The Interstate Highway System: The Superhighways Connecting America
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- čas přidán 24. 04. 2024
- Its official name is the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways. To most Americans, it is known simply as the interstate, though at times there are a number of more colorful names applied to certain sections, particularly in crowded cities. Its construction began in 1956, with the passage of the Federal-Aid Highway Act by Congress. While most Americans believe it to have been completed in the 1960s and 1970s, the original system was not declared complete until 1992. Its rapid construction is one of many myths surrounding the interstate system, among them that it was inspired by Germany’s autobahn, much admired by Eisenhower in the aftermath of World War II.
Construction of the original interstate system cost American taxpayers $114 billion, equivalent to nearly $600 billion in 2023. Its construction led to the displacement of over 1 million people and led to protests over actions labeled urban renewal as part of the project. Today, nearly 25% of all automobile traffic in America is on interstate highways.
That it changed America is readily evident. The interstates greatly added to the creation of suburbs and suburban sprawl. The system led to the creation and rapid expansion of the fast-food industry, the motel industry, shopping malls and strip malls, and bedroom communities far removed from the urban core of cities. At the same time, it contributed to the decay of those urban cores, as city populations fled to the suburbs, where they could buy a house with a yard, send their children to newly built schools, and live the late 20th century ideal of the American Dream.
The interstates also helped enable the expansion of the over-the-road trucking industry, contributing to the decay of American railroads. The system is so well signed that even those with no concept of geography can leave New York and drive to Los Angeles simply by following the road signs. It is also in trouble in many places, with bridges and sections of highway listed as functionally obsolete. Potholes and decaying road surfaces challenge drivers and in the nation’s major cities, traffic often slows to a time eating crawl.
It was a major engineering achievement, its construction was a joint venture between states and the federal government, and it remains a vital component of both military and civil defense plans. The story of the interstate highway system is part of the legacy of 20th century America. Here it is.
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I do like the longer videos though, thank you!
There are specialized military trailers able to haul up to 70 tons. Agree that roads are a problem. I thought the 1 mile straights were true for emergency landings. My grandfather's F-86D malfunctioned in a populated area, and there wasn't time to close the highway, so he crash-landed in a field.
This host has more hair than I’m used to
And
😆
Apparently, long-running sponsor Keeps has upgraded to Makes
...and less beard...
This is so rude.. like you could've commented anything
I had a boss in the late 1980s who was about 40. He had grown up in Philadelphia in the 1960s, and when I-95 was being built nearby, he and a school chum would put the family's picnic cooler into their wagon, and go to the grocery store to get ice, bottles of soda, chips, and their moms had made them a couple of dozen sandwiches (the boys paid for all of this with accumulated allowance and money from mowing lawns).
The would pull the wagon to the construction site, and the workers would gratefully buy the food, and were especially grateful for the cold soda on hot days. The boys made money hand over fist until the construction had moved too far away for it to be practical to pull a loaded wagon. It was the most American story I'd ever heard.
All thanks to Uncle Sam.
There was a creek that ran through the neighborhood I grew up in. They sewerized it in the 1950s and built 95 over the old creek route. I live in Philly. I love seeing how everything looked before the highway.
It lives on. I was on the Cross Bronx about a month ago and people were selling drinks, fruit and some shit I had no idea what it was. Sit on 80 approaching the GW on a Sunday afternoon and you’ll see plenty of people selling food.
And today that would be highly illegal due to federal, state, and local sanitary codes, not to mention "trespassing" on the site of "critical infrastructure" being built.
The workers now have to bring their own lunch.
I am 45 years old and I grew up and learned how to drive using maps I would be totally fine in a world without cell phones
47 here....same. Infact, I always have a complete map book of the US in my cars emergency kit. Just in case.😉
@@Matt.Thompson.1976 that's a great idea!
@@davidg8943 Thanks.
I'm 39 and same. Though I used less literal maps and more like MapQuest printoffs
Also 45 and drove from Memphis to Charleston, SC in my 20s using printouts from map quest amd remember thinking how crazy that technology was.
If you drive US-93 between Phoenix and Las Vegas, you will appreciate the Interstate Highway System and its standards, especially when it comes to the small detail of staying alive.
I-11 cannot possible be done soon enough, the 93 is a terrible experience.
@@JC-fz2pv Hmm. On StreetView it doesn't look that bad, though it's clearly not an interstate. There are two-lane sections, and it isn't all limited-access; but the level of traffic *looks* ok for the size of the road on the day the StreetView car was there. The scenery is awfully barren, but it's west of the Mississippi, so that's as may be. The width of the shoulder does leave something to be desired. What am I missing by only seeing pictures and not actually driving it?
@@jonadabtheunsightlyThe fact that it is the most dangerous road in America.
I haven't been on US-93 for a while, but I remember it being a harrowing experience.. mostly because people drive too fast and half of them are drunk or overtired because they're on their way back from Vegas.
@@SamIAm10262 Ah, I wasn't taking into account that all the drivers on the road are the sorts of people who go to Las Vegas on purpose. That makes sense now.
I am 90 years old and did a lot of driving before the interstate highways. Take my word for it, you wouldn’t like driving without the interstates.
Please expand on this...we want to hear your stories and experience!
I prefer the backroads. Unfortunately, the Interstae has replaced a lot of back roads. Take Route 66 thru Missouri for example.
Ever drive in Carroll County Illinois? The nearest interstate highway is I-88 which runs several miles south of the county.
If we had to do this again...I don't think that the interstate highways would be run thru cities themselves...It would connect them only.
For a time that was the preferred scheme for building interstates. For example, look at how the Kansas Turnpike goes _past_ Wichita rather than through its core, or how I-90 in upstate New York passes by the cities it connects. Unfortunately, as time went on, planners caved to demands for spur or loop highways (usually signed as 3-digit interstates) that led from those bypasses into the cities themselves.
Remember the old AAA TripTik? As a kid in the 70s, I always loved those!
I learned to read a map with those. Whenever possible, I avoid the high speed multi lane nightmare of those freeways, especially in cities. Relax, the state highways will get you wherever you want to go without the stress and with much better scenery.
Presidio is 4 syllables, not 3. Pre Sid Ē O.
The skills I learned years ago have not deserted me, so if all cell phones suddenly stopped working I would do what I learned how to do many years ago: use a map. I cope with power outages (OMG no internet!!!) in similar fashion by using a battery-operated lamp and reading a book.
I still use paper maps and an atlas when I go on long road trips. Part of the fun is taking non interstate roads if your have the time.
Rand McNally is always by my side when I am on a road trip.
i grew up traveling across the US during the summers, i was the navigator and not in the "oh you're just a kid heres something to distract you" kind of way... well some of it was definately that but if i screwed up then it screwed the trip up. i got to the point where i could estimate the time of arrivial within minutes of pulling into the driveway or whatever destination.
anyway i'd be a little rusty but i think within 15-30 minutes i could shake all that rust off.
The first time I went through Breezewood was back in 1996. I was on my way to Fort Eustis. I remember buying fireworks there, specifically, a chicken that would lay fiery eggs. Two years later, I became a truck driver, and have since gone through Breezewood lots of times. The most memorable time was back in 2004, stopping at what was then a Petro Travel Center, and watching the Cicadas buzzing around. It was quite an experience, since I grew up in California, and had never seen anything like that before.
As a trucker who drives I-44 everyday. I approve of this video.
Of course you do. Let us all pay for your roads. Your diesel tax doesn’t come close to paying for the damage you cause to the roads. Besides the stress that comes from all that truck traffic. “If you got it, a truck brought it.” No thanks, I’ll do without. I can even get my food from my garden or the local farmers market, brought there by a pickup truck and the county road.
Fun fact, Phoenix Arizona has the youngest highway system and that includes the I-17 and I-10. The interstate system in Arizona were built from the rural areas in.
This is very interesting. I gratefully accept correction of certain inaccuracies in my beliefs. A few years ago I was teaching international students. I always tried to find interesting ways to engage them in otherwise dry topics. One day a few of them complained that it was bizarre that in the US a car was a necessity, while others were ecstatic about the ease of renting a car and the wonderful Interstates. I asked the good-natured quarreling students if they knew that the Interstate was a weapon, the weapon that killed the USSR. That got an immediate silence followed by a slew of shocked questions. I told them to compare the US economic stats before and after the opening of the highways and compare the US and USSR stats. That was very effective in getting them to do the homework, and the follow up discussion was equally interesting and productive.
I spent 8 years in the military in the mid 80s and early 90s. I was also one of the few women who could read a map BEFORE I entered service. I’m not sure anyone, man or woman, below the age of 35 would be able to today. And like someone else commented, I enjoy actual books and reading by lamp or candlelight. Campfires, burgers and s’mores. Sounding pretty good right about now
I have used literal physical maps to navigate. I remember there used to be map vending machines run by AAA, and your AAA card would get it to dispense one to you for free. I used to carry maps in the pocket of my car door "just in case." When I was a kid we had that spiral-bound Rand McNally Road Atlas in the car that covered most of the state.
I still keep a Rand McNally in the car even though I use a dedicated GPS.
The whole ass interstate costs less than 1 year of military spending.
That just means we spend way too much on the military
That just means we spend way too much on the military
That was my reaction to. For less then the Obama stimulus we could have paid for the entire system. Pretty depressing since we have basically nothing to show from that giant expense
What doesn't ?
Our modern Autobahn here in Germany is designed so that Military Airplanes can start and land on it. Also Tunnels are so build that they can be a hangar for fighter airplanes.
And we often do not have a speed Limit.
Actually, our interstates are built with planes in mind as well.
That usage for military jets was removed. Back in time, the middle strip separating the two directions of the Autobahn had stretches with blue or gray vertical poles. A special machine could rapidly lay down those poles, making the Autobahn a landing/departing runway. Those are now all gone.
In the US, planes land on the highways all the time. They aren't supposed to, and the roads aren't designed for it, but they do it anyway. They can't help it.
I learned in the 80’s how to use a map and still keep one in my vehicle. I also live in Idaho.
I’ve been there… you need one.
That can be dangerous. I was using a map about 5 years old and was late for a doctor's appointment because I-295 had had a new interchange put in and it wasn't on the map that I was using. I had checked but the new configuration wasn't visible on line either. Afterwards, I rechecked on line and found that it was visible at increased magnification. I also discovered that my mapping program no longer worked, probably killed by the Google on line map competition.
I confused a cashier in the backroads of Colorado when I asked for a map, a park ranger had told me of another scenic route I didn’t know and had no service to look it up. Picked up a map and quickly found the pass and mapped out a route. Chick looked confused as if she didn’t know younger people could do that.
I am 61yo, and the block next to my home was taken by the government and destroyed for 1-10/610 in New Orleans in the 1970s. As a child, it was fun as we got to play on an interstate being built, but the neighborhood was never the same.
I had an uncle who had his farm split down the middle in 1951 by the construction of the New York State Thruway. Besides the loss of at least 50 acres of land, he had to spend A LOT of Time by tractor just to get to the other half of his farm on the other side of the highway, traveling several miles to the nearest bridge to cross over. Imagine having to do that multiple times each day when hauling wagon loads back and forth.
I suppose he could have sold the now distant lands and acquired new land closer to his farm, but I don't believe he ever did that. I also don't believe he EVER traveled on the NYS Thruway. It left him with a hatred of the highway for over 50 years.
I remember this happening in New Orleans, totally ruined some neighborhoods and block parties.
As a youngster on family trips, I loved whenever I got the opportunity to sit up front with my dad and be his "navigator". Paper map spread out, letting him know where we were and what was coming up next. As an adult, I realize that my dad already knew where he was going but as a kid, I loved it and learned very well how to find my way around without technology. I eventually chose to major in Geography in college and even with all the technology we have today, I still love using paper maps on trips, except now I like to make my own ahead of time.
Awesome video, I would love to see a video on the Hume Highway that spans the East coast of Australia. It's one of the main road transport highways in Australia, and the history on just that is fascinating, its something people should know about.
I remember when the speed limit went to 55, and yes, I hated it. I have never personally driven on a road with the speed limit over 75, but I have certainly drive higher. I also remember a time when I H 35 in Texas wasn't complete - yet, but it was before I could drive. My father had words about those places on 35, and they were not kind.
Cars back then were so limited. I had a 1970 Volvo with bias ply tires and dual carbs. It was good day if it pulled 20 mpg. 55 mph felt decently quick for that old heap. Nowadays I love cruising at 85 mph in my Model 3 on autopilot. The Volvo felt like it was shaking itself apart floating off the road if you pushed it that fast.
@@skyemalcolm I took a 1966 (or 68) Ford Falcon to college in 1971. I got caught behind an army convoy for over 15 miles. I finally got past them on the interstate and cranked that straight 6 up to 90!
Mistakes were made building the interstate system but the interstate is not a mistake itself.
The Griswalds station wagon can be seen during the intro of Married with Children. Watch closely. You're welcome.
When I was a kid, Dad bought the annual book of road maps for our home city. The previous year's book was in the back so my brother and I could follow along where we were going.
Sometimes, when we weren't in a hurry to go someplace, my brother or I could direct him how to go to our destination. He had the grace to follow our directions no matter where we ended up!
On long trips, when we were going outside our home city, we'd have a copy of the maps for our entire trip before we left. Mum cooked enough food for us to get from home to wherever. (Cold quiche is actually really nice.)
Mum and Dad planned out how we would get to our destination. Then my brother and I would follow along.
Not only can I travel just fine without GPS, I can fold a road map.
No, I do not feel lost without a GPS. Give me a good atlas, DeLormes are excellent.
When I moved from IN to CA, I drove cross country, and when I went through southeastern Utah and Northeastern Arizona , I went through the Native reservations, and my phone was useless. Thankfully I had a paper atlas with me and was able to use it well to get me through the dead zones.
The non-compliant section Breezewood, that is discussed at 17:55, is horrendous. I go out of my way to avoid this horrible "town" that forces you to slow down and stop at lights. Damn you, Breezewood, for forcing me to detour so far out of my way so that I can avoid you.
I-95, the main artery of the east coast, wasn’t officially finished until 2018.
You got gray in your beard you're telling me you never sat with a Rand McNally to plan trip with your old man
Honestly the GPS screws up so bad sometimes I’m tempted to get an old fashioned road atlas and put it in the car. It’s also nice to have that big picture that it’s hard to see on a phone.
Wow US fuel taxes are low. In my country the fuel tax portion is over 50%
I also have to add that this video is somewhat misleading in that in 1953 when Truman made his trip, the US Highway system had been in place since 1926-27 and was fairly well-marked although not always consistently so. So while a trip might have taken a bit more planning in terms of food, fuel and lodging, it was a far cry from conditions back in the 1920's when there was no unified national highway system, only a network of roads marked and maintained by private organizations (Dixie Highway and its offshoots, Lincoln Highway, Yellowstone Trail, and so forth).
This video was fantastic. That or my travel bug is a lot worse than I thought.
Either way, thank you. (Especially for talking smack about Breezewood, lol).
Speaking of... if you haven't already, a video on the abandoned PA Turnpike sections (that involves Breezewood)?
I mean, we're open to ideas. I want to get some more writers on board who actually do a lot of traveling.
I'd return to printing off maps and instructions if all cell phones stopped working. GPS is mostly convenient for getting around unexpected detours.
17:45- There are multiple actually. On top of I-70 in Breezewood, PA. I-78 in just outside of NYC as several at grade crossings before entering into the Holland Tunnel. Another example is I-180 in Cheyenne, WY were the highway has an at grade crossing with I-80's exit on entrance ramps, and ends at an at grade crossing in downtown.
What a lot of people don't know is that our interstate highway system could be a lot better than it is. When the project was originally instituted the road surface itself was bituminous which for the lay person means concrete. From 1956 through the mid 1980s interstate 83 was paved with concrete and in the mid 1980s policy switched over to using mecadum which is black top. Blacktop is not as structurally sound as concrete. Blacktop has a lifespan of about 5 years whereas concrete has a lifespan of between 25 to 60 years. The system is made up of ways to keep people employed not necessarily driving on the road. Millions of dollars could be saved if they would use better quality material but that won't happen because there are tons of government contracts out there.
The high quality of the interstates has also inspired the upgrading of a number of other highways, some almost to the point where they could be mistaken for interstates. This is fairly common in urban areas but also happens across the countryside in sections where the interstates are either far enough apart that people don't want to drive that far to get to a good road, or carry such heavy traffic that additional roads are needed to lift some of the burden. One of the better examples of this is US-30 (formerly known as the Lincoln highway, before the numbers were introduced), which, in some areas, particularly between the Appalachian mountains and Chicago, is actually of higher quality and carries more long-distance traffic than many sections of interstate.
As an American, I was appalled by the quality of the Trans-Canadian highway between Sault Ste. Marie and Espanola. I know that's a rural area, but this is *the* road you have to take if you want to drive between eastern and western Canada, without detouring south through the States. The upshot of this is, that if you want to drive from e.g. Toronto to Edmonton, the best route goes through no fewer than six US states. I am *embarrassed* on behalf of our northern neighbors.
I have a book on the history of 30. Really interesting read.. how the routes developed to bring them closer to certain towns than others and then try to make it cohesive. Only place I’ve seen 30 designated is in eastern PA.
I remember the interstates being built. Two canyons in Utah were closed for significant amounts of time for blasting to widen and straighten them. Many years later I drove through the last intersection with a traffic signal on I 90 in Idaho.
I think the flaw in the Interstate system, is the put cars and 18 wheelers on the same roads. It would have cost more, but the maintenance on the car side would be a lot less, and a lot safer, if 18 wheelers had their own lanes outside of cities. I used to run a bus tour company, and I would see the damage a heavy bus makes if it goes over a curb, versus a passenger car.
Yes, breezewood is a strange oddity
I once traveled from Colorado to West Virginia to visit friends, all by paper maps and some printed out directions from mapquest. I told them my precise time of arrival and managed to hit it within a half hour.
Mostly I just like current GPS navigation to help me avoid traffic jams.
I basically just figure out where my destination is and go in that direction until I see a great lake. Michigan is easy to drive that way
I drive tractor trailer and using a map is 2nd nature to me. GPS and Gmaps is a nice tool, unfortunately too many people would be screwed if it all went down.
The Interstate system helped many thousands of towns and villages to have the economic development that they otherwise would never have had. It also made them feel connected, instead of isolated.
Thanks.
If cellphones stopped working I’d be extremely annoyed but I’d survive. If GPS stopped working I’d be totally fine.
If cell phones stopped working, I would not be posting this.
My first US road trip was done with the vast road atlas book from Rand McNally... Yeah, I am that old.
Robert Moses did some pre-Interstate freeways before Eisenhower's plan. This is why we call them still by their names. "The Van Wyck". He began the parkway system to prevent poorer people (especially people of color) from taking buses to use them to go to the places the automobile owners wanted to get to. Bridges are built deliberately so low that no bus or truck can pass.
When asked about the origins of Eisenhower's idea, I would say it's a blend of Germany's autobahns, known for their high-speed unrestricted travel, and NY's freeways, which were already in place and served as a model for the US interstate system.
I never use a GPS. I still carry paper maps and a compass. My tour across The Wild Wild West of America in 2021 was ALL done with paper maps. It's done on purpose to avoid being reliant on computers and forcing my mind to think.
Some of my best trips is getting lost.
I wouldn’t miss a beat if I had to go back to roadmaps. Used to use all the time grew up on them . Use them at work for decades.
I’m an Eagle Scout, Army Vet and truck driver. I can navigate with a map like nobody’s business but I’d be mad af if my GPS didn’t work 🤣
I-78 in NJ just before NYC is also non compliant with traffic lights for 4 blocks in Jersey City.
Considering the fact that I grew up in a time before GPS and was a boy scout I'd say my land nav with a physical paper map is pretty good
3:10 - Chapter 1 - Before the interstate
7:45 - Chapter 2 - Developing the interstate system
12:35 - Chapter 3 - Opposition to the interstates
14:45 - Chapter 4 - The role of defense
17:35 - Chapter 5 - There is a non continuous interstate
18:50 - Chapter 6 - Sppeds on the interstate highway system
22:40 - Chapter 7 - The impact of the interstate
25:50 - Conclusion
Another huge problem area is that I-81 and I-76 do not provide any direct access to one another. Traffic is forced to get off the freeway environment and sit at traffic lights, waiting an eternity to go just a mile or two to get back onto the interstate. People who actually want this to continue (for-profit corporate interests) should be harshly punished and shamed for their selfishness and greed. They should make their money in a way that does not force the public into inconvenience and wasting fuel.
The Interstate was basically a reaction to Railroad Monopolies, and frustration by Eisenhower over how difficult it was to move troops around without them.
Our interstate system can support military vehicles. Now yes tracked vehicles will tear ANY road up over time, especially if they don't have their rubber track pads installed. Bridges with weight limitations will have signs depicting this to caution the crossing of the bridge with excessive weight mi I tissue vehicles. We do consider the interstates as back up air straps for military aircraft.
Honestly the interstate system has been a huge boon to the US economy allowing it to be more de centralized than rail would require.
I'd be fine with maps, but I was already an adult well before the introduction of smart phones & I had a lot of experience using maps.
I am an environmentalist because it serves my best interests, and I'm also against eminent domain when it goes against the wishes of landowners, but I also believe the interstate highway system was the best thing that had been accomplished by the government in the 20th century.
Losing cell service wouldn’t inconvenience me at all. When I travel, I just wait for the announcement to tell me it’s my station, because I take the train.
Okay so to answer the question about using maps, I have an unfair advantage because of multiple reasons. Reason #1 I'm a huge nerd and maps make my brain happy. #2 When I was getting my CDL, the map and planning was above all else. Trip plan, trip plan, trip plan. This was 2013 C.R. England. I shiver in my skin thinking about where the teaching is today.
And the interstate system is amazing. We would never been able to travel to see family when I was a kid without it. Too far.
We took many vacations when I was a kid and they were always done with a map. Even after the advent of smartphones, I was still printing maps off Mapquest or Google Maps until six or seven years ago. Generally speaking if you know what time it is, where the sun is, and what general direction your destination is, you can make it there without a map. I've had to do that a couple times when I made a wrong turn, rather than do the "responsible" thing and stop and look at the map. More adventure to be had that way.
I love it, great form of travel
In the mid 50's my father handed me a map & told "here is where we are & here is where we are going. I want you to be my navigator" what a way to learn about maps & road signs. Even today friends call me JoePS 😅
Just half way through but if I'm not mistaken, DDE undertook an expedition as Colonel (?) before WWII ( maybe in the early 30s)to assess the condition of the roads across this great nation of ours and found those conditions appalling. That in addition to observing the Autobahn is what convinced him to champion the Interstate Highway System. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Small world... at 20:14 it shows the SR 523 interchange on I-5. Just easterly of I-5 from here, used to be SR 513 years ago along 5th Avenue NE.
I don't use the GPS directions I just use the map to navigate because number 1 I hate the disruption of 3 or more prompts to make a turn. Number 2 I learned how to navigate on a map as a child. I never grew out it. Plus it's nice to see the layout of a town so you have somewhat of an idea where you are in your head.
18:10 We call that the "oasis" because of the restaurants and truck stops there.
I was a truck driver in a transport battalion in the German Bundeswehr. Back then I learned to read maps and I still know roughly the location, numbers, and number-system of the German motorways. No one can take away what you have in your head.
Thomas Guide. Learned to use it in the 80s so I can survive the Armageddon.
I wouldn’t have a problem navigating without a GPS, or Cellular Phone. I’m 75 years old, and we traveled using maps, and planning our route, before there were navigation aids.
I’m from northern Virginia and have you literally ever been to Maryland???? It’s much much worse I promise. I fear for my life every time I go to Maryland
The first time I went into Maryland was for a job interview in like, 2012 or 2013, and the first thing I saw after crossing into the state was a pickup truck, literally on fire, flames licking high into the air from the engine, and the driver--not bothering to pull over onto the shoulder--actually speeding up to get around other drivers. Still, it's somewhat debatable which is worse, as NOVA drivers have certainly gotten a lot worse than when I first moved out here.
@@geographicstravel Wow, that's a mental story. Maryland, huh, who knew?
I’d rather take my chances in MD than in Northern VA to be honest with you. Depends on where honestly.. when I think Northern VA I think Tyson’s/Alexandria/Dulles and that 95 shot past Quantico. Out by the Blue Ridge Parkway.. beautiful.
I-95 at rush hour from south of Richmond to North of Baltimore, from south of Philadelphia to Bridgeport, and from Providence to Boston was a complete traffic jam. Before holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving, NYC to Boston was bumper to bumper, stop and go the whole way, trains were standing room only, and planes were booked solid. Since the pandemic, the Boston-Providence rush hour traffic jam has a little more slow to a crawl than full stop, but it's still bad. On a particularly bad day I noticed that the car ahead of me had Wyoming plates and was wondering if being in a traffic jam with more people than your state's entire population was having a psychological effect.
Without a cell phone, i can do pretty well navigating. I have the militarily training advantage, and a geographical advantage as well. I know which way is north during a reasonably sunny day just from the time. At night, the northern hemisphere gives me the north star. Both are contingent on clear skies, but that hurdle can be overcome with a compass. Once i know which way is North, i know East and West. Since i live 3 blocks from the Atlantic Ocean, and my travel rarely takes me outside the Eastern Seaboard, if I'm ever lost, i know keep going East until you hit the Ocean or US Highway 1, or keep going West until i hit Interstate 95. After that, its just a matter of knowing if my destination is North or South of me. If home is the destination, I'll know it just from knowing what state I'm in, which is pretty easy to figure out.
At seventy eight years of age I could and have used maps to travel from the west in New Mexico to the east coast in South Carolina. However these days most maps are out of date due to new construction.
Most maps don’t show small farm and market roads and new state highways. Plan ahead but expect delays in some areas.
Great! Much information I didn't know, and I'm a minor buff on infrastructure. Agree tough driving in northeast, I live near I-90 in Western MA. Wish we could promote more public transport
Lucious Clay did not command the Berlin Airlift. He commander of US forces in Berlin and advocated for the US to do whatever was necessary to stay in Berlin. But the airlift was commanded by William Tunner.
This channel is awesome for homeschooling💕🇺🇸
Fascinating video Geographics. Thanks for sharing.
600B honestly doesn’t seam that bad.
Well, I used a road map and / or directions given from the 60s until about 2005, so I have far more years with maps than navigation.
I used paper till 2005, so when the power went off at the Sheriff's Office, I had to help deputies write reports when our office was without power for 8 hours or so.
I had to direct traffic as well as many deputies didn't have the training and skills to do it.
Society is way too dependent on the e.system.
I still read out of boos and hand write letters.
I do use navigation and email, fax, text, and browse the net.
But I really wish that children in school from 1st grade to college would have to learn both systems
Because when the system has even a few hours of outage, people start to panic.
I could be dropped off in the woods with good knives and make it.
But as old folks are a dying breed of the know-how 🤔
So we are getting fewer and fewer and not to many more years yall won't have us to depend upon.
Learn how to live without power or electricity and no internet and navigation.
I do believe that in the next 2 to 8 years, we will experience more and more outages, and some may last weeks or permanently.
If you can't do it without such, i believe that about 75% of Americans will suffer and be dead between 10 to 21 days.
Your maps are missing Corridor X I-22 that connects Birmingham to Memphis.
It sure would have come in handy from 1967-73. I was originally from B'ham and we lived in Memphis. My grandparents lived between B'ham and Leeds and we were bouncing back and forth about once a month for those six years. 😂
When I turned 16 in 1996 and I my driver's license, maps were a necessity if travelling more than a few hundred miles on unfamiliar roads, so I'd easily be able to forgo GPS and navigate like back in the day. In fact, summer of 1997, I took a road trip of more than 3000 miles round trip, alone. I drove from Northern Minnesota to southwestern Oklahoma and back, entirely on a solo mission. Kinda dumb for a kid not yet 17, but I was already fully grown and even bearded by that point so safety wasn't a concern, and I wasn't short on funds since I'd had about $600 saved up to make that trip (understand, gas was about $1.05 per gallon back then and I still had about a hundred bucks left in my pocket when I got back nine days after my journey began. While little of the route on the way south was on interstates, instead choosing to take a more circuitous and scenic route, the way back was done mostly on I-35 and took a fraction of the time that I'd spent meandering my way through Iowa and Nebraska. It was a wonderful experience and the lessons I learned that week have benefitted me for the past 27 years and will continue to do so for years to come.
I miss simon. But i like you. Good video
I’ve watched this over four days so far, and I still haven’t finished it.
I'm perfectly fine navigating on just a map. So long as it's been updated within the last few years, I can adjust. My kids, however, would be challenged.
I still use a road atlas. Until cellphones have 18" wide screens, I'll continue to use maps.
Phenomenal review! What a grand (but flawed) experiment! When summarized in a 25-minute video, the disaster of car dependency becomes pretty obvious.
One fixed degree of freedom with rail means no accordion effect, for instance. Rail was always more rational and efficient from an engineering perspective too. Steel-on-steel is far more efficient than rubber-on-pavement (far less rolling resistance).
But we can bring back most of the old freight rail (which used to bring food from the country into cities); we can bring back the old streetcar systems; we can practice infill development and eliminate mandatory car parking minimums for buildings that don't require them; and we can convert many of the service highways (especially the ones that don't pay for themselves) to bike paths, environmental corridors, and green spaces.
This would be another gigantic project, but it would be one that lasts more than 100 years, unlike the interstate which will always facilitate and induce demand, leading to infinite traffic jams...EVs or no EVs, individually operated vehicles were never the answer to the throughput problem.
I am 82 years old and consider the interstate system as one our finest infrastructure systems.
Hawaii is another oddball as interstates go. They also have lower speed limits. Some as low as 50 MPH.
How does Hawaii have interstate highways? Is there a highway between Honolulu and Los Angeles? Gurgle gurgle,gurgle!
Interstate Highway 90 between Wisconsin State line and Chicago seems to be always under construction.
The interstate highway system enables commerce to develop efficiently, and as a result it made the USA a world superpower.
Try driving across America using only the older highway system, and you’ll encounter thousands of intersections, stop lights and delays.
Who is this man? 😂 all jokes aside, great video
I navigated many of the nations highways and cities using maps for the first 50 years of my life. My skills may be rusty but I believe I can navigate just about anywhere without gps.
I still use a paper map when I road trip. Yeah I'll use the phone on car guy navigation, but you just can't see an overview of the drive on a screen as details disappear as you zoom out.
Some of the confusion over using Interstates as military runways may be due to the fact that the Germans did just that in WWII with the Autobahn.
Hey eric! Huge fan of your work! Please do agincourt🎉🎉🎉🎉
I live in Long Beach, CA... I have to drive 10+ mi over the speed limit just to get around the Tesla's and a-holes.