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Most Boring Drive Between Two Major Cities?

Started by webny99, July 30, 2024, 10:47:53 PM

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webny99


I know we've had variations of this topic before, but I don't think we've done so with a focus specifically on the drive between two major cities. For the purposes of this discussion, let's say cities of 100k+ and nothing larger in between.

I think Buffalo-Syracuse is a decent candidate. Absolutely nothing of interest scenery-wise except the Montezuma refuge, and even that is a stretch.


Max Rockatansky

I-10 between Los Angeles and Phoenix doesn't do a whole lot. 

jeffandnicole

Richmond and Jacksonville along I-95.  For all the excitement there is along 95, there is nothing going on in North Carolina.  Even less in South Carolina.  At least Georgia has some decent views, but it's still 110 miles of nothingness.

Out west; you kinda expect it to be boring.  Along I-95, not so much, but this stretch is just hours of boredom.

Rothman

Syracuse and Buffalo on the Thruway.  Blech.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position(s) of NYSDOT.

Flint1979

#4
Louisville to St. Louis. I drove this back in like 2003 and across southern Indiana I remember just tree after tree after tree then got into Illinois and it didn't get much better. At least the closer I got to St. Louis wasn't as bad as southern Indiana along I-64.

I didn't have a GPS at the time and underestimated the time to drive between the two cities which is about 4 hours.

pderocco

I drove Oklahoma City to Amarillo last year, and it was worse than boring, it was rather ugly, between the oil fields and the windmills. Amarillo to Albuquerque was also boring, but once you get into NM, you start seeing plateaus along the horizon, which soften things a bit.

I also drove Lincoln NE to Cheyenne WY about 20 years ago, and that was boring, but at least the farmland was pleasant, even if it all looked more or less the same. Billings to Fargo is in the same category.

But I bore easily, anywhere that isn't significantly three-dimensional.

TheStranger

Louisville-Indianapolis along I-65 was a struggle for me when I did that route in 2016 - some bare trees along the way exacerbated the lack of visual appeal.

Cincy-Columbus along I-71 was not particularly exciting (in the midst of a Louisville-Cleveland roadtrip up I-71 back in 2006 with friends).

Amarillo-Oklahoma City (mentioned by another poster) was pretty rough at night along I-40 during my 2021 cross-country roadtrip.
Chris Sampang

GaryV

Atlanta to Orlando.

Followed by Toledo to Dayton, which is better only because it's shorter.

1995hoo

Quote from: jeffandnicole on July 30, 2024, 11:01:34 PMRichmond and Jacksonville along I-95.  For all the excitement there is along 95, there is nothing going on in North Carolina.  Even less in South Carolina.  At least Georgia has some decent views, but it's still 110 miles of nothingness.

Out west; you kinda expect it to be boring.  Along I-95, not so much, but this stretch is just hours of boredom.

The loss of the funny South of the Border billboards was a major part of reducing the interest factor going southbound in North Carolina or northbound in South Carolina. Were they cheesy and did the puns induce groans? Of course they did. But they were something different that made you wonder what the next one was going to say. Nowadays there are far fewer of them (and, to be sure, reducing the overall number of billboards isn't necessarily a bad thing) and the ones that remain are bowdlerized to the point of inanity. I think the best remaining pun is "You never sausage a place" with a big banger underneath it.
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commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

ElishaGOtis

Between Beaumont and Houston on I-10 outside of the work zone. I've said it once and I'll say it again, I do not understand how a road that's 6 lanes and as flat as a pancake can be only 65mph in Texas.

Granted, I'm slightly biased as I'm the only one who dares follow the speed limit there lol  :pan:  :sombrero:
I can drive 55 ONLY when it makes sense.

NOTE: Opinions expressed here on AARoads are solely my own and do not represent or reflect the statements, opinions, or decisions of any agency. Any official information I share will be quoted from another source.

JayhawkCO

I'm going Mobile to Jacksonville on I-10. Miserable.

TheStranger

Quote from: ElishaGOtis on July 31, 2024, 11:03:33 AMBetween Beaumont and Houston on I-10 outside of the work zone. I've said it once and I'll say it again, I do not understand how a road that's 6 lanes and as flat as a pancake can be only 65mph in Texas.

Granted, I'm slightly biased as I'm the only one who dares follow the speed limit there lol  :pan:  :sombrero:

Out of curiosity, is US 90 between the two points a more worthwhile drive?

That leads to my next example:

Between Sacramento and LA, one can either take the older 99 corridor or the 1970s-era I-5 West Side Freeway to get up towrards Wheeler Ridge.  5 between Vernalis and Wheeler Ridge is dire.  99 has more interesting cities but the drives between each of those spots are still as flat and farmland-heavy as 5, just not as much in one huge block.

Between SF and LA I strongly prefer US 101 to 580/5 (despite the 50+ miles extra length) for visual interest alone.
Chris Sampang

mgk920

When I drove it during a roadtrip a couple of decades ago, I found WB I-40 from Knoxville to Nashville, TN to be beyond dreadfully boring.

 :meh:

Mike

webny99

One that got mentioned a lot in the X thread is El Paso to San Antonio on I-10. While I know it's mostly flat with not much to look at, I think I would find it at least mildly interesting, since it's so different to anything one would see in the Northeast or Great Lakes. The stretch I have driven from Kerrville to San Antonio definitely wasn't paper flat and passes through some interesting terrain, so I am assuming it flattens out west of there. Even so, at least the 80 mph speed limit allows for making good time while being bored.

ZLoth

#14
Three candidates that I have driven come to my mind:

  • Interstate 5 between Los Angeles and Sacramento.
  • Interstate 10 from El Paso to the I-10/I-20 split, followed by I-20 to Fort Worth
  • US-95 between Winnemucca, NV and Marsang, ID aka ION highway.

I'm sure that I-10 from El Paso to San Antonio qualifies, but I haven't driven it. You have to be somewhat prepared when driving these roads, especially the lack of gas stations and cell phone service on the ION highway.
Don't Drive Distrac... SQUIRREL!

MikieTimT

I-40 between Little Rock and Memphis would qualify.  Not much in the way of scenery or elevation change, but you'll be staring at the back of 2 semi trailers side by side for a good portion of the trip.

vdeane

Honorable mention for Dayton-Indianapolis, which my Mom found so boring that she aborted her one attempt to visit Indianapolis when she lived in Dayton.

Quote from: webny99 on July 30, 2024, 10:47:53 PMI think Buffalo-Syracuse is a decent candidate. Absolutely nothing of interest scenery-wise except the Montezuma refuge, and even that is a stretch.
Quote from: Rothman on July 30, 2024, 11:32:32 PMSyracuse and Buffalo on the Thruway.  Blech.
Personally, I think the Buffalo-Cleveland stretch of I-90 is worse.  At least Syracuse-Buffalo varies, and has some features of interest to roadgeeks like the NY 64 bridge or the bridges east of exit 44.  And "landmarks" like the "great switch" east of Batavia where the Thruway crosses NY 33 and the CSX line, or the silo with a smiley face on it (sadly mostly obscured by trees these days), or the Erie Canal lock.  Aside from a few fleeting glimpses of Lake Erie near the NY/PA line, Buffalo-Cleveland is 150 miles of this, with only the Seneca Nation providing anything of interest in terms of roadway features.  Imagine if the entire length of the Buffalo-Syracuse run was like the Pembroke-Batavia stretch.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position of NYSDOT or its affiliates.

Rothman

Nah, I find Buffalo to Syracuse or vice versa worse.  It just drags.  Buffalo to Cleveland goes by quicker for me, whether there's more variation if terrain or not.  I-290 to Syracuse all looks the same to me.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position(s) of NYSDOT.

roadman65

Quote from: JayhawkCO on July 31, 2024, 11:05:24 AMI'm going Mobile to Jacksonville on I-10. Miserable.

I-10 is all boring from San Antonio to Jacksonville.  Never been west of Six Flags Fiesta Texas so I can't vouch for any of it to LA.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

JayhawkCO

#19
Quote from: roadman65 on July 31, 2024, 01:29:01 PM
Quote from: JayhawkCO on July 31, 2024, 11:05:24 AMI'm going Mobile to Jacksonville on I-10. Miserable.

I-10 is all boring from San Antonio to Jacksonville.  Never been west of Six Flags Fiesta Texas so I can't vouch for any of it to LA.

At least you go through Houston, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Mobile, etc. to look at on the rest of the eastern section.

From Mobile to Jacksonville, you basically just see the cars in your lane as there are so many southern pines that you can't see oncoming traffic. Mix in the fact that exits are 15-20 miles apart in places and, for me, it's the worst interstate drive in the country. I hit it at night one time trying to drive from KC to Jax and had to pull over at every exit to walk around to prevent me from falling asleep.

bugo

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on July 30, 2024, 10:53:51 PMI-10 between Los Angeles and Phoenix doesn't do a whole lot. 

Is it desert? Because I would love that. I haven't been to the desert since I was 2 or 3 years old, and I hope to see it again one day. It's those endless pine groves in the Deep South that bore me to tears. I-20 in Mississippi and I-16 in Georgia are two good examples.

hbelkins

Louisville to Chicago via Indy. (I-65)
Cincinnati to Cleveland via Columbus. (I-71)
Cincinnati to the Quad Cities via Indy and Peoria. (I-74)
Nashville to Little Rock via Memphis. (I-40)

I'll take I-70 from KC to Denver any day over those four listed above.
Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

roadman65

Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

epzik8

Baltimore-Washington, on every single corridor between the two.
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webny99

Quote from: vdeane on July 31, 2024, 12:47:30 PMPersonally, I think the Buffalo-Cleveland stretch of I-90 is worse.  At least Syracuse-Buffalo varies, and has some features of interest to roadgeeks like the NY 64 bridge or the bridges east of exit 44.  And "landmarks" like the "great switch" east of Batavia where the Thruway crosses NY 33 and the CSX line, or the silo with a smiley face on it (sadly mostly obscured by trees these days), or the Erie Canal lock.  Aside from a few fleeting glimpses of Lake Erie near the NY/PA line, Buffalo-Cleveland is 150 miles of this, with only the Seneca Nation providing anything of interest in terms of roadway features.  Imagine if the entire length of the Buffalo-Syracuse run was like the Pembroke-Batavia stretch.

Quote from: Rothman on July 31, 2024, 01:26:02 PMNah, I find Buffalo to Syracuse or vice versa worse.  It just drags.  Buffalo to Cleveland goes by quicker for me, whether there's more variation if terrain or not.  I-290 to Syracuse all looks the same to me.

Interesting. I agree that I-90 in Ohio is exceptionally boring, but Buffalo to the PA line doesn't seem as boring to me as Buffalo to Syracuse. Neither are exactly scenic, but at least the stretch west of Buffalo has Angola, the Seneca Nation, some visible development near Fredonia, and occasional visibility of the Allegany foothills. The stretch through PA is kind of a wash, but considering Erie is very near the 100k threshold, if I were to use Erie to break it in three it would be:

Most boring: Cleveland to Erie
Less boring: Buffalo to Syracuse
Least boring: Erie to Buffalo



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