This is for anyone planning a trip to Dallas, TX

Life in America's fifth largest city:

1. You must learn to pronounce the city name. It is DAL-LUS, or DAA-LIS, depending on if you live inside or outside LBJ Freeway.

2. Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Dallas has its own version of traffic rules....Hold on and pray. There is no such thing as a "dangerous high-speed chase" in Dallas. We all drive like that.

3. All directions start with, "Get on Beltline" ...which has no beginning and no end.

4. The morning rush hour is from 6:00am to 10:00am. The evening rush hour is from 3:00pm to 7:00pm. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday.

5. If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear ended, cussed out and possibly shot. When you are the first one on the starting line, count to three when the light turns green before going to avoid crashing with all the drivers running the red light in cross-traffic. However, do not count to four or higher unless you want to get rear-ended from the gal behind you in a SUV

6. Construction on Central Expressway is a way of life and a permanent form of entertainment. We have had so much fun with that, that we have added George H. Bush Tollway (aka 190) and Jupiter Road to the mix.

7. All unexplained sights are explained by the phrase, "Oh, we're in Fort Worth!!"

8. If someone actually has their "turn signal" on, it's probably a factory defect.

9. All old ladies with blue hair in Mercedes always have the right of way. They come from old money and could probably buy and sell you anyway.

10. Inwood Road, Plano Road, NW Highway, East Grand, Marsh Lane, 15th Street, Preston Road... all mysteriously change names as you cross intersections. (These are only a FEW examples) The perfect example is what is MOSTLY known as Plano Road. On the south end it is known as Lake Highlands Boulevard, cross NW Hwy and it becomes Plano Road, go about 8 miles and it's briefly Greenville Avenue, then Avenue K, and Highway 5. (Don't even try to explain going east on Spring Valley (from Central), which becomes Centennial, which becomes Buckingham, which runs into Beltline -see # 3......)

11. A trip across town (east to west) will take a minimum of four hours, although many north/south freeways have unposted minimum speeds of 75. The minimum acceptable speed on the Dallas North Toll Road is 85. Anything less is considered downright sissy.

12. The wrought iron on windows near Oak Cliff isn't ornamental.

13. It IS possible to be driving WEST in the NORTH-bound lane of EAST NORTHWEST highway. Don't let this confuse you.

14. The North Dallas Tollway is our daily version of NASCAR.

15. LBJ is called "The Death Trap" for two reasons: "death" and "trap."

16. If it's only 100 degrees, Halloween must be next weekend.

17. If it's 10 degrees and sleeting/snowing, the Fort Worth Stock Show
must be going on.

18. If it has rained 6 inches in the last hour, the Byron Nelson Golf Classic is in the second round if it is Spring; or it is the Texas State Fair if it is Fall.

19. Any amusement parks, stadiums, arenas, race tracks, airports, etc. are conveniently located as far away from EVERYTHING as possible so as to allow for ample parking on grassy areas.

20. If you need to ask for directions, get ALL the names of the street you are being told to turn onto...we intermix numbers, letters, names for the same roads.

21. If your Mapsco is more than a few weeks old, throw it out and buy a new one.

22. Observe all school-zone speed limits. Cops here have mirrors on both sides of their sunglasses

 

I'm from Fort Worth. I hate driving in Dallas. The only place worse is Houston.

 

Yeah, Northwest Highway is crazy... You'd think a road called "Northwest" would actually run at a northwest angle, but it runs north in some spots (which also means you can go south).

For what I've seen, Northwet highway, actually runs Southwest to Northeast. Whoever named that roads, needs his @$$ kicked.

So is 635. "Yeah, take 635 West from highway 80, to get to Plano". Yet, when you exit 80 to get on 635, the sign says 635 North or 635 South. You have to be cognizant that in Dallas North and West are the same, and South and East are the same. (It's a Loop)

What's worse are the on/off ramps on 75 & 35 that are only- maybe 20 yards long, and your on ramp puts you directly inline with someone else's off ramp.

My first trip up the DNT in 1996, had me a litle worried. Cops were out there (DPS troopers) the speed limit was 55, but traffic was moving at at least 70-75. I was passing no one. So, I said- OK, do I do 55 and get a ticket for impedign the flow of traffic, or- do I speed and get a ticket for speeding?

With a choice like that- I'll take the speeding ticket every time.
I used to turn north bound DNT into a race, especially once you get north of 635, and hit some curves.

San Antonio is crazy too. That city has a double loop, 1604 & 410. I took 1604 from I-35 to get to Sea World one day.
That's when you get to fully appreciate how big (if sparsely developed) San Antonio is. For a city with over 1,000,000 people, 95% of them must all live within the 410 loop radius.

Dallas needs another loop. Loop 12 is stop & go, and red lights- so is Belt Line. 635 is a traffic night mare. I think George Bush will end up being a loop; the only bad thing is, it's a tollway, which is actually good for me, cause I'll spend a few $ for decent traffic. DNT on the other hand, if you're headed South in the AM, or North in the PM; you're paying to sit in traffic, albeit less traffic than 35 or 75.

I live 6 miles from where I work, and on 75 heading home, on a good day, I can make it in 25 minutes, but on a bad day (raining), it's taken me 1h:15 minutes.

 

That is soo freaking true Hersh.....especially #3

 

Houston is only worse because the scenery isn't as pretty to look at when you're sitting at a complete standstill on the highway!

But easily the worst traffic per-capita has got to be Austin......

 

We have those pesky name changing roads here in Jacksonville, FL too. Then we have roads that run into another road and then back off again. Classic one is Old St Augustine rd. It comes from the south, runs into San Jose and then a few miles down, turns off as St Augustine Rd. San Jose then ends and splits into Hendricks and San Marco.

Don't try and take US 1, US 17 or US 90 and expect to go straight through the City, because they don't. All of these end in one place and then all of the sudden come back again out of nowhere and continue on. US 17 comes in as US 17, then changes into Park Ave, then Roosevelt Blvd, then runs into I 10 and then Main St, then back to US 17. Funny thing is that this road comes in from the west side of the river, but when you cross the Main st bridge from the eastern side of the river, it starts again as Main st/US 17. US 90 starts as Beach Blvd, then ends at the river then starts back again as Beaver street for about 15 miles or so and then back to US 90.

If that is confusing, add in all the duplicated road names that are on the southside of town and then again on the Northside of town and also roads that change names at intersections or around turns. Take the road I live on, it is a dirt road but starts out as Dennis Ave, then it makes a 90 degree turn and ends up as Fern Ave.

Its crazy, I tell you

I have driven in Texas before. Just trying to stay on I10 through Houston is a maze and Austin is pretty bad. I've only been to Dallas once. I flew in but drove out to go to Austin in the middle of the afternoon. I found my way, but I think it took longer to get out of that crazy airport than it did to get out of Dallas.

 

I live a sheltered life here in Tulsa. My first experience driving in Dallas was to visit Crash. HMMMMMM, I had fun, I was able to make it from Forrest and 75 to Harry Hines/635 in about 15 minutes.....Yep thats me racing down the left side. I also was able to make it from Forrest & 75 to Six Flags in 30 minutes. I had him holding on the sissy bar.... .

 

Yeah, Austin has gotten too big (population wise) for it's meager roadways. I-35 North & South and 183 just won't do...

Traffic for Austin, starts stacking-up (and I've seen it at a stand still) in RoundRock, TX (Where my wife and I were planning to live, before fate sent us to Dallas, TX) right infront of Classic Honda/GMC and doesn't ease up until you get to San Marcos!

 

I've made it from Midway & Rosemeade on the Plano/North Dallas border, to Hyeena's comedy club in Arlington (40 miles away) in under 25 minutes. At times we were running 110 - 115, but averaged 96 MPH, in Dallas traffic (which wasn't that bad that night).

That was one of the stupidest nights I ever spent under the wheel.

Route: Midway to George Bush (GB/190- Stopped at Midway back in 1999), GB East to DNT South, DNT S. to 635 West, 635 West to DFW, Took the 114 exit off of DFW, 114 to 121, 121 to 360 S., 360 to Arkansas Lane. I was in my Maxima SE, with my Wife and her friend, he and his wife were in a Mustang GT.

He kept trying to run away; but it was like my front bumper of the Max' was connected to the rear bumper of that 'Stang. I told him that Max would give his Mustang all it could handle, and might even out-run him (top speed). I could've passed him, but I had to follow him because I didn't know the route he was taking.


Not in Dallas, not yet...
They have them in Oakland though. They're rebuilding a supposedly stronger version of the one that collapsed in the Loma Prieta quake in 1989. But, the Oakland Bay Bridge is a double decker. I think San Rafeal is too.

We do have the "High 5" interchange though, with (what was/may still be) the highest over-passes in the United States (near 200 feet high). This is where 635 & 75 come together. It's about 95% complete, construction began in 2001- was supposed to be a 7 year project.

Wiki: As of January 1, 2006, the "High Five" construction project (so called because it is five levels and rises almost 61 m (200 ft) above the lowest level), a rebuild of the interchange of I-635 and U.S.-75, was near "substantial completion". This interchange carries over 500,000 vehicles per day and was built as the largest interchange in the state of Texas to handle this vehicle load.



*********************

We have names for our road here, that describe them, in some ways: AKA- Mix Master, Canyon, High -Five.

Canyon: (I -30)


35/635 Exchange:


A piece of the Mix Master. (Fail to pay attention here, and you might end up in Alberqueue, NM)


More pics from the site I found these at: (No high 5 pics...)
http://www.texasfreeway.com/dallas/p...s_aerial.shtml

 

I live in Houston, must be why I thought Dal uss was not that bad, hehehe,,,,98

 

Texans seem to be unable to understand the concept of "Slower Traffic - Keep Right."

That said, I hate driving through Texas.

 

not true. when i used to drive down 195 slower cars would drive along the shoulder.

 

Certainly wasn't that way coming in via I-20 all the way to Dallas, the to 35 to Waco, Tyler, Killeen, etc.

 

yeah, the interstates are busy. 195 goes from killeen to I35 above Round rock. i guess it was the locals driving on the shoulder.

 

That's the entire country with that problem, don't try blaming it on us. Way up there with it is the fly past and then slow down technique of driving. It's the ONLY reason I bought a set of air horns. I've found the slow fast laners seem to share the same MO. Most of them are paying no attention to the road, and are more interested in a conversation with the passenger(s). Most seem to talk with their hands alot, too. Never figured that one out. I don't mean giving the finger, but making wild gestures while engaged in their conversations. They all drive Camry's too, which is another oddity. 9 times out of ten when I see someone pull a completely idiotic move, they're driving a Camry. Regardless of year model.,,,,98