[JayCT]

Originally Posted by anon860

No roads like that are really safe - and the faster they are, the more dangerous they get. Nationally, for every three hours spent driving, you lose one hour of life expectancy. Roads like Route 2 are incredibly dangerous by any measure of risk.

Obviously the statistics are worse than that for you if you drive on higher speed, rural roads, and are virtually zero if you spend all your time driving on slow, city streets.

People who live in outlying suburban areas, like much of Connecticut, like to deny these facts because this tends to hit a little close to home. I know a bunch of people who have been killed or severely injured in crashes in recent years.

Remember physics class? You can greatly reduce your risk, even on roads like Route 2, by driving less and by driving much more slowly.

With this type of logic we should just close all highways completely and then no one would die on them.

To the OP, the accident rate on Route 2 is no more than what would be expected for any four lane expressway. Whoever told you this does not know what they are talking about. Jay

[nep321]

Originally Posted by JViello

The slowdown starts that far back? Wow, I had no idea. Interesting.



The issue with RT6 is pretty simple. It's the only main route heading directly East and people treat it as the interstate it was supposed to be and want to travel fast, combine that with slower local traffic, virtually no passing lanes, blind curves and no lighting and you have a deathtrap.

The only blind spot on Route 6 that I remember being a real concern is toward the end of I-384 in Bolton. Other than that, what are you talking about? There are plenty of passing lanes out in Windham County. And even in the suburban areas it's just like any other road. In Bristol and Manchester it can be a pain to drive, but again, there are plenty of passing lanes even in those towns. The lack of lighting is only true in the rural areas where the road is rather wide and straightened anyway. I still don't think it's a dangerous road like people say it is. There are many, many more dangerous routes in CT, such as Routes 109, 49, 244 and 320.

[basehead617]

Originally Posted by nep321

The only blind spot on Route 6 that I remember being a real concern is toward the end of I-384 in Bolton. Other than that, what are you talking about? There are plenty of passing lanes out in Windham County. And even in the suburban areas it's just like any other road. In Bristol and Manchester it can be a pain to drive, but again, there are plenty of passing lanes even in those towns. The lack of lighting is only true in the rural areas where the road is rather wide and straightened anyway. I still don't think it's a dangerous road like people say it is. There are many, many more dangerous routes in CT, such as Routes 109, 49, 244 and 320.

Regarding 'Suicide 6', this may be old news and this may no longer be true because of widening/straightening, etc... but this is from a site about CT roads i've frequented for years:

From Hartford to Providence

"Suicide 6"
The state has long planned to connect I-384 in Bolton to the US 6 freeway in Windham with a new four-lane expressway, even though I-84 is no longer planned for the area. Arguments in favor of the new highway include bypassing the dangerous two-lane "Suicide 6" section through Andover, and bringing economic benefit to Windham County. Arguments against include property taking and destruction of wetlands near the Hop River.

An average of two people are killed each year on Suicide 6, one of the most hazardous roads in the United States. The road headlined a 1998 "Unsafe Roads" segment on the tabloid TV news show "Dateline NBC."

Opponents of the expressway contend that other means are available to increase safety without the fiscal and environmental cost of a full expressway. In 1999, Connecticut's US 6 and US 7 expressway plans made the Top 50 unwanted highway projects in Taxpayer.net's Road To Ruin site.

The expressway proposal has sparked nonstop contention. The state has considered over 130 freeway alignments in the area, with each of them snubbed by either the locals, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), or the EPA. In late 1998, the Army Corps of Engineers said planned spot upgrades of the existing Route 6 are not sufficient and that the state should look at freeway options. Meanwhile, the state is proceeding with localized safety upgrades: straightening curves, improving lines of sight, and so on.

...

and the map of the location is here:

[nep321]

Originally Posted by basehead617

Regarding 'Suicide 6', this may be old news and this may no longer be true because of widening/straightening, etc... but this is from a site about CT roads i've frequented for years:

From Hartford to Providence

"Suicide 6"
The state has long planned to connect I-384 in Bolton to the US 6 freeway in Windham with a new four-lane expressway, even though I-84 is no longer planned for the area. Arguments in favor of the new highway include bypassing the dangerous two-lane "Suicide 6" section through Andover, and bringing economic benefit to Windham County. Arguments against include property taking and destruction of wetlands near the Hop River.

An average of two people are killed each year on Suicide 6, one of the most hazardous roads in the United States. The road headlined a 1998 "Unsafe Roads" segment on the tabloid TV news show "Dateline NBC."

Opponents of the expressway contend that other means are available to increase safety without the fiscal and environmental cost of a full expressway. In 1999, Connecticut's US 6 and US 7 expressway plans made the Top 50 unwanted highway projects in Taxpayer.net's Road To Ruin site.

The expressway proposal has sparked nonstop contention. The state has considered over 130 freeway alignments in the area, with each of them snubbed by either the locals, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), or the EPA. In late 1998, the Army Corps of Engineers said planned spot upgrades of the existing Route 6 are not sufficient and that the state should look at freeway options. Meanwhile, the state is proceeding with localized safety upgrades: straightening curves, improving lines of sight, and so on.

...

and the map of the location is here:

Yeah I know that site very well. Well, it must have been a while since that Suicide 6 segment existed, because I drove that segment many times and thought it was actually very very safe. It was wide and straight and flat for the most part.

[mikelizard860]

Originally Posted by nep321

Not sure why people consider Route 6 to be a death trap or dangerous at all. It used to be that way years ago ("Suicide 6"), but now it has been reconstructed or realigned in certain segments to make it safer. I have driven the entire length of Route 6 and it is generally a wide, modernized, spacious road in the rural areas.

As for Route 2, I would say it's pretty average, although it has a lot of twists and turns in East Hartford and Glastonbury and might be a little more dangerous, but nothing to worry about still. East of Hartford county, Route 2 is actually quite flat and straightened out for the most part.

IMO the most dangerous route in CT is Route 109 in Litchfield County. So many sharp turns, surprise hills, etc.

Any high speed road without a divider is extremely dangerous. Route 6, route 44 ect. You have less than 2 feet seperating a head on collision that most likely will be fatal.