free for all with no hope in site.
Its really ashame how downgraded and discusting our highway system has become.
Oh... and lets not mention the piles of garbage that gets thrown out of the wreckless vehicle windows.
But lets keep packing them in....
More housing....
More stores....
And of course more hotels, the higher the better, and as close to the road as you can get, especially to obstruct any views of anything beautiful....
Highway travel is treacherous at times, for sure. My approach has always been to scoot along above the limit - but not by much. I'm also willing to drop back out of the pack if things are less crowded a ways back from the frontrunners. Finding a "hole" in the traffic with some distance between me and other slightly less aggressive drivers is a game with lesser penalties than those faced by those who hope to arrive at their destinations 10 minutes ahead of me. DISCLAIMER: I now live in Maui, where I've only briefly flirted with speeds above 60...
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Unfortunately over crowding has killed every beautiful spot. Thank you internet. There are no bucolic little towns left, and the planners and boards ignor the local citizens pleas to halt the cancer of urban sprawl.
They just keep building and widening, before you know it we will have double decker roads running thru our town....
There is absolutely no enforcement of vehicle and traffic laws for fear if bring accused of profiling, or having protests and calls for the police to be defunded simply for doing thier job.
Is it even required to have a drivers license anymore ? Seems like people just get in a car, drive at any speed they like, turn and change lanes at a whim, without warning or signal. Its a complete free for all with no hope in site.
Its really ashame how downgraded and discusting our highway system has become.
Oh... and lets not mention the piles of garbage that gets thrown out of the wreckless vehicle windows.
But lets keep packing them in....
More housing....
More stores....
And of course more hotels, the higher the better, and as close to the road as you can get, especially to obstruct any views of anything beautiful....
Keep up the good work !
Highway travel is treacherous at times, for sure. My approach has always been to scoot along above the limit - but not by much. I'm also willing to drop back out of the pack if things are less crowded a ways back from the frontrunners. Finding a "hole" in the traffic with some distance between me and other slightly less aggressive drivers is a game with lesser penalties than those faced by those who hope to arrive at their destinations 10 minutes ahead of me. DISCLAIMER: I now live in Maui, where I've only briefly flirted with speeds above 60...
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PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.