Originally Posted by
Dahon.Steve
I've seen too many tourist creating routes and asking forum members their opinion if the roads safe. In almost every case, many of the highways they selected were fat out dangerous. Instead of riding through subdivisions, they selected expressways because it's easier to follow them using a road map. A safe route requires many turns and planning. This reason more than anything else is why I use a GPS.
I personally enjoy riding on expressways. I'm not allowed to do so in my home state, but I often use them when touring in the west. I don't think they are too visually appealing, and you certainly have to be extra cautious when approaching ramps and interchanges. But I never feel safe on any road where there are cars present. At least on an expressway you usually have a broad shoulder to ride on. Expressways can shave a lot of time off of a long ride, whereas, hunting around for small back roads can add lots of miles and hours to a trip, even if you have a GPS to point you in exactly the right direction. If you spend all of your time in subdivisions you end up stopping and starting all the time at stop signs and traffic lights. It's not that I think people should always try to avoid subdivisions, but you're wasting your time and probably missing the scenery if you try to ride in subdivisions as much as possible.