THE INTERSTATE FREIGHT YARD

BY DAN MILLER
(originally posted November 4, 2005)

Do you ever get the sensation, as you travel along the Interstate, that you're trapped in a freight yard?

I often feel I'm an intruder on the shipping lanes of big trucks.
And it can be frightening.

Big tractor trailer rigs now make up roughly 45% of the traffic along our Interstates.
And, think about it.... those trucks are probably 3 or 4 times longer than a car, or an SUV.... so it's only logical that the trucks occupy -- by far -- more actual space on the Interstates.

Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against truckers. Most are good, courteous drivers simply doing their jobs.
But I believe this country's biggest mistake -- or lack of vision -- when we first constructed the Interstate system, was not creating "dual highways".... one for commercial use, and one for personal vehicles.

Some stretches of Interstate highway were actually off limits to big trucks for awhile.
One example is I-44o through Nashville.
It was initially called "I-440 Parkway", designated for cars and small vehicles only.
Then, once the threat of losing federal dollars came into play, the state quickly opened I-440 to the big rigs.

Now I'm thinking there might be another way to solve the dilemma of highways cluttered with the monster trucks.

Perhaps the answer is the old reliable railroad.

What if the government built new railroad tracks, parallel to existing tracks?
It would allow a high volume of trains moving freight and passengers in both directions.
And since the rights-of-way are already in place for these tracks, it could probably be done at a fairly reasonable cost (at least when compared to what we spend rebuilding other countries, or exploring other worlds).

High speed train tracks could also be built -- in both directions -- right along our existing Interstate highway routes.

A rejuvenated, expanded and booming railroad industry might be just what the country needs.
If nothing else, it would provide great fodder for country songs.

By the time you read this, a new rule will be in effect restricting big trucks to the 2 right hand lanes on Tennessee highways.... but it only applies to highways that have 3 or more lanes in each direction.

Will it help much? I doubt it.

In the meantime, I'm attracted more and more to the old State routes and U.S. highways.
There's much less chance of finding yourself stuck between exits -- held hostage by traffic that's backed up for miles.

And, traveling those old highways, what fun to see Tennessee's enchanting little towns -- most with an old train depot, that's all-but-abandoned.

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