High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Travel

Many cities across the U.S. are currently utilizing High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes in their highway infrastructures, with the aim of decreasing congestion and improving air quality by encouraging increased use of public transportation and carpooling. High Occupancy Vehicle lanes are typically restricted to vehicles carrying two or more passengers including the driver, and motorists caught not complying with the lane’s intent are subject to penalties. Such restricted expanses of road are based partly on the principle that increasing the average number of passengers per vehicle will subsequently increase the number of passengers who can utilize a particular lane of the highway at once, which will hopefully reduce the number of vehicles crowding the roadways at a given time.

The traffic flow of High Occupancy Vehicle lanes can operate in one of a few ways, depending on what system is determined to be most efficient. Concurrent flow HOV lanes are separated from the standard lanes, usually by a barrier, but accommodate traffic flowing in the same direction as the regular lanes. Another type of HOV lane, the reversible lane, is usually situated in between the opposing lanes of traffic, and its traffic flow can be redirected during different times of the day to accommodate the travel direction with the heaviest flow. For instance, a reversible HOV lane may accommodate commuters traveling into a city in the morning, but flow may change to the direction leading out of the city in the afternoon rush hour when a majority of commuters are headed the opposite direction. A third type of HOV lane, called a contra flow lane, temporarily utilizes a lane from the opposite side of the highway to accommodate heavy traffic at certain times when traffic volume is high.

When used in the proper circumstances, HOV lanes can shorten commute times for multiple passenger vehicles and lessen congestion in other lanes, though there is some question about whether the benefit is perceived as substantial enough to encourage individual drivers to carpool or utilize public transportation. Studies on the effectiveness of HOV lanes have produced mixed results. HOV lanes can certainly be beneficial in areas where the traffic flow is considerable enough for a High Occupancy Vehicle lane to actually improve traffic flow. In some cases, where use of an HOV lane did not justify restriction, HOV lanes have proven ineffective and lanes have been converted back to standard lanes.

About the Author: Greg Chapman, of Greg Chapman Motors, is a leading provider of used cars in Austin TX. For more information please visit Greg Chapman Motors.

Vehicle Rust Prevention

Rust on a vehicle is not only an unappealing nuisance, but it can lower the resale value of the vehicle and in extreme cases lessen its structural strength.

The process of rusting is actually called oxidation, and results from long term exposure of certain metals to oxygen, with water acting as a catalyst. Though exposed metal on your vehicle is seemingly solid, it actually contains small cracks and blemishes which can be penetrated by water molecules. The hydrogen molecules of the water can react with the metal to produce acids, which in turn expose more metal and influence further corrosion. This is the reason that a small amount of rust seemingly affects a perpetual cycle of spreading to a larger area and diminishing the attractiveness and quality of a vehicle immensely.

The ideal rust solution is preventative; it is much easier to take precautionary measures against rust than to combat it once it has formed. Small areas of rust can eventually become extensive damage if measures are not taken to prevent its progression. Washing and waxing your vehicle regularly can significantly reduce the likelihood of the vehicle developing rust.

A small investment in a touch up paint kit can mean the difference between keeping your vehicle in excellent condition and watching helplessly as it becomes overcome with rust. A simple precaution you can take is periodically inspecting the painted surface of your vehicle for any scratches, dings or otherwise exposed metal, and taking action to prevent the formation of rust immediately. Covering exposed areas with touch up paint followed by a clear coat may be all you have to do to keep rust from forming. Touch up paint is available for essentially every vehicle on the road. If you encounter the need to order touch up paint to match your vehicle and there is a delay, you may use clear nail polish to cover and protect the exposed area in the meantime.

If you drive in a coastal environment or an area where roads are salted for winter weather, your vehicle is particularly vulnerable to the corrosive tendencies of rust. For this reason, it is especially important for you to have your vehicle cleaned and waxed regularly for protection, preferably by a professional service which cleans salt and debris from the underside of the vehicle as well as the outside.

If rust has already formed on your vehicle, a more intensive process must be undergone to rid the vehicle of rust and prevent its reformation. It is recommended to consult a professional if you have a need for rust removal.

About the Author: Greg Chapman, of Greg Chapman Motors, is a provider of used cars in Austin TX. For more information please visit Greg Chapman Motors.

Which Came First – the Automobile or the Roads?

Today, one can easily travel by automobile from one edge of the country to another given the time, patience and resources. Today’s vast roadway infrastructure combined with ever improving automobile manufacturing technology gives motorists of the United States travel options that were unheard of just a few decades ago. Drivers can now navigate thousands of miles on paved roads through rural areas and metropolitan cities with equivalent ease, though such widespread road accessibility has not always been the case. Road building is not by any means a new phenomenon, and can be traced back thousands of years. But the modern techniques and materials used in road construction today have given us safer, more durable roadways capable of enduring increasing traffic and lasting years longer than roads of the past.

Primitive road building relied mostly on conglomerates of gravel and sand. When commercially available automobiles were introduced and began to experience increasing popularity, shortfalls of the few roads that existed became apparent. Dirt roads throughout America soon proved inadequate for even the bicycle and wagon travel of the time. Booming popularity of Henry Ford’s Model T in the early 1900s spurred federal involvement in road development. A series of legislative acts throughout the years following facilitated the construction of new, asphalt paved roads that would expand America’s horizons for leisurely travel and commerce alike. Evolving military needs during World War II shifted the focus of road construction, prompting the proliferation of military use roads that were capable of withstanding heavier loads.

After World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt authorized a “National System of Interstate Highways,” though a lack of funding prevented progress on the construction of an interstate highway system until several years later when President Dwight Eisenhower approved the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956. With federal funding finally in place to back the plan, construction began on the vast system of interstates that now connects major cities throughout the country and gives Americans access to modern roadways for both long and short commutes.
Residents of the United States are all affected in some way by the intricate system of roadways that now exists throughout the nation, either directly as travelers or indirectly through the use of products which are transported thousands of miles along U.S. roads and interstates to reach consumers. Road construction and the automobile industry have significantly influenced one another as they have both risen to unprecedented importance to the culture, lifestyle and commerce of America today.

About the Author: Greg Chapman, of Greg Chapman Motors, is a provider of used cars in Austin TX. For more information please visit Greg Chapman Motors.