Traffic Talk: Roanoke to Charlotte

It's quite often I go down to Charlotte, and I've explored some varying ways of getting there, expanding out from my typical I-81 to I-77 to I-85 route once I could literally say out loud which sign was coming up next. My dad, who's coming up from Charlotte to visit (and give us a couch) is choosing another route through Greensboro and then hopping on 220 to come into town.

There's also the 221 route, which means going down Brambelton Ave until you meet up with I-77. Here's my experience with these three routes, and I'm interested to hear others' input or other route ideas and observations.

1. I-81. If you're already living in Salem, you might as well go this way. Sure, it's pretty boring, the only real change of scenery or turn in the road to keep you awake is at Wythville where you hop on I-77. This is the route for those who want to get there quickly and with all interstate miles.
However, I-77 bottlenecks almost exactly 17 miles outside of Charlotte each weekday morning and then again during rush hour (in and out of Charlotte, respectively). It doesn't let up until the HOV lane comes up several miles later past the Huntersville exit. On weekends, though, or in the middle of the day, you're fine.

2. 220 to I-85. There are a few turns in here; not just 220 to 85, but it's still only a few. I have to admit, this is my favorite route because the drive on 220 is both scenic and with a lower speed (55mph much of the way). You can still open it up a little once you're on 85. You'll see plenty of places to stop. It's not as winding as you might think, either, though I admit that - due to the turns - I use my GPS.
If there's bound to be traffic on I-77, this is the way to go, since it bypasses it and goes right to 85, which - while sometimes heavy with traffic - rarely slows. I have had this route prove faster than I-81 as often as not, and I can tell a difference in how much gas I burn if I try a few hyper-miling techniques.

3. 221 to I-77. What can I say? If you like really winding roads and lots of flora and fauna, then 221 might be your best bet. The turns are so sharp at some points that it feels almost comic. My experience with this route was at night, so I swerved out of the way of a small herd of deer, a skunk, and an opossum; while the latter two might have proved only a smelly inconvenience, the former would have torn my little car to pieces. So, I don't really see taking this route again unless I'm in absolutely no hurry (though it didn't add many minutes, it added a few). I could see this burning a little more gas, as well.

So let me know if there's a way I'm missing or other points to consider in the trek to Charlotte. I'll ask my dad what he thought of the 220 route, seeing as how it was an attempt to evade some of the inevitable wind that would have been more prevalent on I-77 and I-81.

GIve Downtown Some Credit

Right now, my hair is much longer than it should be. I'm reporting for Guard duty down in Charlotte looking more like Lt Dan than Forest Gump, and it's all because all I've got in my wallet is a check card.

Okay, it's largely because I put off getting a haircut until a couple of hours before heading down here, but it's partially due to downtown Roanoke businesses hanging onto the antiquated medium of paper currency with might and main.

My regular barber takes check, which is better than cash only, especially considering I haven't seen cash in like, eight months or so, and then it was just because I found a 20-spot at the Towers Mall CVS. Alas, he was sick, so I was relegated to wandering downtown looking to put the two-guard smack-down on my mop - but to no avail.

Don't get me wrong, I think that if a business wants to deal only in cash - hell, only in gold nuggets - then let no one tell them otherwise. But that same establishment shouldn't look to the sky and wonder why there are no customers, or blame a sluggish economy on lousy business.

I've never run a brick and mortar store, so perhaps dealing with credit cards and their fee structures is a headache or economically difficult to justify, but I'd like to think that - fees or no - it is a natural evolution of commerce that is either embraced as a boon to business or rejected and thereafter is an anchor that has real costs in lost customers.

Either way, my hair is still long, and some Roanoke barbers are still that much poorer because of it. So nobody wins.