Texas to Lexington, KY Alternate Routes than I-40? - Nap Areas??

[jin]

hi everyone:

I have a couple of questions. I'm going to try to do the drive straight through from Texas to Kentucky without stopping. I read the post about sleeping in your van and was wondering if anyone knew of any good places to take a 2 hour nap along I-40. Im going to look for Flying Js but didn't know if anyone had first hand knowledge

Second question is someone told me betwen Little Rock and Memphis to get off of I-40 because of construction and take small roads (67 North to 14 to 55) through Union City then to Lexington. Has anyone done this drive? Is it better to stay on the highway? I don't know how fast you can go on those local roads (hoping speed limit is not 40 or 50!)

Has anyone done this drive? I'd probably hit Little Rock in the afternoon so possibly a lot of traffic but just wanted to know if it really was better to get off main highway.

I'm also having a hard time finding an app with directions that will allow me to preselect which methods I want to go. I don't know step by step directions only that I would map it to landmarks piecemeal. Is there no app that allows you to enter in several destinations that will give you in-app directions? I downloaded roadtrippers and the app doesn't igive directions. It uses google map or apple maps which will ignore your preselected routes.

Thanks!

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

Texas could be anything from Texarkana to El Paso, and the difference is pretty huge.

The reality is that even from Texarkana, you're talking about a trip that is over 700 miles and not a wise idea, especially if you are a solo driver. Frankly, if you're starting any farther away - even Dallas - which would be nearly 900 miles and would be extremely dangerous to try to do by yourself in one day, and a quick nap in a parking lot would not be nearly enough to keep you from being a danger to yourself of others. Presumably since you don't even think you'll get to Little Rock until the afternoon, you're looking at a drive that is 1000+ miles. Keep in mind Little Rock to Lexington is about the maximum that a professional driver would be allowed to do in an entire day! There is a very good reason for the safety laws that forbid professionals from trying to do any more than about 600 miles in a day.

The reality is that drowsy driving is every bit as dangerous as drunk driving, and trying to drive 900, 1000, or more miles in a single day is more than the body can safely do. There just is no way to beat human physiology, and no matter what you think you are capable of, your body has its limits. A quick catnap is not a replacement for real sleep, and really is just more likely to have you ignore the danger signs.

Without knowing your starting points, we really can't help you with ideas for routes, and trying to "beat" construction by spinning off onto 2 lane roads where your average speed is going to drop to 50 mph or less is rarely a wise idea, especially not in a "speed run."

As far as mapping, There are very much times were paper maps give you a much better picture than online software or apps, and you should never hit the road without having paper maps and the knowledge of how to use them.

[DonnaR57]

The one reality of interstate highway construction: their priority is that traffic is supposed to flow as smoothly as it can through the construction areas. Our interstates were built for the military and the commercial traffic to move quickly, so that we can get our goods safely. In my travels over the years, I've found that you may be inconvenienced with one-lane-each-direction for a few miles at a time, but a "pilot car" situation (where you physically have to stop on the freeway and wait to be led through) is more of something you'd see on those 2-land highways. If we're going to find construction (and during the summer, you will!), we'd rather see it on the interstates.

Michael said two things that I am going to completely agree with:

GET PAPER MAPS. No app is going to be perfect. If you don't have a AAA membership (that will get you all the state and USA maps that you need for your trip), then go to Wal-Mart or other big-box store and buy a Rand McNally atlas. As you pull into a new state and see the State Information or State Visitor Center at one of the first exits, go there and get a good state map. (We are AAA members and we often grab a state map at a visitor center, because they're usually more detailed than the AAA maps.)

DRIVE NO MORE than 600 miles per day. My husband was a long-distance trucker for a time, and that's about what you can drive in the 10 hours that anyone should be behind the wheel of a vehicle at any one time. Then, get a decent night's sleep. That way you can get up and drive the rest of the distance, whatever it is. Sleeping in your car is going to be difficult unless you own a van where you can stretch out. Flying J would be a decent place -- just ask them where you can park to sleep, and they'll point you in the right direction. But two hours is NOT going to do it. BTW, there are Flying J, Pilot, Love, and TA truck stops all along I-40.


Donna