[PRCo] Re: Gas Prices and Air Line Fares

[Schneider Fred]

And Fred finds it fun to look at the nation from the ground.  It can  
be pretty down there.   And driving isn't really all that stressful  
once you are west of the Mississippi or east of a 30- to 100-mile- 
wide belt along the California coast.   You get to look at the flowers.

Stressful is driving on those portions of the German autobahn network  
where there are no speed limits.  You will have a speed range from as  
low as 40 to 50 with trucks, and 60 to 150 miles per hour for cars.    
A person in the passing lane has a legal right to pass you and you  
have a legal obligation to see him coming and get the hell out of his  
way.   It means that you need to be aware of where every vehicle is  
on that road for a half mile or so behind you and a half mile or so  
ahead of you in all lanes and to try to be able to predict accurately  
what each one in going to do next.   Fortunately, predicting is a lot  
easier there than here.   But a 300-mile trip in 3 hour 20 minutes  
can leave you really stressed out.   (Why did I pick 3:20?   The  
Federal government used to say that 90 mph or 145 km/h was a safe  
driving speed because that was the mid range of most vehicles on the  
road.)

Believe me, there is no comparison in the United States.

Perhaps that is why German rail captures a surprising share of  the  
long distance market.   It's a lot more comfortable than driving.

On Dec 29, 2008, at 3:14 PM, Derrick J Brashear wrote:

> On Mon, 29 Dec 2008, Phil Craig wrote:
>> for holiday season travel between Newark and San Diego; I did not  
>> book
>> early enough to get a good rate.  In fact, I could have got a $348  
>> round
>> trip rate (per person) for travel on Thursday evening, December 28th
>> with a return from San Diego tomorrow, Tuesday, December 30th, until
>> about two weeks ago.  Why didn't I book it?  Because I could not  
>> get Sue
>> to agree fly during the holiday season until all of the cheap  
>> seats were
>> sold out.  Timing is everything; so is decisiveness.   Still, I  
>> need to
>
> Being decisive sometimes means knowing someone will capitulate, and
> pre-emptively booking.
>
> As to flying, I seldom find it less stressful than driving for an
> equivalent time investment, sadly.
>
>