Jim-
Reading your excerpt from “Patriots” (I do have my own copy of the prior edition) reminded me of an episode in and around Seattle a few winters ago. Just before the afternoon commute, a rainstorm passed through and with the cold weather, created a black ice condition on the Interstate-5 freeway. Several fender benders clogged up the freeway in both directions and it took some time for tow trucks to make their way through the tie-up. Eventually they had to give up because people, sitting in their cars with heaters, wipers and radios on and engines idling, didn’t realize the alternator output at idle wasn’t sufficient to keep up with the power drain.
The upshot was that in very short order, the freeway was clogged with stalled, dead cars abandoned by their passengers. It took days to clear out the mess.
Imagine if no one came to clear them out. So, among other episodes in “Patriots“, the one you presented on Monday resonates with me! – Bob B.
Letter Re: Urban Freeway Traffic Gridlock in a Disaster
