State Road 52

By MOLLY MOORHEAD
Published June 24, 2007

On State Road 52, we are all prisoners of the dump truck.

Take the one 16 cars ahead of me, heading west before 8 a.m. on a forgotten weekday. There is no passing this guy, nor anyone else whose pace is hindered by his wide load.

That's life on a two-lane commute.

Not that that's all bad. State Road 54 can brag about its four extra lanes, but with them come the other hassles of suburbia, like minivans.

Out here on SR 52 -- the locals call it God's country -- the sky is big and the clouds are pretty and the trees are green (okay, brownish-green). So aside from those infernal trucks this isn't such a bad drive.

U.S. 41 intersection: I hold my breath between curses. This corner resembles the floor of a little boy's playroom: dump trucks, tow trucks and semitrailers. Adding to the fun, there are no arrows for the turning lanes. On the green, little cars like mine ease into the middle of the intersection waiting for an opening, or a T-bone.

New Pasco meets old at the Suncoast Parkway overpass. Four roomy lanes. Thousands of traffic cones. Subdivision entrances reminiscent of Stonehenge. Maybe this will be a brisk, efficient intersection someday, if the construction west of the highway is ever done. But as long as they're pouring concrete, could they add a no-trucks flyover?

Three miles later and now there's relief. At Moon Lake Road, I'm finally free of the construction zone and the road opens up to six lanes.

The trucks still surround me, but at least now their diesel exhaust isn't aimed right at my air vents.

But whatever 52 gives you in space it immediately takes back in time. Drive a mile, hit a light. Drive 2 miles, hit a light. West Pasco makes me miss the open fields from a few miles back, where I wasn't tempted by ATMs and doughnut shops.

Then again, it's a long drive and I'm a little thirsty.

Chicago Avenue: Oh, good, a McDonald's.

Molly Moorhead
Distance traveled: 22 miles, from Bellamy Brothers Boulevard to U.S. 19
Time taken: 30 minutes, morning rush hour; 34 minutes, evening

[Last modified June 23, 2007, 20:25:21]