Rocky road
In recognition of our being back for a year, I figured at some point I'd do a big post about all the things I miss about life in Switzerland, all the things I'm happy about here, etc. Well, someday I still might get around to that, but for now I just want to comment on one of the differences between here and there that surprised me somewhat and that I'm constantly reminded of: the quality of the roads.
I knew the roads were generally in great shape in Switzerland (which is good, because they're also constantly under construction). But I wasn't really prepared for just how bad they were here. I sort of expected that in DC, which has never exactly been known for the efficiency of its public services, but our city is generally on the ball. But I have to say, I really don't notice a difference--the roads in both places are equally potholed and crumbling. The other day I hit a pothole near our house so hard that I was absolutely certain I had blown my tire or at least lost the hubcap...thankfully that wasn't the case.
In a lot of places nearby, it looks like the roads got torn up when new buildings went in, but instead of actually repaving the road, someone just came in and poured a little bit of uneven asphalt into the remaining cracks and holes. But it's bad even in areas where there hasn't been new construction. Sometimes I just want to scream that I've driven in several cities in Mexico--you know, our poorer neighbor to the south--and our roads really aren't that much better than theirs. That's not exactly a flattering comparison.
C'mon, people--how can one of the richest countries in the world have such a crumbling infrastructure? Can we at least get a rebate on our car taxes to help pay for the new shock absorbers and tires that we'll need twice as quickly as we would have in Switzerland?
I knew the roads were generally in great shape in Switzerland (which is good, because they're also constantly under construction). But I wasn't really prepared for just how bad they were here. I sort of expected that in DC, which has never exactly been known for the efficiency of its public services, but our city is generally on the ball. But I have to say, I really don't notice a difference--the roads in both places are equally potholed and crumbling. The other day I hit a pothole near our house so hard that I was absolutely certain I had blown my tire or at least lost the hubcap...thankfully that wasn't the case.
In a lot of places nearby, it looks like the roads got torn up when new buildings went in, but instead of actually repaving the road, someone just came in and poured a little bit of uneven asphalt into the remaining cracks and holes. But it's bad even in areas where there hasn't been new construction. Sometimes I just want to scream that I've driven in several cities in Mexico--you know, our poorer neighbor to the south--and our roads really aren't that much better than theirs. That's not exactly a flattering comparison.
C'mon, people--how can one of the richest countries in the world have such a crumbling infrastructure? Can we at least get a rebate on our car taxes to help pay for the new shock absorbers and tires that we'll need twice as quickly as we would have in Switzerland?
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