More Traveling Thoughts

What sort of fool would drive a Smart car on an interstate highway, where the speed limit is 70 MPH and where traffic is moving along closer to 80? That damned motorized grocery wagon was effectively a moving lane-blocker, until the day comes when someone smashes over it and transforms the car into a speed bump.

A loaded-up Prius climbing a hill is not much peppier than a Smart car. But they seem to be driven by morons with left-lane blocking permits. One was followed so closely by a rusted Ford F-250 that you might have been able to slide a credit card between the bumpers. Took a while for the Prius driver to notice that all he could see in his rear-view mirror was a truck's grille.

I did not see a single truck on I-70 in Illinois that was exceeding the speed limit. On the other hand, trucks in Connecticut routinely push it up near 80 MPH on I-84 and I-95.

This cross was erected at the intersection of I-70 and I-57.

Feelings of inadequacy, maybe?

Connecticut built a third slow-vehicle lane on every little pissant grade along I-84. Pennsylvania couldn't be bothered to do the same along I-80, except for one grade eastbound in the Alleghenies.

Sunrise along I-80 in Pennsylvania:

Postscript: I was on the road normally well before sunrise. I noticed that on the intercity parts of the interstates, there were no trucks on the road. The rest stops were jammed with parked trucks. They were emptying out by eight in the morning and soon after that, the rest stops were mostly used by tourists who needed the break.