Shocked Brit reacts to "Why Are AMERICAN Interchanges So BIG"

[@MoreAdamCouser]

Live reactions here brothers & sisters! www.twitch.tv/adamcouser

[@nilsmcmountain2377]

Dicksword link isn't working.

[@MoreAdamCouser]

@@nilsmcmountain2377 what?🤣

[@Taco002]

4:33 In Texas, sometimes... SOMETIMES we put our Express Lanes (TOLL) in the middle of the Interstate. They widen the overall footprint of the road, and then put lanes in the median, and for a fee you can skip the traffic. This fee increases as traffic increases. The lanes you are asking about are entrance / exit ramps to the Express Lanes.

[@peanutmwo6001]

Texan here to answer your question about the meaning of "Lone Star". Lone Star refers to the large star on the Texas flag when it was its own country, it symbolizes Texas pride and willingness to stand alone

[@Sammmeow]

And here I thought it was just a zoomed in bleached out butthole. Who knew.

[@Marrero79]

Every state in the US has a nickname. Lone Star State is Texas’ nickname. 😊😊

[@alancummings4304]

AMEN !

[@TheOtherBradBird]

It's also the only state to join the rest of the United States via treaty because Texas began its history as a sovereign and separate country. The moniker of "The Lone Star State" refers to both the flag and it's integration.

[@bobprivate8575]

@@TheOtherBradBird a) The Republic of Texas may not have been an independent country, its independence was not recognized by other countries. Technically, even today, Mexico has not renounced their claim to it. b) The Kingdom of Hawai'i and Republic of Vermont were also independent nations that joined the US diplomatically via treaty... Vermont had the same issue as Texas, neither had international recognition as such. But, if you're saying Texas was independent, then logically you also have to accept that Vermont was as well.

[@terrioestreich4007]

You are so enthusiastic and entertaining!! Thanks for doing all of this!!

[@ahzizM]

Practical Engineering is one of my favorite channels on KZbin. Good place to learn how the world around you was built, not just the U.S.

[@meganmbleed]

I was born and raised in LA, I grew up, driving major 5 lane freeways. I-10, I-5, 101, 210, 405, and 118, are only half of the freeways I have driven. We have a serious car culture here in the US. I isn’t feasible to be without a vehicle. Things are spread out here, and besides, I love my truck, I can put on my music, and get to all the places I need to.

[@karinwolf3645]

Yes, and there is a pretty impressive stack in LA, too! 😆. I used to live there but moved to the sticks in Arizona. 💃😎🍹👵🐺🌵

[@neutrino78x]

It's feasible in Los Angeles. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area where you also don't need a car, so I don't know how to drive, and I have been down to LA many times and got around without a car. I'm surprised you were born and raised there and never used the extensive public transit system. There are lots of buses, and there is heavy rail (Amtrak/Via Rail) and light rail. It depends on what you're doing, right. Like if your job is to drive a service truck to different client sites, then obviously you have to drive. 🙂 On the other hand, if you have a job where you stay in the same place all day, like a factory, then you can probably get to and from without a car, and in such a place, you might go for years and years and never have to drive. 🙂

[@meganmbleed]

@@neutrino78x yeah I feel you, it truly comes down to the individuals location, preferences. I am very independent, I enjoy the freedom it gives me, besides I haul lumber pretty often, so it’s worth the expense. 🤘🏻😉💚

[@meganmbleed]

@@karinwolf3645 I’m in AZ also 🤘🏻😎

[@Lynn-kh5rs]

Adam, that stopped highway traffic you saw is a good example of what driving on a L.A. freeway is like at rush hour. One of the reasons why you never, never estimate your time of arrival at your destination by distance (miles or km). You estimate by Time. (ex. 10 miles can equal 40min - 1Hour depending on traffic. Sometimes more)

[@dahuffy]

Minneapolis too. They also have traffic lights to enter the freeway

[@neutrino78x]

I wouldn't know, I use public transit. 🙂 I understand that depending on the nature of your work, you might need to drive, such as if you're driving to different client sites, but if you stay at the same site all day, you may not need one. I grew up in the Bay Area, where we also have extensive transit, and don't know how to drive...I'll bet if your job is in the same location each day, you could look into it and find that public transit would work. 🙂There's lots of buses and trains in LA. I've been down there lots of times and didn't need a car. 🙂 it's great to go down the median of highway 87 here in San Jose, on the light rail, at 55 mph, when all those chumps are in cars going 2 mph. 🙂 Or fly by the bumper to bumper traffic on 101 between San Francisco and San Jose, flying by on Caltrain at 56 mph, it does take an hour....but it will take the cars a LOT MORE than one hour. 🙂(if there was no traffic, a car could do it in an hour. Obviously that's not the case at 5 pm). 🙂

[@cagal1066]

A true sign of love is being willing to pick someone up from LAX during rush hour and then drive them more than 60 miles away. That's devotion!😊

[@ofeliasuzette6701]

4:46 so the single one lane roads are Toll Roads. You pay to get on those so you can skip the traffic on the normal highway. That’s why you see less cars but sometimes it’s just as slow

[@KFA8piece]

Same with DC. It’s not uncommon for 10 miles on I-495 to take over an hour in peak rush hour traffic.

[@revgurley]

The intersection between I-85 and I-285 in Atlanta is called "Spaghetti Junction," even by traffic reporters. It's a 5 or 6 level interchange. But it still gets backed up during the two rush hours. If you want to see an incredible interchange, look up "diverging diamond intersections." You switch to driving on the other side of the road as you go over the interstate bridge, then back to the correct side on the other side of the bridge. Supposedly makes entering/exiting the interstate easier. I haven't made up my mind about them yet.

[@BarbaraShirley452]

I’ve driven through a few of those and find them very confusing. Now they’re building one in my town. I am not looking forward to it.

[@tinabradford5633]

I hated spaghetti junction. Thank you God I do not hafta anymore. God bless those that still hafta.

[@johnlivingston2929]

Im a local truck driver based outta Dublin Ga. and I drive to Atlanta everyday and I can honestly say ATL traffic is a pain at all levels.

[@Bookemkinzo]

Came here to say he should take a look at the spaghetti junction! I've driven it many times and 9 times out of 10, traffic is crazy bad. Not sure if it's the road or the driver's fault 🤔

[@revgurley]

@@Bookemkinzo Maybe both, as 285 is a racetrack.

[@kateg7298]

I haven't heard of the high 5, but Dallas has the Mixmaster. I hate driving through there. You have about 5 seconds to decide where you need to be and traffic frequently stops on a dime. It's like that in downtown Houston too. You have to have kind of a kamikaze attitude going in.

[@jayeisenberg3616]

Always hated Dallas highways... make 1 wrong turn and you end up in the underground tunnel for MILES...uhg

[@nospamforsomegirl]

@@jayeisenberg3616 It's worse than that. Take the wrong exit and you end up on a TOTALLY DIFFERENT FREEWAY! They should NOT be listed as EXITS.

[@carolynnorton9552]

I got stuck in Dallas traffic on the extreme left-hand side and had to drive out of Dallas just to take an exit!

[@DouglasMcCulley]

I took a physics class in college- the professor was going over 'centrifugal force'- he said to test it- next time you're on an interstate off ramp that's a clover leaf- wide circle, let go of the steering wheel for a split second and watch the car react and immediately correct and go straight... I had 2 passengers- totally freaked them out, it was fun.

[@bassage13]

You needed to take a college class to know that? Were you born yesterday?

[@neutrino78x]

@@bassage13 bro, college teaches you the math involved and how to apply it to other things. STEM degrees make a lot of money.

[@josephsoto9933]

The portion of Interstate-10 (I-10) between Houston, TX and its suburb city of Katy is 26 lanes wide. That's 13 lanes in each direction. I've been on that freeway many times. The worst time is when it rains. The land around Houston is VERY flat and that means that rain does not drain well at all. So accidents occur because of standing water.

[@prepperpatti-rc3nl]

@josephsoto: I try to avoid "The Katy".

[@broncobra]

Lived in Houston 12 years. The rare time it snowed or got icy was THE day to stay at home. Or the first day of rainy season, when all the oil rose to the surface.

[@christypriest30]

These places typically look more confusing than they are! Typically once you’re on the road and you know which direction you want to go there’s enough signage and/or road markers to help you traverse it

[@sheilacomstock2456]

My dad used to "surf" the chicago streets in the 1930. He would crouch on the runningbord below the view of the driver and jump from one car to the next.

[@karinwolf3645]

Yea... Bet they weren't going 70 miles an hour back then... 🤔🙄🤷😁🍹👵🐺🌵

[@gracothebull]

I'm a trucker I've been on all these interchange. Today, most impressive to me is still the CA14 and I5 interchange in Southern California. It's quite famous it's one of interchange that fell in 1994 Northridge earthquake.

[@cagal1066]

Really? I mean it's a cool one (& I was in Sylmar at the north end of the San Fernando Valley in 94, that was fun!) but why do you think the I-5/ I-14 interchange is so impressive? I mean the overpass from the westbound 60 to the southbound 91 is pretty darn impressive too.

[@jonadabtheunsightly]

In the Midwest, most frontage roads do not continue through major interchanges. There's usually one last chance, before the interchange, to get back on the highway if you like, or else turn away from the highway and go into town or whatever, or turn around and go back the way you came. I'm sure there must be exceptions here and there, but I don't know if I've ever personally seen a frontage road that goes through to the other side of a major interchange. (They *do* go through service interchanges in some cases, but that doesn't require adding any additional grade separation: the frontage roads can just have normal intersections with the secondary road, the same as the entrance and exit ramps do.)

[@mbourque]

This video is incorrect. The longest 'spanned' bridge is in NY (a bridge that is supported by cables from a tower or more), but the longest bridge span is in Louisiana. It's the Ponchatoula Causeway or the US Causeway. It's the world's longest bridge over water at 23.86 miles (38.40 km) and opened in 1956

[@jillonair]

I was just about to type the same thing. I love driving that causeway. Well, when there isn't a hurricane.

[@usmc24thmeu36]

Speed limit is too slow on that bridge​@@jillonair

[@jillonair]

@@usmc24thmeu36 Not too bad to deal with after you've seen someone go over the side into Pontchartrain. Prior to that, I would have agreed with you.

[@reginairvine3919]

Good lord how many times have I been over that bridge....even stuck on it a few times

[@jillonair]

@@reginairvine3919 When there's an accident, you know you're sittin' for a minute.

[@theycallmeashe]

I live right off of the 7 which has clover and diamond turns in WA. I like to think the people in my lane trying to merge into the HELL that is the busy street, all hear me coming as I just am yelling 'FML mooooooooooove' and then 'SoB..!' As I have to cross 2.5 (end of merge lane included) within half a block to get to my turn.

[@andromedaspark2241]

Cursing wasn't perfected until humanity created car traffic. I'm betting some folk driving wagons on dirt roads way back when probably had road rage verbal tantrums quite a bit, too. No insurance...your ox runs into my ox, we start calling curses down from the gods and throwing down. Kinda funny to think about, road rage as a historical concept. "Thou hast collided thine conveyance with mine, ye mangy pox-addled cur!"

[@michaelparham1328]

in 2008 or 09, I had a the early blackberry with gps, and we headed to Houston. Idk if it had a name, but it basically looked like this, and when we kind of got into the thick of it, my little cursor just started doing figure 8s on my phone. Had no clue what lane we were on, so it just pieced out.

[@Clarice-rp7mh]

So funny, figure 8s much like the human brain the first time you are ever on one of these.

[@willcool713]

A few places I've been have parks under interchange stacks, and it's sort of like being in an alien bone forest or under giant fossilized mushrooms. In places that also have hills and bridges, the lines can seem very swooping and graceful, especially where more than just two highways meet.

[@amandaadler1860]

I used to live in Dallas, TX, and the first time when I moved there I was amazed at the spaghetti interchanges. We don’t have those up in the northern US because the bridges freeze too easily being suspended in the air. Also, when you’re up there on the highest ramps, the sidewalls are tall enough that you really don’t notice how much is below you, unless you’re in a semi truck and super tall up.

[@philipbutler6608]

I have never been on the top of the high five I use the bottom one usually.

[@ArleneAdkinsZell]

What a fun reaction. There was an interchange up in Knoxville that was called Malfunction Junction until they finally engineered some big stacked interchanges to replace it.

[@chetstevensq]

When I drove big trucks I used to love / dread going west on I-20 into Dallas heading for the I-35E South because that would put you on the top of a five stack with a left curving (driver side) tilt. Add in the height of the truck cab and you are looking over the concrete barrier down to the ground way way way below. It's an interesting 15 to 20 seconds.

[@kens97sto171]

One that always made me nervous was I-35 South into Laredo. There was an exit to the right that headed over to the Truck parking in an Industrial park ... There was a singe lane flyover that was REALLY high. Was a bit scary due to it being very narrow, but also tall.. so you could easily see over the concrete wall to the ground. I think it may no longer be there.. I just looked at Maps.. and I don't see the road anymore. I think they use a frontage road and now just a surface road to get over to that are.. was about 18 plus years ago I was on it last. Or maybe it turned into I-69 Not really sure.

[@patwalker5133]

You have to understand that this is where the traffic laws come into play. With the merging of traffic, usually, the one that is leaving has to slow down to exit anyways thereby making it easier for the car coming on to pick up speed and enter the flow of traffic without creating a traffic slow down. You will get people that play the entitled game and that is why you never insist on the right-of-way. Plus, it is hard to see, but there are plenty of signs that tell you when to change lanes or what lanes you need to be in for your destination. Like "San Francisco Left 3 lanes only" or "Reno Exit 1/2 mile" and then "To Reno merge Right". That way you are not trying to cut over 3-4 lanes at the last minute to take the correct route.

[@wschmrdr]

Oh there's no underground, the High Five is quite the above ground marvel. Normally the stacks have four, but Texas lines their interstate highways with frontage roads (or feeder, or service, or insert a random Texan giving their local term) that allow for local businesses "along the highway" along with intersections for crossing roads, not to mention the Texas U-turn. These frontage roads means a fifth level. Sure, you could use the frontage roads as a "volleyball interchange" between the highways, but the federal government requires that two interstate highways receive full direct connections between them unless grandfathered in.

[@danielmcgraw7908]

That multi-lane, wall to wall car filled road you stopped on and commented "we don't have that"? That's EVERY DAY in Los Angeles, and that many lanes too.

[@neutrino78x]

hence the extensive public transit in LA 🙂 You should try it. I don't even know how to drive, as I'm from the SF Bay Area, where we also have an extensive transit system. 🙂

[@cagal1066]

​@@neutrino78xI tried for years back in the '90s. And it would add

[@cagal1066]

​@@neutrino78xI tried for years back in the '90s. And it would add

[@cagal1066]

​​@@neutrino78xI tried public transportation in LA for years back in the '90s and it would double the time required to get anywhere.

[@neutrino78x]

@@cagal1066 " tried public transportation in LA for years back in the '90s and it would double the time required to get anywhere." That's every city in the world. But remember, it doesn't take 2x as long if it's rush hour and you're on the light rail. 🙂

[@larryprice5658]

And every time we are stuck in traffic we want to know when are they going to add more lanes.

[@jadeh2699]

😄😄😄😄😄

[@Benshaus]

More lanes doesn't fix traffic

[@thelasticonoclast9467]

“Why is that guy driving with his emergency flashers on?” That’s a “wife or gf question” if I’ve ever heard one. And the answer always is: “How the F would I know, why don’t you ask him!?” 😂😂 AMIRITE?

[@mrhelsel]

The first interchange that you showed on this video it we have one just like it. It’s called the malfunction junction that’s in Michigan in the Metro Detroit area. where the first interstate was built, the first car was built and the first traffic light on a street called Woodward in downtown Detroit

[@JordynOrca]

If you're trying to navigate these, just know which exit you need to take and follow the signs. It can be overwhelming to drive on the opposite side of the car and try to watch your GPS. If it's talking to you, it's probably fine - I always turn mine off. My husband and I did not have phone GPS back in 2009 when we went on our honeymoon to Ireland. He had to drive because it was stick shift. It took all his concentration to drive and I had to use the map and operate the wipers when it rained because it was too much for him to do anything else. Maybe if it wasn't stick shift he would have been fine. Anyway, you just watch the signs for your exits and gently switch lanes. If you miss your exit, just go on and turn around somewhere. If you try to force it when you've almost missed the turn, you may cause an accident. It seems overwhelming, but with the amount of traffic we have, it's way better than a roundabout and they're comfortable once you've done them.

[@MrJest2]

On one hand, people tend to decry the use of space for these sort of interchanges... but what many people forget is that the US has a _lot_ of land. It's not like in Texas they'll run out of space - as long as it's well-planned, there is more than enough space to do whatever you want. Also, outside of the major cities where there is a lot of traffic in a small area, most US Interstates tend to be two lanes in either direction for most of their distances. Sometimes you can go hundreds of miles without anything more complicated than a stop sign at intersecting roads, especially in the agricultural middle of the country.

[@asmoduce]

The High Five is a blast, if you are old enough to remember what came before (the interchange of 635 and 75 was notoriously bad, for decades). The Five is long since finished now, but one side of one of the highways is just now being upgraded to take advantage of the 5 levels properly. THAT is a mess, to say the least... (fun trivia bit: Texas Instruments has a major research and dev complex at one "corner" of the High 5. There is a "chemical cracker" there, used to break down volatile chemical compounds. If that ever fails, the "energy release", would topple the entire High Five in seconds...)

[@downrighttt]

I'm from New Hampshire (rural, two lanes each way kinda highways, some denser areas it can get up to 3-4 lanes). One of my best friends is going to school in Dallas, Texas, the home of a proposed 28 LANE WIDE interstate. 88% of Texas' transit budget is spent on roads. It's insane down there...

[@emilyb5307]

Many of these roads and interchanges actually get nicknames. CT for instance has "The Mixmaster", which is a meeting of route 8 and interstate highway 84 (North/South and East/West). It's called that because of the complexity and how many roads, ramps, rails and more that are included. On top of that it's high volume and located outside a major city.

[@derred723]

The San Francisco Bay area has an interchange we call "The Maze" cause basically it's confusing as fuck lol.

[@saraheller6553]

We do still have model T's and A's. They are just usually only driven in and for car shows. 😊

[@stephaniefoster1964]

In Baltimore, we have the triple bridges- it's where I-695, the Baltimore beltway and I-70 meet. Lower bridge - 70 to 695, middle bridge 695 to 70, upper bridge is I-70 (the beginning or end of the interstate); there's a sign that says it's 2250 miles to Dt Xove, CO. The Park-n-Ride is dope... its a semi layover location, awa the starting/ending point of bus rides for all kinds of excursions.

[@Richard-c5w]

The 401 in Ontario Canada would really blow his mind where it gets up to 22 lanes of traffic.

[@ronwest7930]

It was fun trying to figure out what lane to be in.

[@boostedlss6450]

You should see how North Americans react with the Roundabout concept. A light would be faster.

[@Lina_unchained]

I'm sorry, I'm from Massachusetts. I cannot get over "roundabout" 😂😂😂 we call it a rotary

[@kateg7298]

Man, I struggled with roundabouts in England. I kept thinking I was going to get hit.

[@tahliasgoddaddy]

I'm an American 5th generation Floridian. I love the roundabouts. They keep traffic moving much more smoothly. My only complaint is all the idiots that want to treat it like a 4 way stop. It's not a stop. You only have to stop if someone else has the right of way!! And you can't merge smoothly. I really wish the police would sit at the roundabouts and stop people who are being stupid.

[@Benshaus]

@@Lina_unchained A rotary!? I've never heard someone call it that

[@debbylou5729]

You’re talking about a traffic circle. Americans handle them just fine

[@kristend344]

I've driven in many states. while Texas has areas with heavy traffic, I prefer how they do their freeways for efficiency - though something is *always* under construction . . . . . .

[@jayeisenberg3616]

I'm from San Antonio, that stack, at 281 and 1604, has been completed for quite a few years and yes, it's massive.

[@KFA8piece]

There’s a section of road in Virginia, just south outside of DC where the I-95 intersects with I-495, I-395, and a few other local roads and you have basically a double stack like this. It’s known as “The Mixing Bowl.” If you are not use to it, it’s VERY easy to end up on the wrong road going the wrong direction. Especially the exit from I-95 going North towards DC with route 2, I-495, and I-395. All lanes converge together and then fan and divide. Better know which lane turns into the one you need and already be in it by time you reach where it fans cause there’s no easy going around to right yourself if you get it wrong.

[@boroblueyes]

Also squeezed in the interchange was a high voltage powerline too. Those lightpoles are pretty cool also. The ring of lights up top is lowered to the ground for maintenance.

[@jovetj]

12:52 _Below grade_ means below the elevation of level ground. _Underground_ implies a tunnel or structure below grade that is not exposed to the sky.

[@fturla___156]

Like Texas, the Las Vegas area is transitioning into a 3 to 4 stack level highway scheme. Prior to 1970 it was only grade level roads with the railroad occasionally creating dual stacking when entering and exiting the city area. Then the major highway projects came on board and two and three stack highways became more frequent up to 2020. The city decided to balloon its economy with professional football, baseball, hockey, and now a formula one racetrack, so, the transition to triple and four stack highways is just getting started.

[@debramulcahy9979]

I lived in Houston when learning to drive, they called it the “spaghetti bowl”. This was many years ago so it is much bigger now!

[@camogrizz3293]

"Water tunnel, What's that for?" haha

[@MoreAdamCouser]

Pls don’t 🤣

[@camogrizz3293]

​@@MoreAdamCouser As a american, Thanks for always making me laugh, I love your content.

[@DouglasMcCulley]

basically, just follow the signs- you're not really aware of the levels/stacks, etc. when you're on the roads.

[@MrJest2]

One thing the US highway system tends to do really well is informational signs. There are many countries that don't, and it's much harder there.

[@michellecrutchfield8701]

Okay Adam, it's kind of a good thing to note, that if you come to the US, and visit the Atlanta, GA area, we have VERY similar roads here too. We have one that's lovingly called: "Spaghetti Junction" by us locals. It's not as impressive as some of those Texas roads, but, if it's your first massive interchange expressway to come across, it's pretty intimidating, if you're driving it! LOL! 🤣❤

[@emilyabernathy952]

Hey Adam I hope you're doing fine today. One thing I noticed in the comments section that nobody else has mentioned about the stacked Bridges. To be honest I don't remember where exactly in California it was at, BUT some years back where in California had one of its many earthquakes. It cost an area of all the stacked bridges in one spot to collapse one on top of each other as it went down. The only good part about it I guess you could say is because there wasn't that much traffic at the time. But I can remember watching the news on TV and seeing people trying to rescue other people caught up underneath the bridge that had been over them that had fell down on top of the one below. Granite earthquakes don't happen all over the us as often as they do in California but still this is the result of too many cars on the road and what can happen when you have these kind of stacked Bridges during an earthquake or extreme natural disaster. Oh by the way , YES , there are at least 2 that I know of where they have traffic tunnels that actually go "" UNDER "" the width of damn Rivers. I've seen some pictures and reports of them and I tell you what. Usually most stuff don't bother me but not just NO , but HELL NO !!!!! 😱😱😱😱😱. For myself I am never never never never driving in a bridge """ under"""". A river or any kind of water at all !!!!! No, No, No ~~ ain't going to happen. I do love watching your reviews and reactions Adam. Keep up the great work. ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤. May God bless you take care of yourself. Sending much love to you and yours stay safe and healthy.

[@kevinbeach3621]

That was in 1989 in Oakland. My mother grew up in Alameda so I was out there several times as a child and was in a car traveling both decks of that highway. The reason it was fairly empty is the world series was happening at the time of the quake.

[@BustaCap]

The smaller roads between the two highway side are toll roads or HOV lanes. You have to pay to use the Toll road and the HOV requires their to be 2 or more passengers in the vehicle. Promotes car pulling.

[@danielcummins5092]

Oftentimes, those special lanes that are separate are Express Lanes, designed to bypass the onramps and offramps to keep the speed going for those that don't need to enter or exit. They are free to use if you are carpooling, but they are toll lanes if you are by yourself.

[@coreyverisario6570]

Hey Adam! Thanks for your reaction videos. Have to say this was a good intro. I liked how you rolled into what video you were seeing today. Keep up the good work. Im glad you enjoy the US so much. Living here, makes me wonder why you do. Lol. Hello from the Chicago IL area!

[@MoreAdamCouser]

Thank you so much Corey!

[@kevincamp2913]

Oklahoma uses frontage roads as well in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. It gives a driver the chance to exit and turn back if they miss an exit instead of driving for miles to exits, crossover and return. It definitely helps with traffic.

[@TheGuruwan2b]

That many highways means there is always construction happening. I'm 65 and they have been working on I-35 my entire life. (Lone Star = one star on TX flag)

[@IOSARBX]

More Adam Couser, I love this video!

[@MoreAdamCouser]

Thank you!!

[@P-M-869]

I have driven on some of the very high ramps at night with a thick fog. It was hard to see the concrete guide rails. In California they have a double stack highway, where one road is elevated right over the grade level road with both highways headed to the same place.

[@-stev0brlne-602]

"The Lone star State" is just a nickname for Texas because it temporarily was its own independent republic and it had a flag with just one single star on it, hence "Lone Star" Also, I just thought it'd be fun to note that I was just beginning to learn to drive when my family took a trip to Texas and I drove all over the place, including on the Dallas High 5. The maze of roads combined with Texans' tendency to drive WAY over the speed limit and be very aggressive with other drivers, my family was, needless to say, terrified lol.

[@christypriest30]

One of my favorite childhood memories is my dad taking us to an underwater tunnel where they used to live in Virginia. I think it’s the Hampton roads tunnel or something. I did find it again when I was an adult and took my sons through it too when we were around the Richmond area once. I believe it goes under the James River and I’m estimating that it may be about a mile long. I thought it was so cool as a kid even though I had visions of there being a crack and the whole thing flooded.

[@warriyorcat]

The M6 - US131 interchange is a textbook cloverleaf (literally - it's the Wikipedia image for the article on Cloverleafs), and like 10 miles up the road in Grand Rapids is a weird-ass interchange that's not fun to navigate during rush hour. It's oddly designed because US131 and I-196 have to navigate around the Grand River.

[@KeepEvery1Guessing]

Just know the route numbers you want and pay attention to the signs, even if it feels as tough they're pointing you the wrong way. And keep right, not left.

[@rodney-m7g]

Once I was going to see a distributor in New Jersey . Their building was right next yo a multiple highway interchange . I could see the building from the highway , but couldn't figure out how to get there . I went around and around and back and forth so many times that when I turned in my expense report , I had paid the SAME TOLL BOOTH 5 times .

[@JIMBEARRI]

The Katy Freeway in Texas has SIX travel lanes in each direction; PLUS three high-capacity/mass transit lanes as well as four feeder lanes in each direction. Total 26 lanes wide. Ontario Highway 401 in Canada is 18 lanes wide at one point in Toronto.

[@twoalpha09]

Yeah and that 401 is always backed up 😢

[@catlady443]

that is a normal amount of Traffic for Las Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Waco (Texas), San Antonio. there are a few others like that scattered around the country. I went from Dallas, through Waco, Austin, San Antonio without hitting Rush hour once. I left at 10 am. That way you hit each city a lower traffic. Arrived in Corpus Christi about 7 PM and we were dreading it because it's rush hour. we go to the middle of the mass of traffic and started laughing so hared. The traffic there was only a little worse than 1 am in Dallas.

[@The_Stoned_One]

In Dallas Ft Worth its called "the Mix Master"

[@charlesyeargan]

There's A Set of Bridges In North Dallas, Texas Called The "High 5"

[@jovetj]

🤯

[@bradenplaysgames7995]

I used to live in Katy Texas? I worked downtown. It’s about 12 to 15 miles and would take me an hour. That part of the Katy Freeway was 20 lanes eight driving lanes on each side and two turning lanes.

The single lanes around 5:00 Are for cars with 2 or more people. No trucks. it's to encourage car pooling. Are Freeways and Interstates are awesome when use is low. But some of them are essentially parking lots at rush hours. But at 11pm on a weeknight you can cross Texas cities in a flash. If you are crossing a texas city with the work commuters, hope you brought plenty of gas and a sandwhich.

[@CharynGant]

OMG, your reactions are priceless! 🤣 It's so cool to see the reaction from people who don't drive this madness everyday! We don't even think about it.

[@SonOfMuta]

3:14 "What does Lone Star State mean?" Google is free

[@TeddGCM]

The longest bridge over water is the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in Louisiana. It spans over 23 miles and you actually lose sight of land for about 8 miles.

[@anthonyesparsen7776]

You can find everything in the USA. all climates

[@cathirodrigo2933]

4:50 most of those single lanes roads are exit/entrance ramps to smaller/bigger roads. 😉

[@spydergtcv1]

One of those fancy interchanges is in Orlando, where you are planning to visit. in the scene with the building with the green pyramids on top that was Orlando. That highway merges with an east west highway and has some very tall bridges.

[@andrewmccampbell3877]

5:08 pretty sure those are separate on/off ramps for a toll express lane

[@jjbud3124]

The roads look confusing from above, but they are actually pretty simple to drive on and they are always very well marked. Best part - no traffic lights.

[@forceinfinity]

Seattle Washington has a crazy interchange complex between Interstate 5, Interstate 90, the West Seattle Bridge and the area north of the I-5/i-90 interchange where I-5 splits into a partial multi-level freeway going into downtown. Not sure who came up with the idea of having express lanes sit under the main freeway for a significant distance

[@kevinlewallen0]

As a truck driver of 20 years I’ve driven every major freeway in the US. Pull up a map and look at US highway and interstate roads. It’s huge. I’ve probably driven 2 million miles easily.

[@jahearme4259]

HOV lanes Aka highly occupied vehicle lanes are often times running parallel with other roads

[@Koakoa45]

Where I live on the coast of Mississippi we have roundabouts and roads that switch you from driving on right side to left side then back again. And our roundabouts are all different styles.

[@jovetj]

That's called a Diverging Diamond interchange. It's a newer, fancier type of diamond interchange, designed to eliminate left-turn conflicts.

[@Barb5001]

Are throes in the UK so stupid to think that road interchanges in the US are mostly all like this?

[@moe92870]

4:42 Those are express lanes. In most states they're used like toll lanes, so you pay to get there faster, suposedly.

[@BuckyBarnesNC]

First because as an Irish American, Adam and I would drink so many pints together! I’m also Army so I want to see how many we can drink. Come to Atlanta! Edit, I wasn’t first. 😂

[@larryprice5658]

Not underground. They dig a trough or channel six meters deep.

[@metalslinger]

Check out the intersection of NC-87 and I-95 in Fayetteville NC. That is a cloverleaf done correctly.

[@chrisbauer1925]

Practical Engineering is a really good and well researched channel. I also recommend checking out his video covering the 2003 Northeast blackout or covering the 2021 Texas Blackout.

[@itsCorona29]

I wonder if there's a video similar to this about The Maze in the Bay Area in California. That interchange is a beast for those that aren't familiar

[@phillipbarkman297]

All three of the roads your asking about at 4:41 connect to one road in the same direction.

[@fosstheboss31]

"Spaghetti Junction in Atlanta, Georgia, is way bigger. Almost all major highways in Atlanta are minimum 8 lanes in 1 direction.

[@brettdwigans2758]

I can tell you that when traveling toward these overpasses it can be intimidating. I myself get severe anxiety upon realizing that the current highway that I'm on requires me to drive over the highest of these overpasses at speeds of 70 or 80 mph. I commonly find myself white knuckling the steering wheel while driving over them.

[@tagyouritification]

We can drive thru this, but throw a roundabout at us, and we're confused 😂

[@ReadR00ster1]

The clover (sometimes called a "jughandle" ) is so you don't have to get into the left lane, you can just stay in the right lane and take the first or second exit depending on which direction you wan to go.

[@jovetj]

A jughandle is a different type of interchange. Think of a half-cloverleaf.

[@lindah5910]

In California, USA interchanges are common place. When you are driving you are not confused by a straight down full view like we are looking at in this video. One interchange I refuse to further attempt is the Alhambra Triangle in Sacramento, California (aka the capital of California). I imagine that a civil engineer was in a long term snit about something and decided to take it out on the Alhambra Triangle. It is a knot of epic proportions and the signage is less than situation normal. No thanks. I will go around and travel through a few more surface streets with stoplights when visiting my daughter who lives in the Big Tomato (what we lovingly call Sacramento). Thanks for posting fun videos, dude!

[@thickernell]

Yeah, Grady! I love his channel. Of course I’m a fellow engineer and geek.

[@michelleponzio]

The Beltway going through Maryland, where 495 and 95 split towards Baltimore, Virginia, and DC respectively

[@debbers]

You will only find roads like that in the big cities, so stay away from those when you visit and you'll be fine! I stay away from them. I'm a small town girl and want no part of that scene!

[@donaldhester6555]

Dwight D Eisenhower was impressed with the German Autobahn and he was the one who instituted the interstate system. A goos highway system is number 1 infrastructure for any country that aspires to be an economic power.

[@TheNighthhawk]

I delivered things down around Huston TX, from Denver CO. I would get on that big mess and every time would have to turn around and drive back, because I would miss my exit. It's crazy.

[@cynthiapeller2195]

You might like a video on the Katy freeway in Houston Tx. I find it to be a hideous scar on the city as a whole, no matter how many lanes you add, it’s always a cluster F@“k.

[@tazepat001]

I remember one time when i went to LA. On the way back home. I took the 10. Got off at the 110 just cuz i wanted to ride downtown LA. Connected to the 5 and then back to the 10 again to head south. Good driving times man

[@DennisRabidue]

Hey bro I always see Europeans reacting to Texas or Florida , your missing out on a lot in the Midwest , there are over 94 000 miles of shoreline on the Great lakes alone , in Michigan there is 54 ooo miles of rivers , we have all 5 seasons , the world's best fishery and the best scuba diving on wrecks that are 300 years old or more . We only go south in February other wise we stay where it's comfortable 9 months a year

[@EmceeCh4p]

I wish you could see the disaster that is Interstate 30, which connects my hometown to the Dallas area