The Many Benefits of Interstate Rest Stops

Road trips and long travels are one of the most uniquely American activities, due to the vast geographical size of the country. Since the nearly 50,000 miles of interstate highway in this country were completed, millions of people every year use these roads to get to their vacation spots, workplaces, or any other destination. However, while driving on these vast stretches of highway, it’s important to make sure you take adequate breaks to eat, stretch your legs, or anything else, which is why interstate rest stops are such an important part of the overall highway system. 

America’s Interstate: A Marvel of Construction 

While many people today take the interstate highway system for granted, before it there was no easy way to travel large distances across the country. Roads were a patchwork of private roads, dirt roads, roads full of holes, and dead ends to nowhere. Logistics issues in the case of a hypothetical invasion during World War II caused president Dwight D. Eisenhower to realize that something must be done, and the interstate highway system was born.  

Eisenhower described the roads across America before the highways as a “succession of dust, rust, pits, and holes.” While today hopping on the freeway is something we do every day without thinking, in reality, they are a major landmark construction project that wasn’t officially completed until the 90s, with a cost of over 500 billion dollars when adjusted for inflation. 

While construction didn’t begin until the 50s, plans for a superhighway date back to the 20s and 30s, with FDR seriously considering a proposal and commissioning maps of proposed routes. However, the post-war period with a lot of young men needing work and a booming economy proved to be the perfect time to get the project started.

Rest Stops on the Interstate

Of course, these highways had to be built to certain standards which must still be met today. Some of these include no traffic lights, a central divider, and a shoulder lane to pull off onto in case of breakdowns. Along with those considerations was the issue of what drivers would do when they needed a break. 

Many studies showed the effectiveness of short breaks in reducing driver fatigue and accidents on highways. At the time, it was a new experience for many people, most hadn’t driven as fast for as long, and there were some serious safety concerns. Due to this, federal regulations included safety rest areas (SRAs) along the highway, with a prohibition on commercial facilities in these areas.  

The state of Texas was one of the pioneers of rest stop areas, beginning a “roadside park program” in the 30s. With the construction of the highway system, they added about 85 new rest stop areas along the route, which provided drivers with a beautiful, pleasant area to take a break in. These roadside parks or safety rest areas grew in popularity due to the many benefits they provide, and they quickly spread across the country.  

Benefits of Rest Stops

First of all, providing rest stops is a safety and health issue. It’s just not safe to sit for long periods, and doctors recommend standing and stretching at least every 2-4 hours, if not more. This prevents blood clots from forming and other potentially serious health conditions. 

Rest stops provide jobs in areas where they may need them greatly. Although specific government-designated rest areas can’t sell fuel or food onsite, they still cause travelers to stop and spend money elsewhere close by, stimulating the local economy.

Rest stops are an essential way that truckers fulfill their legal obligation to spend a certain amount of hours at rest, preventing them from taking dangerously long drives without much sleep. Truckers warn that when states close down rest areas due to budget or repair issues, safety lapses and accidents rise as a result.  

Rest stops play an important anthropological and historical role in our travels as well, as before the highway drivers would interact more with local communities and towns that they drove through, keeping many cities alive. The highways removed this and created a more impersonal form of travel. Rest stops are a way for the local community and government to advertise themselves, try to attract tourist money, and for travelers to get a taste of the vibrant history of the area.  

People traveling with pets need rest areas. Families with children need rest areas. Because they are prohibited from major commercial enterprises like gas stations or fast food, rest stops provide an essential place for motorists to simply rest, relax, and recuperate without feeling like they need to buy something or move along.  

Rest stop areas are an interesting and rich part of American history. Without them, everyone suffers, and they provide many important and valuable benefits to society.