I-95 Fl. to Va

[jjcook]

Just drove from exit 3 in Fl. to exit 104 in Va on I-95 the road is a disgrace. In Ga. it was like having speed bumps on a 70 mph road at every bridge , in Sc. the right lane is full of cracked pavement and holes, Nc the road wasn't to bad except in some areas Va was pretty good until you get around Richmomd then the bumps begin. Needless to say it was not a good trip towing a 5th wheel with a wife that is having back problems. You would think that someone in the U.S.A. could figure out how to build a road that has a smooth transition from road to bridge and back from bridge to road. Oh well I vented for what good it will do.

[cfo111]

I-95 was always bad glad I move to east TN need not to use that shitty road any more.

[kenandterry]

I experienced the same thoughts using that same route.
I thought it was just us here in Canada that had really bad highways due to the frost and ice causing pot holes.

What’s the excuse that far South?

[NMWildcat]

There are roads like that in every state. Seems that these days they only get repaired when they are bad enough to start causing damage. They finally fixed most of the bad stretches of I10 NM/AZ after about 5 years of having to use the left lane so you wouldn't lose a tire in the holes of the right lane.
I40 near Flagstaff is always bad.
All you can do is slow down and watch for holes large enough to lose a tire in.

[Bluepill]

A lot of the Interstate Highway System is aging out, and our wonderful government is busy off chasing dollars from corporate "supporters". The country is in a major state of dysfunction and division and I don't expect to see much relief in the near future. Sad.

[Kayak30336]

I am 200% convinced that it is an engineering impossibly for anybody to construct a smooth transition from the road surface to a bridge🤪

[A32Deuce]

Its sad. They saw what the Germans did ti their super highway, thought it was a great idea then skimped on the build. Did everything in half what the Germans did the are slow on the proper repairs!

[Ford1]

I can empathize with you. I make that trip about twice a year and it seems that the same problems exist all the time. Only difference is that over the years the conditions change from one state to the other. Another thing that I have noticed is that the teeth chattering has also changed based on the rig that I have had. Seems the worst was a 26 foot class C. Since I have moved up to the Class A, it has not been AS bad. May have something to do with the wheelbase length versus the distance between the joints in the concrete roadway well as vehicle weight. Either way, it is still not a pleasant ride through all states.

[5picker]

The interstate road system in this country is in poor shape in most states and has not got better except for the few places where it simply HAD to be fixed because of accidents.

It is a wonder our rigs even stay together.
We are from PA and it is as terrible in our state as any.

We've spent the winter in FL and will be making that same trip in a few weeks.

[kenandterry]

Originally Posted by 5picker

The interstate road system in this country is in poor shape in most states and has not got better except for the few places where it simply HAD to be fixed because of accidents.

It is a wonder our rigs even stay together.
We are from PA and it is as terrible in our state as any.

We've spent the winter in FL and will be making that same trip in a few weeks.

Why not take I-26 to Columbia to get off I-95, then I-77. You can decide then, to continue 77 or take 81 home.
I also like Hwy 219 but you can’t be in a hurry.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by kenandterry

Why not take I-26 to Columbia to get off I-95, then I-77. You can decide then, to continue 77 or take 81 home.

I also like Hwy 219 but you can’t be in a hurry.

Been there, done that too.
In fact that is how we came to FL the end of December. 219, 68, 79, 77, 26... they are all the same. It isn't any better than 95, 64, 66, 81 or any other Interstate number you want to mention.

Besides, going home we are headed to Myrtle Beach for a few weeks. We'll get a couple week break between teeth jarings!

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by kenandterry

I experienced the same thoughts using that same route.
I thought it was just us here in Canada that had really bad highways due to the frost and ice causing pot holes.

What’s the excuse that far South?

Overloaded trucks. Besides the ones that sneak by the weight stations, there are those that get waivers for the asking, and the hurricane waivers. Every time there is a hurricane, the southeastern governors issue a six-month waiver on weight limits. Given Hurricane Matthew in 2016, Florence in 2018, Michael in 2018, and Dorian in 2019, that's a lot of time where there are no limits.

[kenandterry]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Been there, done that too.
In fact that is how we came to FL the end of December. 219, 68, 79, 77, 26... they are all the same. It isn't any better than 95, 64, 66, 81 or any other Interstate number you want to mention.

Besides, going home we are headed to Myrtle Beach for a few weeks. We'll get a couple week break between teeth jarings!

Oh sure. Rub it in why don’t ya?
Been down in Florida all this time, and still taking time to do Myrtle, while the rest of us watch the snow melting around our rigs, still waiting to get back out there.
That’s just cruel man.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by Kayak30336

I am 200% convinced that it is an engineering impossibly for anybody to construct a smooth transition from the road surface to a bridge🤪

You are correct, and there is a simple reason for it.

A bridge is structural. The piers have to support the load of the roadway and traffic load. The piers go down to bedrock and don't move. (Some bridges even have telemetric sensors which will report shifts of a fraction of an inch.)

A roadway is built on a roadbed that's graded earth and a packed base usually of crushed rock. It will shift, but usually the whole thing does. An asphalt road flexes and a concrete road gets minor cracks.

The problem is where the edge of the sinking road meets the edge of the immovable bridge. As you stated, this can't be fixed, just patched.

Two interesting things:

1) The bigger trucks have a fairly similar spring rate. When they hit that second bump, leaving the bridge, there's a dip. There will be a second (and possibly third and fourth) dip after the first, and the gaps will be the same distance.

2) There are many vehicles with slow oil leaks. Oil will build up at a drop point until the drop gets large enough that it falls off. Hitting a bump will prematurely knock the drop off, so there will be a concentration of oil at each dip/bump. When you are driving and see one of those oil marks, you can slow down or change lanes to avoid the bump.

[JP Camper]

Try I-95 in MA. disgusting. I didn't think I-95 was that bad when we drove down in Nov.,

[jjcook]

I have been told by several people that in Germany and Italy the transitions from road to bridge and road over railroad tracks are a lot smoother than here.

[chapelt]

Weight stations? Heck most are closed.

[Xflyhighx]

Have snow and ice or ruff roads, your choice. That wasn’t hard to decide.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Xflyhighx

Have snow and ice or ruff roads, your choice. That wasn’t hard to decide.

Treating the roads for snow and ice is one thing, allowing the roads to get into blatant disrepair is another.

[Retired JSO]

South Carolina was the last state in the south to complete I-95. The section south of I-26 has never been updated and only has 2 lanes but recently they have tried to fix cracked cement roadway in that area. You should have traveled that section a few years back. SC state road department is a joke IMO. We traveled I -81 this summer from NC line to Maryland, roadway was in pretty good shape.