Prior to the advent of the automobile many of the better quality state
roads were paid for with tolls. Some of them were built with private
money & the builders were allowed to collect tolls for some fixed period
of time after construction was completed.
Before the the Interstate Highway System, "expressways, motorways,
whatever" were paid for by state issued bonds. The bonds were in turn
paid from tolls collected from drivers who wanted to use those straight,
fast roads. In most cases, once the bonds were paid off, the roads
ceased to be toll roads, but the turnpike names stuck.
Some parts of the Interstate Highway System were built as toll roads.
I-95 in Virginia used to be a toll road from Petersburg through
Richmond. Once the construction bonds were paid off, the toll booths
were removed.
North Carolina is building new toll roads, but for some reason they're
not being signed as part of the Interstate Highway System. I think
they're intended to become part of the Interstate System at some future
date once the construction bonds have been paid off, but they can't be
added to the system as long as they're toll roads. I don't understand
*why*, since other states have toll roads as part of their Interstate
Highways, but that was the reason I was given.
On 4/13/2016 3:28 PM, Bob W-PDML wrote:
In England in the early 18th century there was a major road-building
programme. The new roads were built straight, or existing roads
straightened, with tolls levied at the turnpikes, so they became
known as turnpike roads. Straight roads are for speed, which I
suspect (being too lazy to look it up) is why the word became
associated with expressways, motorways, whatever.
Over here we don't use the word for motorways etc., it's only used,
as far as I'm aware, for the original Georgian roads.
People often mistake old turnpike roads for Roman roads, and vice
versa.
Roads shouldn't be straight. They should follow contour lines, or old
animal migration trails, or drove roads. Straight roads are an
abomination. Although it's quite nice to follow Roman roads. There's
a good one leading from Pontoise right into Paris.
B
On 12 Apr 2016, at 22:50, Brian Walters <[email protected]> wrote:
Speaking of words, 'turnpike' is one I've never understood. I know it
refers to what we (ie. downunder) would call an expressway or motorway,
but what's the etymology of 'turnpike'?
Cheers
Brian
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Religion - Answers we must never question.
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