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Broke Counties Turn Failing Roads To Gravel

To save money, more than 20 Michigan counties have decided to turn deteriorating paved roads back to gravel. Montcalm County estimates that repaving a road costs more than $100,000 a mile. Grinding the same mile of road up and turning it into gravel costs $10,000. At least 50 miles of road have been reverted to gravel in Michigan the past three years. I can't wait until we revert back to whale oil lighting and can finally be rid of this electricity fad.

4 of 717 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Gravel roads are cheap but need more maintenanc by Wyatt+Earp · · Score: 5, Funny

    You mean like in the Dakotas, Wyoming, Nevada, etc where the majority of roads in rural areas and some of the state highways have been gravel?

    I'm old, I remember when big stretches of Highway 63 in South Dakota were still gravel, as was Highway 73 south of Faith

  2. Re:Gravel roads are cheap but need more maintenanc by OeLeWaPpErKe · · Score: 5, Funny

    You should vote repub... , no wait demo...

    Say, which was the small government party again ?

  3. Re:Gravel roads are cheap but need more maintenanc by ObsessiveMathsFreak · · Score: 5, Funny

    Motorcycles are vehicle too!

    You know, I like to help you here guy. I'm sympathetic, I really am. But you've got to understand my position. It's just not possible to recognize motorcycles as legitimate road vehicles.

    I mean sure, no ones got a problem with big Harley's. But lets think for a moment about where this is leading us. Plastic exteriors motorbikes, dirt bikes, scooters ?! Jesus! Sooner or later, someone is going to stand up and argue that electric bikes be allowed on public roads and form there it's one small step to honest to Gods pedal powered bicycles! This is how slippery the slope is right here.

    I mean, the dangers of the road are bad enough. People cutting you off, lane changing, bodywork scratches, stop signs, pedestrians just throwing themselves under the wheels, spilled coffee, etc. Now you're asking be to accept those heathens on their clacking, greasy, hell spawned bare metal contraptions as legitimate road users?! You expect me to slam on the brakes so I can have the privilege of crawling along behind these slugs for five miles until they get another puncture? Because I sure as hell can't pass their wobbling asses without another "incident" occurring where their either wobble off the embankment and I get a ticket or else their spoked hate mobiles eviscerate my paintjob and get irreparably tanged up in the undercarriage. I swear the assholes just do it on purpose.

    No. No, I'm sorry. I'm not going back to that. Never again. My hands are tied. I'm sympathetic, I really am, but my hands are tied.

    --
    May the Maths Be with you!
  4. Re:Gravel roads are cheap but need more maintenanc by scottv67 · · Score: 5, Funny

    >Yes, we are. If everybody would just go out and buy a goddam new car (from one of the Big 3, of course).

    By "Big 3", do you mean Toyota, Honda and Fiat?