Holy shit!!

[Pagan]

I have seen them on Highways. just not on Interstates ^_^

Ooooooh, I get it. We've got highways that go through, just nobody calls them highway blah. They've also got street names. Like NM 528 through ABQ is Alameda, then in Rio Rancho, it's Rio Rancho Blvd. NM 448 is Coors in ABQ and then turns into Corrales in Corrales.

[sevendaysky]

We have a "Mountain Highway" that also has a U.S. Route designation number -- and it has plenty of lights, although after the first four or five miles of "highway" designation, the traffic lights become more and more spaced out as pockets of houses and such become further apart.

[EricKei]

Exactly. ^_^

I think the official terminology is something like this:

Interstate : in the form I-## (1?-2 digits). Even numbers run E-W, odds run N-S. Crosses a state line at some point. Seldom, if ever, have lights.

Intrastate : always in the form I-### (3 digits). Indicates a loop (I-285 in Atlanta) or a spur (used to as a bypass, often connecting one part of an Interstate to another part of the same interstate; I-610 in new Orleans) that does NOT ever cross a state border. Seldom, if ever, have lights. Usually referred to as "Interstates" anyway.

Federal highways, state highways, Routes, etc: Prefixes vary, Hwy, *state abbreviation*, etc -- Non-Federal ones normally either do not cross state lines or change names at the border. These can, and often do, have lights. Major roads, and even smaller ones, in cities are often Highways that have been given "normal" names in addition to the official name.

[dragon_wings]

Once, during drivers ed my teacher tried to tell me I-140 (Pellissippi Parkway-goes from Oak Ridge to Alcoa if I remember correctly) was I-40. I tried to correct him but he was less then happy being corrected and maintained he was right.

(I used to drive Pellissippi Parkway all summer long. My family lived in Knoxville but owned a shop in Maryville. That was my first job. )

[Geek King]

Intrastate : always in the form I-### (3 digits). Indicates a loop (I-285 in Atlanta) or a spur (used to as a bypass, often connecting one part of an Interstate to another part of the same interstate; I-610 in new Orleans) that does NOT ever cross a state border. Seldom, if ever, have lights. Usually referred to as "Interstates" anyway.

Not always true. Cincinatti has the I-275 loop bypassing I-75 through the city. It loops through Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Not always true. Cincinatti has the I-275 loop bypassing I-75 through the city. It loops through Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.

Likewise, there's I-495, the "Capital Beltway" which loops around DC, through Maryland and Virginia.

[Geek King]

Likewise, there's I-495, the "Capital Beltway" which loops around DC, through Maryland and Virginia.

I've been on I-495 at 8 AM. That's not a freeway, that's a parking lot.

[Jay 2K Winger]

I've been on I-495 at 8 AM. That's not a freeway, that's a parking lot.

Never called it a freeway. I just noted that it is an I-(three number) "road" that is an Interstate, not an Intrastate.

And yes, in the mornings, the Beltway does indeed become a parking lot, and it can bork up traffic throughout the entire metropolitan area.

[EricKei]

Ahhh. Okie then -- Assume my post to have been edited, cuz I don't feel like actually doing so 8p

The main difference between the two is that an INTERstate crosses state lines, while an INTRAstate does not. They are both generally referred to as the former, however.

[Amadan]

You get stupid people everywhere, just look at the Darwin awards >clicky<. There was someone in one of the local towns round here a year or two ago that walked out in front of a fire engine on blue lights and sirens and was killed pretty much instantly*.

Fire engine was running a red light as high speed in the middle of the town, the pedestrian got the green light to walk but was wearing headphones and didn't look left/right and literally stepped out 2 feet in front of the engine. It was ruled no fault the the side of the Fire Brigade / Driver.

[HotelMinion]

what a weirdo. the fact that he was wearing all black makes me think he was running from a crime or something. Weird, but I've never seen that happen in a 60 mph zone. I've seen it in a 55 mph tho.

[Pagan]

what a weirdo. the fact that he was wearing all black makes me think he was running from a crime or something. Weird, but I've never seen that happen in a 60 mph zone. I've seen it in a 55 mph tho.

Or drunk. We get people making ill-advised road crossing attempts both in the cities and out in the boondocks....which is 80% of the state. They're almost always drunk and/or high.

I almost hit someone a while back. Same thing, sauntering across the road, wearing dark colors, long after sunset. The only reason I saw him was a flash of the white t-shirt under the dark jacket. What really griped me is that he was maybe about 15 feet from a signaled intersection. Too flippin' lazy to walk that far, I guess.

[protege]

You get stupid people everywhere, just look at the Darwin awards >clicky<. There was someone in one of the local towns round here a year or two ago that walked out in front of a fire engine on blue lights and sirens and was killed pretty much instantly*.

I was on my way to work one morning, and some idiot got hit by an Amtrak train Seems the guy was on the tracks, had his iPod going...and didn't hear the horns. I have tracks (Norfolk Southern and CSX) 5 and 10 miles from home...yet I can hear them. How the hell he couldn't hear the constant blast of horns, plus get the vibration from the locomotive bearing down on him, I don't know. Killed instantly.

But, we get the idiots-in-dark-clothing at night. Seems to be a *growing* phenomenon. Every damn night, I have at least one idiot run out in front of me. Seriously? Even though I drive a little Corolla...it's heavy enough that it'll land you in the hospital in short order.

[LillFilly]

Saw a guy doing that at midnight as I was going to work; walking across the 4-lane street at my left hand turn. No streetlights in that section. A dark-complected Gentleman wearing all black. All I could see was a Cheshire Cat smile floating in the road and stopped until he crossed. Makes me wonder if he was TRYING to get hit, because traffic in that area is crazy!

[Shalom]

I was on my way to work one morning, and some idiot got hit by an Amtrak train Seems the guy was on the tracks, had his iPod going...and didn't hear the horns. I have tracks (Norfolk Southern and CSX) 5 and 10 miles from home...yet I can hear them. How the hell he couldn't hear the constant blast of horns, plus get the vibration from the locomotive bearing down on him, I don't know. Killed instantly.

Not so sure he didn't hear him; people have used railroads to commit suicide before. I guess it depends on whether he was crossing the tracks, in which case it boils down to what Bujold called "death by stupidity", or walking along them, which would point to a deliberate act.

Which isn't fair to the train crew. You wanna off yourself, go do it in private, or get one of your friends to help you. Don't involve an innocent party, who has to live with it for the rest of his life.

(OK, I suppose it could also point to a higher level of stupidity, but it boils down to the same thing in the end.)