Interstate drivers seem top-notch

My recent 7,000-mile freeway journey led me to a general conclusion: Interstate drivers exhibit more precision than their intrastate counterparts. In other words, the drivers on distance runs concentrate more on their driving than drivers on local runs.

Time after time on this trip through 15 states, the group of good drivers became diluted with the marginal ones when I passed through cities and encountered local traffic. Evidently, many short-haul drivers don’t have time to settle into a precision driving mode by eliminating distractions, and devoting full thought to their driving.

I suppose there are many factors contributing to this phenomenon. For example, if you are headed east from here, the speed limit is soon 75 mph. To maintain that speed from the summit of Lookout Pass to the town of St. Regis, one must be super-alert and “up on the wheel.” That stretch at that speed is akin to racing, and many vehicles can’t maintain that speed through the turns. Cruise control might have you cruising through the woods, so driving with attention is a must.

If higher speeds and sudden turns don’t keep you alert, the deer warning signs or deer themselves might do it. So much of this country is deer-crossing prone that I think the best place for a deer warning sign would be on your dashboard instead of the intermittent placement every few miles along the roadways. An unofficial Wyoming wildlife refuge, between Sheridan and Gillette, is a true test of attention, vision and reflexes. There, I had to take evasive action to miss three separate deer directly in my path, and saw about 20 others adjacent to the roadway. Jackrabbits were plentiful too. My advice: avoid areas like this at dusk.

Another reason for a predominance of precision on the interstate path is the major presence of truckers. I’ve said before that the majority of semitrailer drivers take the driving task seriously. Their mere exposure to traffic, and the challenges of driving require that they perform or perish.

So operating at speed, encountering obstacles, and the presence of truckers account for tendencies toward good interstate driving, but interaction with other vehicles plays a big role too. The interstates are not sparsely populated with vehicles these days — in fact, most areas are quite packed. Even states such as Wyoming and South Dakota have plenty of interstate traffic passing through.

A driver must always be aware of other traffic, especially at 75-80 mph — things happen quickly at that speed. And surprises appear faster yet at the 100 mph speed of the radar-detector-equipped drivers approaching periodically from the rear.

I’ve written often about maintaining a driving “niche” on the roadway — a comfort zone with fair distance from other vehicles on all sides. This allows me to concentrate on my driving without having to account for others nearby. This niche is constantly threatened on interstate trips by approaching speeders, slow vehicles, or those entering the freeway.

Continuous monitoring of these “threats” keeps me darned busy. Some say cross-country travel is boring, but if you’re driving well, I can’t concur. Watching other traffic, along with occasional eating and continual sightseeing, is plenty entertaining for me.

Out on the long haul, you can often watch traffic a couple miles fore and aft. On one stretch through Southern Illinois, for example, I entertained myself as follows. I was running at 70 mph, and a white Camry was gaining from my rear about 1 mile back. I was gaining on two tractor-trailers. I envisioned passing the trucks, and then the Camry would pass me, giving me the niche I wanted. Over the next few minutes, that’s just what happened. We were now spaced out, Camry leading, then me, then the two trucks. In a highway game I call “watching for the cops,” I spotted a white car nearly 2 miles back, gaining on the trucks. As I observed this vehicle passing the trucks, it looked like it might be a Crown Victoria. I reset my speed at 69 mph, and kept an eye in the rearview mirror as he approached — sure enough, it was an Illinois State Trooper, who then passed me, and next passed the Camry that was going about 71 mph.

Over and over, similar situations keep me entertained and alert on the roadway. This encounter did something extra too — it told me that the Illinois enforcement is tolerant of 5 mph over the posted limit. By the way, you can speculate on the enforcement level in a state by the number of over-the-limit drivers. Tennessee, like much of California, seems to allow well over half of the interstate drivers there to operate at 10-15 mph over. I’ve yet to find a state that is a stickler for 4-5 mph over on the highway. I think that speedometer error, and the fluctuations due to uphill and downhill travel account for this reasonable restraint of petty enforcement.

Way to go, interstate travelers! Your group grade is about a B plus. If the local drivers will work to bring up their collective C minus, we’ll all be safer and happier.