Benefits of Rest Stopsįirst of all, providing rest stops is a safety and health issue. These roadside parks or safety rest areas grew in popularity due to the many benefits they provide, and they quickly spread across the country. With the construction of the highway system, they added about 85 new rest stop areas along the route, which provided drivers with a beautiful, pleasant area to take a break in. The state of Texas was one of the pioneers of rest stop areas, beginning a “roadside park program” in the 30s. Due to this, federal regulations included safety rest areas (SRAs) along the highway, with a prohibition on commercial facilities in these areas. At the time, it was a new experience for many people, most hadn’t driven as fast for as long, and there were some serious safety concerns. Many studies showed the effectiveness of short breaks in reducing driver fatigue and accidents on highways. Along with those considerations was the issue of what drivers would do when they needed a break. Some of these include no traffic lights, a central divider, and a shoulder lane to pull off onto in case of breakdowns. Of course, these highways had to be built to certain standards which must still be met today. However, the post-war period with a lot of young men needing work and a booming economy proved to be the perfect time to get the project started. While construction didn’t begin until the 50s, plans for a superhighway date back to the 20s and 30s, with FDR seriously considering a proposal and commissioning maps of proposed routes. Eisenhower to realize that something must be done, and the interstate highway system was born.Įisenhower described the roads across America before the highways as a “succession of dust, rust, pits, and holes.” While today hopping on the freeway is something we do every day without thinking, in reality, they are a major landmark construction project that wasn’t officially completed until the 90s, with a cost of over 500 billion dollars when adjusted for inflation. Logistics issues in the case of a hypothetical invasion during World War II caused president Dwight D. Roads were a patchwork of private roads, dirt roads, roads full of holes, and dead ends to nowhere. While many people today take the interstate highway system for granted, before it there was no easy way to travel large distances across the country. America’s Interstate: A Marvel of Construction However, while driving on these vast stretches of highway, it’s important to make sure you take adequate breaks to eat, stretch your legs, or anything else, which is why interstate rest stops are such an important part of the overall highway system. Since the nearly 50,000 miles of interstate highway in this country were completed, millions of people every year use these roads to get to their vacation spots, workplaces, or any other destination. Road trips and long travels are one of the most uniquely American activities, due to the vast geographical size of the country.
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