Closing rest stops could hurt more than help
Published: June 21, 2009
I believe Del. Steve Landes, R-Weyers Cave, was right when he said that closing rest areas was more political than practical (“Rest stops among state budget cuts,” June 19).
As a truck driver on Interstate 81, the rest area is my bathroom. If it’s that cost-effective, then let’s locate all the restrooms in all government offices in Richmond. We will save a lot of money. Also, as Reo Hatfield stated, this is going to cause unsafe conditions on the highway.
This is not a good advertisement to all of the out-of-state drivers and for that fact, the out-of-country drivers, on I-81. A good deal of the traffic going to Florida is from Canada.
One way we could save money is by not providing cars to state workers. There are thousands of cars running around with government plates on them. Some of them are not cheap models.
One Sunday, we saw a worker in a pickup truck with state plates traveling with his wife and kids on a shopping trip. Are we required to provide private transportation?
Let’s cut government.
Edward H. Kahle
Waynesboro
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Reader Reactions
I certainly agree with Mr. Kahle with his opinion about the closures of rest areas. But personally, I couldn’t care less, because I try my best to refrain from ever stopping at a rest area in Va. They are nasty, dirty, and much too small. The state of Va. should take lessons from neighboring states. The only rest area that I know of that would even compare to the standards of other states is the one east of Richmond on 1-64, the rest need to be closed and undergo a plan of modernization.
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