Forced to use the parkways

[YarisOwnersDad]

The old two lane road from my house to the town where I work has been closed and will remain closed for about a month for some repair work on a levee, so I am now forced to use the two parkways that will also take me from my house to work and back.

The two lane road is the shorter route by about three miles, and it is not as "boring" as parkway driving. So, instead of driving 24 miles each way, I will be driving 27 miles.

Theoretically, I should get better MPG on the parkways and offset the effect of the extra miles on gas consumption for the week. The problem is that coal trucks run those parkways, and they have rocks embedded in the mud on their axles. When they pass you and hit a bump in the road, the rocks fall off, bounce up off the pavement, and hit the front of your car. You have to drive at least 75 MPH to keep the coal trucks behind you, and there goes your MPG.

There doesn't seem to be a coal truck problem on the way home after work, so I can drive along about 60 MPH and get decent mileage. Wish I could do the same on the way in to work.

Tomster

[RUFFSTUFF]

Sounds horrible.

[talnlnky]

so what speed do you drive on the parkways.... if there aren't coal trucks?

[YarisOwnersDad]

Originally Posted by talnlnky

so what speed do you drive on the parkways.... if there aren't coal trucks?

Well, I would drive BOTH ways the way I drive coming home, i.e., 60 MPH. That should get me some pretty decent MPG.

Tom

[YarisOwnersDad]

Oh, I didn't mention that the coal is sprayed down with water to keep the dust down, and that makes a nice spray of water and coal dust that comes out of those trucks and gets all over your car as they pass you.

[talnlnky]

lame.... glad I don't live where you do.... sounds like the American Lung Associations most hated city to live in.

from my experience... 60mph doesn't net that great of mpg's.... granted the stretch that I drive at 60mph is only about 9 miles long.... When I drive that route (in 50F + weather) I usually only get around 40mpg. 40mph is where it's at, I get 46-54mpg on 9 miles trips at 40. Sucks that you only have two routes.... I've got at least 3... possibly 4 that could work... the 4th requires a long uphill (and downhill) and may or may not be great.... it might also be longer than the other three route.

[nemelek]

Staying ahead is a small price to pay. Rock chips and broken windshields will cost more than a drop of 2-3 mpg for a month.

[YarisOwnersDad]

I don't know what happened to my post, but earlier today I posted that I am glad that the coal trucks are running, even though they can be a pain. Coal being hauled means that people are working, and jobs are scarce these days. The abundance of coal in this area gives us very low electric rates for our homes and for our businesses.

I guess I should quit whining.

Tom

[tomato]

Originally Posted by YarisOwnersDad

Oh, I didn't mention that the coal is sprayed down with water to keep the dust down, and that makes a nice spray of water and coal dust that comes out of those trucks and gets all over your car as they pass you.

hope you keep your windows shut!
A good thing you got rid of the white car

There are a few refineries around here. When it rains (not often enough), the air is all clean, and you can smell some stuff like the dirt in people's yards, flowers. Feels real nice. Water on dust and particles is a good thing (well of course, the cars don't feel that way ;)

[2+2]

Originally Posted by YarisOwnersDad

I don't know what happened to my post, but earlier today I posted that I am glad that the coal trucks are running, even though they can be a pain. Coal being hauled means that people are working, and jobs are scarce these days. The abundance of coal in this area gives us very low electric rates for our homes and for our businesses.

I guess I should quite whining.

Tom

That post showed up in the "somewhat disappointed" thread.

About coal trucks and gravel trucks in general (bricks on wheels in my mind).

It's funny how they all have a sign on the back that tells you not to follow closer than 100 ft. Yeah right. It's kind of hard to keep your distance when they pass you and are suddenly just a few feet in front of you.

I drive a semi and I can't seem to stay away from those guys. I get windshields repaired asap but it's easy to miss the stone chips especially during bug season.

[YarisOwnersDad]

Originally Posted by 2+2

That post showed up in the "somewhat disappointed" thread.

About coal trucks and gravel trucks in general (bricks on wheels in my mind).

It's funny how they all have a sign on the back that tells you not to follow closer than 100 ft. Yeah right. It's kind of hard to keep your distance when they pass you and are suddenly just a few feet in front of you.

I drive a semi and I can't seem to stay away from those guys. I get windshields repaired asap but it's easy to miss the stone chips especially during bug season.

Thanks, 2+2. I deleted it from that thread after reading your post.

Tom

[bronsin]

See if Toyota comes out with a color: "coal black".

[Kaotic Lazagna]

I'd still drive 55 mph if the speed limit posted is 65 mph.

[Kioshi]

YarisOwnersDad,

Just my personal experience, you'd be better off losing the 2-5 mpgs from the car and saving the windshield. I got hit on 101S here from a semi. Luckily the crack hasn't got any bigger, but I learned my lesson being cheap w/ mpgs...I drive 70-75 now to avoid all those rocks hitting my car anywhere else when I commute.

On the last bar blinking, I've managed 382 miles going 72 mph Mon-Friday with semi stop n go traffic...I was surprised...

[Altitude]

Stay away from those trucks! I'm on my fifth - yes, fifth - windshield for my Wrangler.

While on my Yaris road trip this past summer, I heard a loud BANG! on what I thought was the windshield near the top, but I didn't see any damage so I forgot about it by the time I had stopped at a hotel for the day. While returning to my car from bringing in luggage I noticed a mark on my hood. It was a dent from a rock/asphalt chunk that is too small to be easily popped out but big enough to be noticeable (about the size of a dime and 1/8" deep.) Took the paint with it too.

[YarisOwnersDad]

Yeah, Peeps, I know I need to keep an eye on the rear view mirror, and if I see a coal truck bearing down on me, I need to get my speed up enough to stay ahead of it.

One thing I do sometimes is let them pass me, if their lane appears to be really smooth, which will make it less likely that the truck will bounce and dislodge the dried mud with embedded rocks. That is risky, though. The best thing is to stay ahead of them.

Tom

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Oh yes, if it's a semi carrying something that can dislodge, I speed away from it or let it pass me and I stay waaaay back. I even do it with tomato transporters.

[YarisOwnersDad]

OK, I took note of the odometer readings at each end of my commute this morning, and it turns out that the distance to my work place is actually 27.4 miles by the parkway route vs. 24.0 miles by the two lane roads I usually take.

This means that a week of commuting would tally 274 miles via the parkways vs. 240 miles via the old roads. I would have to see an increase from my current 38 MPG to 43 MPG in order to use the same amount of gas per week.

274 ÷ 43 = 6.37 gallons

240 ÷ 38 = 6.32 gallons.

Even if I could drive 60 MPH mornings and evenings, I don't think I would see an increase of 5 MPG by driving the parkways instead of taking the two lane roads like I usually do.

I'm not counting the miles I drive at lunchtime, but those miles are going to be the same, whichever route I take to work in the mornings and back home in the evenings.

Tom