Highway Rest Stops Fall Victim To Budget Woes

wsj.com:

As millions of Americans take to the road for the holiday weekend, a humble highway fixture is under attack.

Later this month, cash-strapped Virginia plans to barricade entrances and switch off the plumbing and electricity at nearly half its highway rest areas. Other states also are lowering budgetary axes on the public pit stops that have lined the interstate highway system since its creation in 1956.

Read the whole story: wsj.com

Comments

[hulagirrrl]

Wow, the result will be that people do their "business" in the bushes... is that what a state wants?
In Europe most public restrooms are privately run, along with restaurants, and when you use the restroom you pay a small fee for the upkeep, that can't be so hard to figure out.

[totaldisbelief]

More privatization of public facilities ...that what you want? more fees..less for your tax dollar.

[JoeBlough]

It's called "pay to pee". A great profit generator.

[Acebass]

"Public it's Ours-Private it Theirs"

[MiHi]

Looks like VA is soon gonna be known as "The P*ss Jug State" from the sharp increase in all those disgusting yellow (& brown) filled containers strewn all along the side of the highways.

[Decipherer]

I'm guessing from that picture that if certain truck drivers fall down, they won't be able to get up (even to reach their beer), no matter the availability of state funding to keep rest stops open.

[LMT]

It's time federal law be changed to allow commercial activity (and, therefore, private funding of maintenance by those commercial entities) be allowed inside interstate rest areas. In much of Europe, this works extremely well and is really convenient to travelers.

[LMT]

Sorry for the lousy grammar...but you know what I meant. Hate the lack of editablity!

[MiHi]

Yeah right. EVERY time a formerly-federal service is taken over by private entities, quality plummets, the people get robbed, and the thing eventually gets shut down anyway when it can no longer be squeezed for every penny.

[Amunaka]

Bingo....

[revko]

Yup. Maybe Kellog-Root.. Yup. Did a real bang up job in Iraq... Yup. Worth every tax dollar penny spent on 'em.

Maybe even get electrocuted every time ya take a pee

Yup.

Great idea. Give it to a company whose reason for existing is to make as much money as humanly (or inhumanly) as possible with OUR tax dollars.

Can't see any problem with that.

[johnnyhempseed]

Yesterday I was asked by a Japanese tourist if there was a pay phone in town? I had to shamefully say no! Then he asked about a public rest room and I sent him to a "Porta Potty "in the neighboring town.I was ashamed ,after the poor guy used the "john",he probably felt sorry for Americans.We used to have public services and amenities in this country, water fountains, rest rooms ,working pay phones,they are all privatised now.I wasn't in the boondocks off a highway ,but outside a market in a wealthy Connecticut town.Socialism my ass! Trillions for banksters and warmongers but nowhere to pee!

[JoeBlough]

Peeing doesn't generate profits. Carry an empty water bottle.

[Bobzmcishl]

I noticed on the way coming back from Las Vegas that California closed two of the rest stops and on Highway 5 there were also several closed. Doesn't say much for the supposedly richest country on earth does it? I liked the concept in France whereby you paid .50 euros to use the bathroom but at least they were kept very clean, although they were pretty chintzy with the toilet paper. I would gladly pay a nominal fee here in the U.S. to use a clean well maintained bathroom on the major interstates as well as in town and cities.

[Furby]

The US hasn't been the richest country in the world for quite some time but that's beside the point. Rest stops don't cost that much to maintain. You could probably maintain all the rest stops in the U.S. on one Goldman Sachs executive's annual bonus. Priorities, priorities.

[Decipherer]

Not sure about your "richest country" comment. The U.S. still has the greatest GDP by far of any country on earth, and if I am not mistaken, per capita GDP as well.

If you are suggesting other measurements of being "rich" or "wealthy," then you may well be right. By some accounts and polling data, the Danes are the happiest people on earth, which for some folks like me equates with wealth money can't buy.

Still it seems that a "civilized" industrial country and its several states should be able to find the money to maintain highway rest stops, for goodness sake.

[SoCalNick]

you DO pay a nominal fee. UGHHH what do you people think you TAXES have been paying for??

Bush stole so much and cut out so many of the things we all need and use so he had more for himself it is STUNNING,

When will people see how much he did to us and stop blaming the new administration that is trying to FIX it?

There ate lierally THOUSANDS of things like this you do not know about. They KNEW they would be safe out of office when you found out too!

That is what you get for ignoring all of the people who tried to warn you.

REAP IT!

[henrypapillon]

why don't they just make them coin operated? then the republicans and their closet gay lovers can meet and have fun and keep the park open

[amdezurik]

because we ALREADY PAID THE COIN.

[stylenease]

The votes are in and it has been decided that to survive, these types of establishments simply need to cut more holes in the bathroom stall dividers.

[slobone]

Just pull over to the side of the road and pee in the ditch. That's what men do in Europe...

[northstar11]

what do the women do ?---

[Furby]

We squat between two car doors or find a good spot in the bush, just like when we're golfing :)

[deadcustodian]

These facilities are more properly known as the G eorge W. Buush highway Hiltons and Holiday Inns.

Best of luck to everybody who has survived Reaganomics and who are trying to survive the Buush Depression.

Everyday I give thanks to The Flying Spaghetti monster that Ron ald R eagan is d ead.

[stylenease]

Aside from thanking The Flying Spaghetti monster for anyone's death, you pretty much sumed up the end result of Reaganomics on the middle class pretty well.

[WilliamProc]

RAmen, brother!

[drumz]

Yup, anytime you see any public enterprise closed you can thank the hapless republicants. Better to keep the rich rich and the poor poorer.

[Decipherer]

Isn't it great to have been touched by His Noodly Goodness?

[deadcustodian]

May we all be touched by His noodily appendages and may He favourably mark us with His spaghetti sauce stigmata.

RAmen
http://www.venganza.org/

[BannedNBoston]

Hey lets sell all the rest areas to the King of Spain
and we can use the money to keep them open and clean.

[BannedNBoston]

we closed on ein New Hampster and truckers cant take naps.

[byla]

Considering the alternative, you want those truckers to be able to pull in and take a nap.

[Decipherer]

I think the post on which you commented IS a result of that alternative.

[CigarGod]

We should be cutting aid to foreign governments before we cut our own spending.

[woundedduck]

In other news--the Midwest was deluged by piss-filled 2 liter coke bottles falling from the sky like a biblical plague

[wadenelson1]

Ahh. Trucker's Tea.

It's good to be a man. At least out on the road.

[northstar11]

look virginia there is a better way-------parking fees will pay some poor dudes to keep the places clean