Every time to travel to a new state, whether or not you're RVing, you might look at your surroundings and think, "Hey, that's an interesting idea!" or "Why would they do such a thing?!" Well, here's some of the things we've found on the road that were a bit interesting, at least at the time we went there.
You look down at the road, and the pavement abruptly changes without any signs of new construction. That's right, you've crossed a state line. Sometimes, even the markings are drastically different. Take crossing the border between Missouri and Arkansas. The solid yellow lines in Missouri are so close together, you could probably barely fit a quarter in between. Once Arkansas hits, the lines end up quite a bit wider with the rumble strip in between, so you don't feel like you're going to clip someone driving right by you. One other blatantly obvious state line difference is in California, and whether or not you have to visit their "agricultural checkpoint" (it's not on every road, but they're quite serious about people importing fruits, vegetables, and ferrets), you begin to see the "Call Box" every now and again. It may seem archaic in the cell phone area, but the state is quite mountainous, so you never know when service will drop.
The state line change isn't the only thing; some states will have quirks of their own. Consider Texas, where along just about every interstate highway, you have one or two frontage roads. When the system was developed, these roads became a sort of compromise between the "express" needs of the highway, but locals not wanting to lose their businesses. This gave rise to the "Texas Diamond" interchange in populated areas, where the driver goes from "express" to "frontage" before getting to the major intersection with dedicated U-turn lanes. In speaking of "highways", Vermont has something quite interesting in their "super-two" highways. A "super-two" is a two-lane limited access highway commonly found in the Northeast with limited space, and usually does not permit passing, similar to a wider highway. However, Vermont uses the "super-two" as a workaround to speed limits enacted as a response to the National Maximum Speed Law from the 70's (since repealed in 1995), so they allow passing as with any other state's typical two-lane rural roads.
Traffic statutes and related patterns also have some interesting quirks as well. Florida's traffic signals are almost exclusively horizontal, as opposed to the vertical ones you find in other parts of the country. In Southern Missouri, they very much enjoy using right-turn yield ramps at intersections to limit stops that would otherwise use emissions. In speaking of right turns, although there was a nationwide push to allow right turns on a red signal after a full stop, New York City remains the only place in the country where turns on red are forbidden by statute. Be careful about left-on-red with those one way streets, as there are a few states that still don't permit it. Enjoy the higher speed limits one state beyond west of the Mississippi and east of the ocean, but remember they're still lower elsewhere. And although you should obey the traffic laws of all states, be especially prudent in Virginia, as radar detectors are illegal, fines are insanely high (reckless driving misdemeanor for 10-over on the interstate), and some jurisdictions don't let you plea by mail.
So while you Follow your Internal Compass, take some time to marvel at the interesting quirks of the road networks in each state you pass.
Copyright 2021-24 Freedom Rolling.
Logo Image Courtesy Clipartmax.com
United States Image Courtesy Simple Maps