Roadgeek Hot Takes

[hobsini2]

For all the talk on this forum about whether California's internal exit number tabs are legible or not...I think the bigger thing here is getting people to actually use the exit numbers in regular conversation.  Pre-2001 I get the sense most folks here were used to just saying they were going to (exit name) and I don't think that has completely changed a quarter-century later.

In all my driving days and giving people directions, exit numbers are not at all what I tell them. Highway numbers, road names or fill in the blank town exit, yes. But I have never told someone to get off at Exit 267 to get to my town even though I know the number. Most people don't know exit numbers because its at a single point. People know names and highway numbers.

[kphoger]

Texas driving culture

Hot take:

I like driving in Texas.  Texas driving is my kind of driving.  More people should drive like how they do in Texas.

(But not Dallas.)

[hobsini2]

I'll also go on with things Québec City tends to do: over here, a ped signal invariably means your crossing is protected. There are no conflicting car movements. This is good, actually, and Montréal should take lessons from us.

Do I detect a bit of animosity from Quebec City towards Montreal? Is it like having the Nordiques back fighting the Canadiens? 

[hobsini2]

This depends on the driving culture.

How about a driving culture hot take?

New York driving culture = assume everyone is smart and get angry when they're not.
Minnesota driving culture = assume everyone is dumb and be impressed when they're not.
Texas driving culture = assume everyone is armed and act accordingly.

And maybe a few more. But I think most states can probably fit into one of those three, if only roughly.

I just think the driving culture you are brought up with has a lot more to do with how one views driving culture in other places. For example, it still baffles me that in Boston driving on the right should is perfectly fine at least in my experience.

[hobsini2]

Texas driving culture

Hot take:

I like driving in Texas.  Texas driving is my kind of driving.  More people should drive like how they do in Texas.

(But not Dallas.)

I'm more of a fan of Dallas driving than Houston driving. They're fucking nuts in Houston. Oh and don't get me started on the crotch rocket organ donors.

[LilianaUwU]

I'll also go on with things Québec City tends to do: over here, a ped signal invariably means your crossing is protected. There are no conflicting car movements. This is good, actually, and Montréal should take lessons from us.

Do I detect a bit of animosity from Quebec City towards Montreal? Is it like having the Nordiques back fighting the Canadiens? 

Despite all of this, I've been a Canadiens fan since birth. My animosity comes from Montréal getting the NYC treatment of everything centering around them while the rest of the province, including the eponymous capital city, gets left behind.

[kphoger]

I'm more of a fan of Dallas driving than Houston driving. They're fucking nuts in Houston.

I've only driven through Houston on one trip, and I'm sure I didn't get an accurate snapshot of their driving.  The way south, for example, it was Friday afternoon rush hour at a steady 0.004 mph.

[hobsini2]

I'll also go on with things Québec City tends to do: over here, a ped signal invariably means your crossing is protected. There are no conflicting car movements. This is good, actually, and Montréal should take lessons from us.

Do I detect a bit of animosity from Quebec City towards Montreal? Is it like having the Nordiques back fighting the Canadiens? 

Despite all of this, I've been a Canadiens fan since birth. My animosity comes from Montréal getting the NYC treatment of everything centering around them while the rest of the province, including the eponymous capital city, gets left behind.

I'm not going to ask your age but were the Nordiques in Quebec still when you became a Canadiens fan?
As for your feelings on Montreal getting the NYC treatment, I can absolutely understand that feeling. Here in Illinois, a lot of downstaters hate anything north of I-80 and east of the Fox River because most of the state's money goes to the Chicago area. Of course, 3/4's of the state's population lives in an area about 1/8th of the state's area.

[pderocco]

Texas driving culture

Hot take:

I like driving in Texas.  Texas driving is my kind of driving.  More people should drive like how they do in Texas.

(But not Dallas.)

The problem with driving in Texas is that it takes a very long time to get out of Texas.

[hobsini2]

Texas driving culture

Hot take:

I like driving in Texas.  Texas driving is my kind of driving.  More people should drive like how they do in Texas.

(But not Dallas.)

The problem with driving in Texas is that it takes a very long time to get out of Texas.

Texas - So hot that people ask if the shit liquified yet?
Sorry Corey.

[kphoger]

The problem with driving in Texas is that it takes a very long time to get out of Texas.

That's a feature, not a bug.

or

Not with the high speed limits, it doesn't.

[english si]

I think that's mostly roadgeeks being frustrated with one freeway having several numbers and trying to find a non-roadgeek reason to justify it.

Make it I-42 all the way from I-71 in Ohio to Baltic Avenue.

FIFY (two different roads with that number isn't enough! It's the answer!)



Actually, to give a hot take of my own, it's really really common in British roadgeekery to say the M6 should take over the A14 and M11 as that's the mainline route (no TOTSOs) and ends up in London, rather than just end at the M1. My take is that it would be far better to, should one extend it to London, extend the 14 number to Birmingham and route the M6 to London via the M40 rather than a long way around.

TOTSOs are fine. Though stuff like IL/MO110 or E roads are quite useful to give one number between cities (either if that route TOTSOs, or if the one route changes numbers to fit a grid or whatever)

a steady 0.004 mph.

I would have said 'get out and walk it's 500 times faster' but we're talking Houston. You'd both faint from the heat/humidity and also wear about a pair of shoes before you left the sprawl.

[hobsini2]

I think that's mostly roadgeeks being frustrated with one freeway having several numbers and trying to find a non-roadgeek reason to justify it.

Make it I-42 all the way from I-71 in Ohio to Baltic Avenue.

FIFY (two different roads with that number isn't enough! It's the answer!)



Actually, to give a hot take of my own, it's really really common in British roadgeekery to say the M6 should take over the A14 and M11 as that's the mainline route (no TOTSOs) and ends up in London, rather than just end at the M1. My take is that it would be far better to, should one extend it to London, extend the 14 number to Birmingham and route the M6 to London via the M40 rather than a long way around.

TOTSOs are fine. Though stuff like IL/MO110 or E roads are quite useful to give one number between cities (either if that route TOTSOs, or if the one route changes numbers to fit a grid or whatever)

a steady 0.004 mph.

I would have said 'get out and walk it's 500 times faster' but we're talking Houston. You'd both faint from the heat/humidity and also wear about a pair of shoes before you left the sprawl.

TOTSO? Please define.

[TheCatalyst31]

This depends on the driving culture.

How about a driving culture hot take?

New York driving culture = assume everyone is smart and get angry when they're not.
Minnesota driving culture = assume everyone is dumb and be impressed when they're not.
Texas driving culture = assume everyone is armed and act accordingly.

And maybe a few more. But I think most states can probably fit into one of those three, if only roughly.

Chicago driving culture: assume everyone is a jackass, honk at them when they inevitably prove you right.

[Big John]

I think that's mostly roadgeeks being frustrated with one freeway having several numbers and trying to find a non-roadgeek reason to justify it.

Make it I-42 all the way from I-71 in Ohio to Baltic Avenue.

FIFY (two different roads with that number isn't enough! It's the answer!)



Actually, to give a hot take of my own, it's really really common in British roadgeekery to say the M6 should take over the A14 and M11 as that's the mainline route (no TOTSOs) and ends up in London, rather than just end at the M1. My take is that it would be far better to, should one extend it to London, extend the 14 number to Birmingham and route the M6 to London via the M40 rather than a long way around.

TOTSOs are fine. Though stuff like IL/MO110 or E roads are quite useful to give one number between cities (either if that route TOTSOs, or if the one route changes numbers to fit a grid or whatever)

a steady 0.004 mph.

I would have said 'get out and walk it's 500 times faster' but we're talking Houston. You'd both faint from the heat/humidity and also wear about a pair of shoes before you left the sprawl.

TOTSO? Please define.

Turn Off To Stay On. Usually needing to take an exit to remain on the same route number.

[Big John]

This depends on the driving culture.

How about a driving culture hot take?

New York driving culture = assume everyone is smart and get angry when they're not.
Minnesota driving culture = assume everyone is dumb and be impressed when they're not.
Texas driving culture = assume everyone is armed and act accordingly.

And maybe a few more. But I think most states can probably fit into one of those three, if only roughly.

Chicago driving culture: assume everyone is a jackass, honk at them when they inevitably prove you right.

Lord Carhorn.

[epzik8]

I-97 is fine as it is. Most people don't care about the significance of a highway number, just if it will help them get where they need to go.

[PColumbus73]

8" signals (including 12-8-8 variants) should still be more widely accepted. Case in point, Charleston, SC switched a couple of their intersections from 12-8-8s to all 12" heads. The new mast arms don't really fit in with the historic streets. King & Queen St Before & After . A separate issue being the mast arms they are using take up A LOT of sidewalk space in a heavily pedestrian area.

Bike signals would be better if they used a pedestrian signal housing because the Bike stencil would fit better using the rectangular pedestrian housing.

U-turn signals are mostly unnecessary and their stencils are hard to fit in the typical signal housing.

[SeriesE]

I-99 is fine

As is I-238.

Same. No problem with "I-238" but I'm more annoyed (very mildly of course ) at I-580 being used for what's really four separate freeways. (Yes I know the history of the route as I-5W/US-50)

[english si]

TOTSO? Please define.

Turn Off (the mainline) To Stay On (the numbered route.

[Rothman]

TOTSO? Please define.

Turn Off (the mainline) To Stay On (the numbered route.

A post 12 hours after someone explained it above.  Brings old Internet Explorer memes to mind. ;D

[formulanone]

Texas driving culture

Hot take:

I like driving in Texas.  Texas driving is my kind of driving.  More people should drive like how they do in Texas.

(But not Dallas.)

For the most part, driving in Texas doesn't seem as arrogant except for the left/express lanes of large-city freeways. And then, really no worse than any other big city, trending on the friendlier side when things get backed up.

Although my major annoyance is how fast many folks drive on the frontage roads in Texas cities, especially in the right lane. Sucks trying to get out of a parking lot during some hours because everyone else is doing 50-60 (which isn't a hot take, but I feel I'm the first to complain about it).

[1995hoo]

I just think the driving culture you are brought up with has a lot more to do with how one views driving culture in other places. For example, it still baffles me that in Boston driving on the right should is perfectly fine at least in my experience.

I'm not trying to pick on you, but I think you made a typo (maybe a missing word or two? Or maybe "should" was meant to be "shoulder"?) somewhere in the boldfaced and the result of it is that I'm not really sure what you're trying to say there.

[hotdogPi]

If it means "shoulder", it makes perfect sense. Certain roads allow driving on the shoulder weekdays 6-10 AM toward Boston and 3-7 PM away from Boston.

[SEWIGuy]

Chicago wasted a golden opportunity by not building I-494. That would've been very helpful to traffic bypassing downtown to the west.

Absolutely agree with I-494 Crosstown Expy. Would be really useful now with the current Kennedy construction going on.

It may have been better for traffic, but I don't understand how tearing up another neighborhood would have been good for the City of Chicago.