The United States is in love with its mobility and always has been. There are many reason for it, the size of the country, the luxury of the automobile, the fantastic scenery, all contribute to a culture of travel. From our inception as a nation travel has been an integral part of who we are as a people. The advent of roadside assistance has just made the idea all that much more convenient.
We have been a nation on the move since the pioneer days. Back then our travel was more driven by the need to expand and find for each individual a place and means for sustenance. The west was as romantic back then as the movies portrayed it, full of promise and wide open for the entrepreneurial spirit.
Contrary to the romanticized version seen on television, travel by wagon or horseback was difficult and dangerous. With nothing more than a trail and a guide, these trips were a role of the dice with your life hanging in the balance. If you were lucky enough to avoid the violent weather you still had to deal with lethal animals and native people intent on preventing your progress.
One of the primary drivers to interconnect the West Coast with the East Coast was the need for communication. From the time when Benjamin Franklin was named our first Postmaster General this nation has sought the means to quickly and safely deliver mail and packages from one end to the other. Using rivers, streams and the railway as a start following it up with such exciting endeavors as the pony express we found a way.
The transcontinental railway was completed in 1869 and provided the first truly line of communication spanning the continent. The first roadway spanning the nation was the Lincoln Highway spanning nearly 3,400 miles from to Times Square in new York to Lincoln Park in California. With this highway the American love for travel was launched.
The Lincoln Highway served as inspiration for the drafting of the National Interstate and Defense Act of 1956 which provided for the construction of the interstate highway system. Formally entitled the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, this system served two purposes. It encouraged and facilitated interstate tourism and business, and it provided the means to move the massive military machine should the US every come under attack. President Eisenhower had been impressed by the German roadway system while he served as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe during World War II.
The portion of the bill dealing with national defense explains why the access routes to the interstates within cities is never as convenient as access from our national military installations. The interstate system was designed with military convoys and even aircraft in mind with the notion of using the highway as emergency landing fields built into their layout (this is especially true with CAA insurance).
The number of movies, Hollywood makes which include cars, driving, travel or even road trips is to innumerable to count. Traveling has become convenient and it was always fun. The exception of course is when the inevitable car maintenance problem cropped up while driving. For that reason it is smart to always carry some kind of roadside assistance protection.
With CAA insurance, you can feel relaxed if you face a vehicular emergency. And who knows? You might even win a Las Vegas vacation package if you accrue enough points in some CAA insurance packages!
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