Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Austin Road System Rant (The Problem)

While writing the last post on Austin's most dangerous intersections, it stirred up some emotions on the road system in Austin. I've lived all over America and even in South Korea for over a year. I've been to almost every one of the 48 contiguous states. I've traveled to several other countries, industrialized and not, old and young, rich and poor, and never have I seen such a disaster of a road system as in Austin, Texas. Don't get me wrong, I love this city. Out of all those places I've been to and lived, not one of those places I would rather live in than Austin. It's perfect....almost.

My love for Austin ceases, however, with everything involving automobiles. Why are parking spots so small in Austin? Normal parking spots here are compact car spots in other cities. This is amplified by Texans driving the biggest trucks I've ever seen. There is nothing wrong with that. Yay trucks! My car has been dinged so many times it looks like I part-time golf ball pick-up at the driving range.

Gripe two. Austin is obsessed with becoming the "greenest city in America." Just Google "Austin Green City" and there are over 9.5 million hits! They have implemented mandatory energy audits on all home sales that were constructed older than ten years. They emphasis green in everything. Why is it that they can't realize that getting cars off the road faster and resetting their infrastructure will pay huge dividends in the long run with their efforts?

It seems like everywhere you drive, the road is one lane short of being tolerable. Austin wants to keep the small town vibe, but with projected growth of 137% by 2040, expansion of the road system is necessary. Why would making roads bigger effect the small town feel anyways? Who's idea was it to have people entering and exiting the highways in the same lane? This is just ridiculous, congestion-causing mayhem! Everywhere outside of Texas has an exit ramp and THEN an entrance ramp. 

1 comment:

  1. Günümüzün en popüler bahçe çitleri arasında yer alan ve kalitesi ile her kesimden taktir toplamış ve yüksek güvenlik isteyen kişilerin en başlıca tercih ettikleri ürünümüz olan çitin maliyeti Panel Çit Fiyatları hakkında bilgi edinmek istiyorsanız lütfen sayfamıza göz atmanızı rica ediyoruz. Ayrıca sadece Türkiye'de değil Dünyanın her yerinde en çok kullanılan ürünlerin Tel örgü bahçe teli olduğunu biliyormuydunuz. Tel örgü maliyeti ve fiyatları hakkında sayfamıza göz atabilirsiniz.

    ReplyDelete