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Hawaii has an excellent Road system,
bringing you to the most remote places on tarmaced roads. Outside the
large cities driving is usually easy as traffic is low and disciplined.
In and near the large cities on the other hand traffic can be heavy and
speeding and drunk driving for instance can happen anytime. Drive
careful at all times. There are several levels of
roads.
Interstates All Interstates in the USA are numbered, for instance I-5 or I-405. A
one or two digit number indicates that the Interstate is a through road.
Even numbers (I-44 or I-70) indicate a east-west route and odd numbers
(I-25 or I-87) indicate a north-south route.
If an Interstate has a three digit number and the first digit is even
(I-405) then it is a route through or around a city. An Interstate with
a three digit number with an odd first digit (I-395) leads into a city.
Signs along the interstates indicate the direction you are driving.
Along the interstates you will also find mileage markers. The
measuring of the mileage starts either at the starting of the interstate
or at the state border (whatever comes first). The mileage is always
measured from West to East or from South to North. So if the mileage
shown on the markers increase you are driving either eastbound or
northbound.
In most states exits are named/identified by the mileage at that exit.
When there are two exits close together the are called exit 25A and exit
25B. About a dozen of states (mostly in the Eastern part of the USA)
still use consecutive numbered exits (Exit 1, Exit 2, Exit 3 and so on),
regardless the distance. Besides numbers, exits are also named after the
road that exit leads to.
Directions to tourist attractions or motels are often based on the exit
number/name. "From I-85 take exit 2/Eastern blvd, go east 1/8
mile........"
Once you understand the system of interstate numbering and the
mileage markers navigating isn't to difficult.
If you want to leave the interstate at exit 150 and you are passing for
instance mileage marker 100 then you still have 50 miles to go to that
exit. If you are driving southbound near mileage marker 75 then the
distance to the state border is 75 mile. Suppose you want to drive from
Seattle, WA to Spokane, WA via the I-90. A look on a map or road atlas
will show that the I-90 starts at Seattle (mileage 0) and that Spokane is
at mileage 280. So the distance between those two cities is 280 mile.
The speed limits on Interstates differ per state but are in the 60 to
75 mph range.
Turnpikes A Turnpike is an Interstate where fees are collected from the road's
users. The fees are used for building and maintaining the road. Most
turnpikes are located in the Eastern part of the USA. So besides that a
fee is charged for using the road a Turnpike is basically the same as an
Interstate.
Traffic Camera's
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