Highway rest stops are disappearing

[Cosmo]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nat ... g/99868368


=Cosmo

[mikeschn]

Michigan and Ohio too? Who wouldathunk?

Mike...

[Woodbutcher]

Down state Illinois has closed several too. But this state is broke, and spending money to make better life for it's citizens is not a priority.

[blentz]

On a trip from Tulsa to Phoenix I saw several New Mexico closed.


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[Ron Dickey]

i have not been on the road in quite some time but I found this

http://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-an ... ome-states

many states like N.M. and Nev. do not have a town near a rest stop to replace it.

Truckers say it makes the road safer.

But they say budgets get tight and they save a bundle closing them. While some law states that rest stops on interstate highways can not have money making businesses there, only vending machines.

Often the rest stops here in CA are so full people have to stop on the ramp in or out.

Maybe a letter to your state rep. might help get them back open. Oops ( I am talking politics here )

Ron

[Aguyfromohio]

The ones in Ohio were shut because they were becoming unsavory. People living in the city could drive out 20 minutes to one of the near rest stops and meet people like themselves to ...indulge certain tendencies. When the family in a minivan rolled in they were rightfully horrified. The highway patrol started spending a lot of time trying to control the situation; stories hit the news a couple times every year; and they were quietly closed. I honestly don't think it was the cost of running them that shut them down, at least near us.

[Ron Dickey]

Good point it is a free bathroom, free water, manybe a place to charge a cell phone.

[crttaz]

Ohio has just enough right now and well placed/spaced out.

The ones that were shut down were years ago. Some where drug/prostitute havens (275 near Batavia) and others were just too close together (just south of Cbus on 71. Near Harrisbug. You can still see the dirt roads where the rest area were removed.

The rest of the closed one were on state highways like Ohio 32. I remember when you left Athens the FIRST traffic light was right before 275 in Cincy, but there was three rest area. Now only one just east of where the Pike County Murders happened.

[Jeepnick]

I've seen a couple in AZ close, but it's been a number of years since then. Something I didn't know - Remote rest stops (at least in AZ) have live-in caretakers. Can you imagine?

[mustangcats]

Iowa spent a lot of money in recent years tearing down the interstate rest areas that were built in the 1960's and replacing them with fancy, modern rest areas. Each rest area has a different theme and they also have free wifi. I think most of them also have dump stations. State officials felt it was important to have nice rest areas because that can have a lasting impression on travelers passing through the state.

[GPW]

We have waay too many Criminals here ( a cultural problem) , and rest stops are just easy pickings for them …

[les45]

On a recent trip on I-77 in North Carolina I noticed that one of my usual rest stops was closed and being torn down. Then I found just down the road that there was a brand new state-of-the-art rest area in the center median that services both directions. The new facility looks more like a shopping mall with lots of art work and unique architecture. The only down side was re-entering traffic from the left side but they had thought ahead and built an extra long approach ramp.

[Kerntuber]

I would think that the various states could partner with private gas stations and lease the area (maybe for a dollar a year) on the condition that they continue to maintain everything as it is and then allow them to build a fueling area and convenience store. I would guess the largest expense for the states would be paying someone to go out and clean them, so if you dump that responsibility on the gas station, seems like it would be a possibility for both parties to get something out of it.

[rowerwet]

MA spent big bucks turning parking areas into rest areas with nice bathrooms.
But then staffed them with state hacks, so don't expect a bathroom after 8 pm, or on any holiday. ..

[mustangcats]

I would think that the various states could partner with private gas stations and lease the area (maybe for a dollar a year) on the condition that they continue to maintain everything as it is and then allow them to build a fueling area and convenience store. I would guess the largest expense for the states would be paying someone to go out and clean them, so if you dump that responsibility on the gas station, seems like it would be a possibility for both parties to get something out of it.

Current laws prohibit commercial establishments at rest areas along the federal Interstate highway system.