The City of U-Turns
It's been at least two years (maybe three or four) since I've been to the Detroit area. It's funny the types of things you remember. For example, I found that as I left the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, I immediately knew my way to the highway, and started recognizing landmarks right away. I even spotted the Middle Eastern restaurant that I ate at with the client's personnel last time.
One thing that slipped my mind from my prior experiences with the Detroit area was the thing with the U-turns. The road (it has a highway number, is it still a "road"?) past my hotel is four lanes wide, with a median that's approximately another three lane-widths in size. There's a lane-wide shoulder which becomes a right turn lane at intersections. I think crossing all of the lanes of the road is about a quarter of a mile. When roads this size meet, there aren't left turn lanes. To join this road (for both directions of travel), you keep right. If your intended direction of travel is to the left, soon after you turn right, you'll make your way to the left to hit a U-turn cutout. The signs posted before the turn look like curtain hooks. For both east and west, you turn right.
My first night in town, I was trying to find some food. So I turn right. I see something on the other side that catches my eye, so I move left to make a U-turn. But as I approached the turn-in (now on my right) for the restaurant, I overshot it, and discovered that it was my only opportunity. So now I had to change across several lanes of traffic again to make my way to the left to turn around. And do another U-turn to get to the restaurant again. Did it right this time, and now I have to go home. "Wait, was that my turn-in for the hotel? Yep, crap." More U-turns. Will I ever make a normal left turn again?!
One thing that slipped my mind from my prior experiences with the Detroit area was the thing with the U-turns. The road (it has a highway number, is it still a "road"?) past my hotel is four lanes wide, with a median that's approximately another three lane-widths in size. There's a lane-wide shoulder which becomes a right turn lane at intersections. I think crossing all of the lanes of the road is about a quarter of a mile. When roads this size meet, there aren't left turn lanes. To join this road (for both directions of travel), you keep right. If your intended direction of travel is to the left, soon after you turn right, you'll make your way to the left to hit a U-turn cutout. The signs posted before the turn look like curtain hooks. For both east and west, you turn right.
My first night in town, I was trying to find some food. So I turn right. I see something on the other side that catches my eye, so I move left to make a U-turn. But as I approached the turn-in (now on my right) for the restaurant, I overshot it, and discovered that it was my only opportunity. So now I had to change across several lanes of traffic again to make my way to the left to turn around. And do another U-turn to get to the restaurant again. Did it right this time, and now I have to go home. "Wait, was that my turn-in for the hotel? Yep, crap." More U-turns. Will I ever make a normal left turn again?!
posted by Sanford Owings at 7:19 PM
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