10 Congested highways to make you lose your mind tonight

by Tom Johansmeyer on

We know that today and tomorrow, traffic is going to be brutal. With 42 million people traveling for the holiday – and 94 percent of them going by car – it’s inevitable that someone’s going to wind up frustrated. Throw in some nasty weather and highway construction, not to mention a handful of screaming kids, and you have a formula for misery.

Can it get any worse? The Weather Channel thinks so. Not every holiday driving experience is equally miserable: in fact, there are 10 spots where you’re extra likely to lose your mind. So, let’s take a peek at the 10 most congested roads in the country, according to The Weather Channel:


1. New York City to Washington, DC: I-95
This is going to suck. You have a lot of people in New York City and a lot in Washington, DC. There are also a lot in between … and so many of them will be getting behind the wheel. To make matters worse, The Weather Channel notes, “Bad weather is not uncommon along this corridor during Thanksgiving week.” Not enough abuse for you? The company adds, “Some experts estimate that this 225-mile trek is the slowest stretch of highway nationwide during the holiday season.”

2. Boston: Westbound Massachusetts Turnpike from Downtown Boston to I-84
At first glance, I wondered why the New York-to-DC stretch didn’t include Boston. I grew up there and spent many a Thanksgiving Eve sitting in the back seat not moving on the Mass Pike en route to I-84. It’s awful, and The Weather Channel’s comment, “it has been known to come to a virtual standstill,” is not an exaggeration.

3. Chicago: Borman Expressway I-80/I-94, the Tri-State Tollway
The Weather Channel calls this “the trifecta of traffic tie-ups,” because three roads with heavy traffic intersect. The big rigs that use these highways make it even worse. Good luck if this is your route for Thanksgiving.

4. New York City: Throgs Neck Bridge, Whitestone Bridge
Yeah, the Big Apple makes a second appearance on this list. There’s a reason why I’m staying put on the Upper West Side this year. If you’re looking to get from the city out to Long Island or up to Connecticut, don’t be fooled by this “key choke point,” as The Weather Channel describes it: built to “help relieve traffic on the adjacent Whitestone Bridge,” the Throgs Neck has now become a nightmare in its own right.

5. San Francisco: Eastbound I-80 to Sacramento and Tahoe
Are you among the masses dashing out of San Fancisco for Thanksgiving? If you’re looking to get an early feel for winter … well, you’ll quickly realize you weren’t the only person with this idea.

6. Atlanta: I-285 between I-75 and I-85 … in Both Directions
Six major interstates cut through Atlanta, and I-285 is the busiest of them, thanks to two million daily drivers. Throw in the extra traffic for the holidays, and you can expect to see this southern city from under an overpass or across the median. Build a few extra playlists if you’re driving this stretch of road.

7. Washington, DC: I-495 from Merrifield, VA to Landover, MD
Like New York, DC makes The Weather Channel’s list of congested roads twice. The Beltway, which is only 30 miles long, can take two hours on a normal day. Now, add angry, confused or simply stupid holiday travelers … and wait for hilarity to ensue.

8. Dallas: I-35
Are you among the 3.5 million people who will make I-35 a pain this holiday season? Drive with the windows down, maybe you’ll get the chance to make a new friend while you wait … and wait … and wait.

9. Detroit: Northbound Where US-23 and I-75 Merge
Near Flint, you’ll find plenty of people at this spot who are looking to go north for the winter. Blame the “cabin owners, resort seekers and deer hunters.”

10. Miami: The Palmetto Expressway (Near Miami Airport)
The Weather Channel calls this “one of the most heavily traveled roads in the Miami area,” and you can expect it to get backed up from Okeechobee Road to south of the Dolphin Expressway. If you’re either flying in or picking up someone who is, leave a bottle of Advil on the dashboard: you’ll need it.

[photo by FontFont via Flickr]

Using slime mould to improve transportation

by Sean McLachlan on

“What idiot designed this highway?”

I’ve asked myself this question on more than one road trip. Sometimes the most straightforward journey can be slowed down thanks to bad highway planning. Now it turns out that slime mould may be an efficient designer of transportation routes. Slime mould resembles a giant amoeba that sends out networks of tubes to grab food from distant locations. Scientists have long known that slime moulds always pick the best route, so they wondered if this fact could be applied to human transportation.

In a recent experiment, Andy Adamatsky of the University of the West of England put a map of Mexico in a Petrie dish. He put a bit of slime mould where Mexico City is, and marked out Mexico’s other cities with oat flakes, a tasty treat loved by slime moulds everywhere. In this amazing timelapse video you can see how the slime mould grows its tubes and basically recreates Mexico’s transport network. He’s also done this with England’s road network and a different team tried it out on Tokyo’s subway system. Adamatsky hopes that in the future, transportation officials will use slime mould to help them in their planning. Feel free to make jokes about politicians and slime mould in the comments section.

[Photo courtesy Dr. Jonatha Gott and the Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Case Western Reserve University]

Must-haves for a long winter drive

by Martha Edwards on

I’ve lived in Canada all my life, and I’m pretty adept at winter driving. I know when to pump my brakes, how to counter-act a fishtail in a flash, how fast to safely go on the highway in white-out conditions and how much space to keep between cars in case of black ice. So I thought driving 700 kms (450 miles) to visit a friend in a neighbouring province would be at best a little stressful. I didn’t prepare myself for 12-hour white-knuckled trip home (For the record, it usually takes 7 hours.)

If you’re driving through the snow this holiday season, here are a few thing you should make sure you have before you leave:

  • An emergency car kit. It’s essential in case you break down.
  • A car cell-phone charger. You’ll be kicking yourself if you break down and don’t have enough juice to call the tow-truck.
  • Blankets and candles. You know, just in case.
  • Tunes. Don’t just bring enough music for the drive — bring enough in case the drive gets stretched out.
  • A repertoire of word games to play with the driver. I was the driver on this trip, and in order to distract myself from the stressful drive, my friend and I played 20 questions and other games the required just enough concentration to distract me from how much the roads sucked.

  • Gas. Don’t fill your car with just enough to get there — have extra in case of a detour.
  • Food. Yeah, you can plan to stop for lunch in a certain place, but in case you don’t make it by lunch time, be prepared for the onset of grump-inducing hunger.
  • A map of the route. During our drive, the main highway was closed because of an accident. I know the area so I knew what the best detour route was but I might not have been so lucky.
  • A shovel. You might have to dig yourself out in case you hit the ditch. Or better yet, bring some strong men if you can.
  • Winter Tires or chains. This isn’t a necessity — I made through a high mountain pass on a road that was like a skating rink with my trusty all-seasons — but they might be worth it to you. They’re highly recommended and even required for some roads here in the Rockies.

Other tips? Make sure to clean off the sludge from your headlights — winter falls quickly this time of year and caked-on mud can really limit your visibility. And check the road conditions online before you go.

Above all else, take it slow if the roads are slippery. No appointment is worth you risking your life for.