“You see a whole swath of the country that people on the coasts don’t,” says Clott, whose fascination with 41 dates back to his boyhood in Northwest Indiana…
Once Clott reached Miami, he’d taken a journey through a country he never would have seen on an interstate highway.
“You see regular people,” he says. “You don’t just see tourists. Even though you’re less than five minutes away from an interstate, you see a different America.”
The interstates have a life of their own. High speeds and limited impediments. Certain amenities available at rest areas and exits.
Many interstates trace paths from earlier highways that also sought to connect major population centers. These highways had sections of faster speeds and no stops but they also tended to go through communities and had stops there.
Is seeing “regular people” and “a different America” because of the different routes of these earlier highways or the different driving pace or the different attractions? One way to interpret the statements above is that these old highways are not the typical routes so drivers will see different things. Perhaps they see what is less glamorous or could see more day to day activity than tourist activity. As noted later in the article, US 41 will still help see Chicago but see different parts than you might via the interstate or common tourist routes.
Would these older highways be considered the back roads of the United States? In many communities, they are necessary daily roads for people and goods. They may not be scenic roadways in many places. They may not be meandering two lane roads. But they do offer an alternative to where the mass of drivers are.
(I have driven on US 41 in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Florida. While it has its points that are more highway-like with higher speeds and fewer lights, there are also plenty of moments of going right through communities.)
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