It doesn’t matter if it’s a Mustang, a BMW or a louche Lamborghini. Every fan of fun-to-drive machines has learned to brace for the dumb, obvious question: “Where are you supposed to drive a car like that?” 

The answer, of course, is “everywhere,” from the g-forcing off-ramp in your own town to some of the world’s most scenic and challenging driving roads, right here in the U.S.A. And America is definitely hitting the road again, despite brutal gasoline prices and the drawn-out pandemic. More than 50 million people drove or flew over Thanksgiving, nearly matching pre-Covid travel levels. Gasoline consumption that fell to a 25-year-low in 2020 is seeing a sharp rise. 

Certainly, there’s no American Autobahn. And between some police departments acting more like revenue agents (fueled by $600 million in annual federal grants to subsidize ticket writing), insurance companies and soaring car prices, there are plenty of wet blankets to smother the fun. And yet, we keep driving, on the lookout for new roads and new adventures, or returning to the ones we know and love. 

With an optimistic eye to unfettered travel in 2022, and millions of car trips to come, here are eight of our favorite American driving roads. Some are touchstones that you’ll recognize, or have experienced yourself. Others are less well-known or swarming with sightseers, but definitely worth a trip or detour. As ever, take the curves at your own pace, and be safe out there. 

NYS Route 73, High Peaks Scenic Byway, New York

Tiny Lake Placid, New York became famous as the improbable host of the Winter Olympics in 1980, including America’s “Miracle on Ice” hockey win over the Soviets. Today, drivers can enjoy another form of schussing, on a 30-mile beauty road that accesses the 43 tallest peaks of the Adirondacks, and the highest source of the Hudson River at Lake Tear-of-the-Clouds. It’s the gateway to the 6-million-acre Adirondack Park, the largest protected contiguous area in the U.S, bigger than Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier and Great Smokies parks combined. There’s no fee to enter, and the “park” doesn’t close at night, so have at it. My last run came in a 2017 Camaro SS with a manual transmission, blazing a fast trail through these lonely and largely police-free roads. 

U.S. 129, Tail of the Dragon, Tennessee/North Carolina

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Overexposure has dimmed some of the Dragon’s luster, including heavy scrutiny and heavier fines from some of Tennessee’s finest. But this collection of curves at Deal’s Gap, with 318 bends in just 11 miles, can still be a great workout for cars and drivers alike — and about as close as America gets to an Alpine-road descent in Italy or Austria. Just keep eyes in the back of your head, or a radar detector in front. Avoid weekends at all costs (dawn and dusk are smart bets on other days), take a warm-up run to get acquainted, don’t ever cheat over the double yellow lines, and you’ll escape with memories instead of hospital or repair bills. 

FM 335, 336 and 337, The Twisted Sisters, Texas

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Feel the noise, indeed. Motorcyclists especially flock to this 100-mile loop in Texas Hill Country, northwest of San Antonio. But the metal trio of “Farm to Market” Roads 335, 336 and 337 is also pure entertainment for car fans. It’s a place to lose count of curves, even as you keep eyes peeled for free-ranging cattle, wild pigs or whitetail deer. Fill your tank in Medina, and your belly at Keese’s BBQ, whose slogan is “A serious ride requires a serious breakfast.” Don’t miss the Devil’s Sinkhole in Rocksprings, a 350-foot-deep cave where a nightly commute of 3 million to 4 million Mexican free-tail bats takes place from May to October. And you thought traffic was bad in L.A. 

Highway 1/Pacific Coast Highway, California

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Opened in 1937, Highway 1 (or the Pacific Coast Highway/PCH) traces 666 miles through the Golden State. Some of the most magical, mystical scenery is near Big Sur, south of Monterey and Pebble Beach. Prior to my last drive in 2017, in a new Mazda MX-5 Miata, a cataclysmic landslide had buried one-third of a mile of roadway under about 40 feet of debris, forcing demolition of the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge. That created “Big Sur Island,” the hamlet cut off in both directions for months. Now the fabled stretch is fully reopened, which means more SUV-clogging tourists, but more chances to enjoy the switchbacks and splendor.

Hells Canyon Scenic Byway, Oregon

Set aside a full weekend, if possible, to savor this underappreciated gem in Oregon: 218 miles from La Grande to Baker City, wrapped around the Wallowa Mountains. The meandering road leads to Hells Canyon Recreation Area and the mighty Snake River, near the western border of Idaho. This stretch of the Snake boasts the deepest river gorge in North America at 7,993 feet — deeper than the Grand Canyon. Keep the tank full, because there are stretches of more than 80 miles between gas stations and other services. But the road and scenery are spectacular, the fish and wildlife plentiful, the towns charming. 

Russell-Brasstown Scenic Byway, Chattahoochee National Forest, Georgia

This road may not be on your personal to-do list. It wasn’t on ours until our rom-com-worthy introduction in a pair of Porsche 911 GTS’. Now, we’re in love. The smoothly paved, 40.6-mile byway links Georgia Highways 17/75, 180, 348 and 75A. A section is part of the better-known Six Gap Georgia run. These roads course up and over gaps in the southern Appalachians, with vistas including Brasstown Bald, the state’s highest peak. Compared to some mountain-y destinations like Tail of the Dragon — all second-gear hairpins and blind corners — the Byway has a serious trump card: Multi-mile passing lanes in one or the other direction, with great visibility to boot. You’ll never get stuck behind a minivan or semi again. 

Highway 550, The Million Dollar Highway, Colorado

Pikes Peak is better known. But the 23-mile stretch of Highway 550 between Silverton and Ouray offers free fun, better views and a superior final destination, versus Pikes Peak and its off-putting, $15 driving fee. That terminus, after a long descent through the Uncompahgre Gorge, is Ouray, the charming Colorado town known as “Little Switzerland.” The Highway was originally laid by Otto Mears in the 1880’s, the Russian immigrant known as “Pathfinder of the San Juans” for his engineering marvels in mountain road and railroad construction. Give thanks to Mears, or say a little prayer for yourself, as you negotiate this improbably cliff-hung, no-guardrail highway. 

SR 79, Sunrise Highway, California

California roads offer an embarrassment of riches. But if Mulholland Drive seems too cliché, head east from San Diego. Pick up the Sunrise Highway near Pine Valley, and get ready for 26 miles of perfect sweepers, hairpins and elevation changes through Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. This is where many  automakers go to fine-tune and validate their cars. And no trip here is complete without a stop in Julian and its Julian Pie Company. (Try the pie that blends raspberries, strawberries, boysenberries and apples). If your appetite for curves isn’t sated, keep heading north to Palomar Mountain Road, a loop around the the mountain that houses Caltech’s famous observatory and its three active telescopes.

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Empty roads and cleaner air at the start of the pandemic have given way to a gradual return of traffic congestion in many global cities, but U.S. and UK downtown centers remain less busy as office workers continue to work from home, according to a study published on Tuesday.

Trips to U.S. downtown areas were 22% below pre-pandemic levels, and down as much as 49% in San Francisco, where many tech workers continue to work remotely, a 2021 traffic study of more than 1,000 cities by transportation analytics firm INRIX Inc showed.

Downtown trips in the UK remain 19% below pre-pandemic levels, but are back to pre-COVID strength in Germany, likely a result of fewer Germans working from home, said Bob Pishue, INRIX transportation analyst and author of the study.

“In the U.S., we don’t expect congestion to go back to the way it was before for a while, at least through 2022,” he said.

Traffic, an indicator closely tied to economic activity and recovery, overall has returned at uneven levels around the world, the study showed.

While the average London driver lost 148 hours in traffic this year — the most of any city dweller and roughly the same as pre-pandemic — the average U.S. city driver lost 36 hours in traffic, a nearly 43% decrease from pre-pandemic levels.

The stark differences are the result of governments’ varying approaches to pandemic restrictions, cities’ structures of downtown business centers, and workers’ ability to telecommute, Pishue said.

“There’s really not one answer for everything, it’s very complex,” said Pishue.

Vaccination rates also do not appear to influence traffic levels, with remote work being a larger driver, Pishue said. For example, in Washington D.C., normally one of the top congested U.S. cities, nearly 80% of residents are vaccinated, but hours lost to traffic remain down 65%.

By now, we all know the basic coronavirus rules. Wear a mask, limit your exposure to other people and when you can’t, keep your distance, and … keep wearing your mask. We also learned at the outset of the pandemic how to properly keep surfaces clean, including in your car. But what we haven’t known is whether we should keep the windows up or down.

A new study from Brown University seeks to answer that question. Using complex computational fluid dynamic simulations, Varghese Mathai, Asimanshu Das, Jeffrey Bailey and Kenneth Breuer studied how the aerosols that we breath (some of which do escape even properly worn masks) move about a car’s cabin and how those flows change with various windows up and down. The results are very interesting, but in short, you’re probably going to want the windows rolled down when possible.

The details of the study are worth noting. The vehicle used in the simulations was loosely based on a Toyota Prius, and likely apply to vehicles of similar shape and size but may not be applicable to larger or smaller cars, trucks or vans. The occupants sat diagonally from one another, which is a common arrangement in taxis and rideshares. The team of researchers found that opening the windows opposite of each occupant can create a flow that drastically reduces the collection of aerosols in a car’s cabin. According to the New York Times, they also found that opening the windows even halfway can be very helpful but that just cracking them a bit doesn’t generate enough airflow.

There’s a lot more information in the study that you can read here. There’s also some additional information from the Times that’s worth checking out.

Don’t blame the kids. According to a survey conducted by The Harris Poll and commissioned by Volvo, the youngest and newest drivers on the road are less likely to use their phones while driving. Only 71 percent of survey takers belonging to Gen-Z, or whatever those currently aged 18 to 24 will eventually be called, admitted to using them. That’s actually a bit less than younger Baby Boomers (72 percent) and considerably lower than the evil Millennial scourge and Gen-X (both 81 percent).

The Gen-X bit is particularly interesting since they are most likely to be the parents of those Gen-Zers. According to the survey, parents with children under the age of 18 are among the most likely to use their phones while driving – be it alone or with someone else aboard. A significant 62 percent of parents admitted to using their phones while their kids are in the car, with 32 percent saying they do so often. No matter the scenario it seems, parents are the most likely to be distracted when behind the wheel by their mobile devices. The fact that Millennials are distracted overall to a similar degree shouldn’t be surprising, therefore, as they are also likely to be parents (older Millennials are deep in their 30s, after all, as I’m reminded every single day).

That the Gen-Zers are using their smartphones less while driving is certainly encouraging, as is the finding that they are generally more concerned about their phones being a distraction to their overall lives. On the other hand, the fact that aging Baby Boomers are being so widely distracted by their smartphones should terrify us all and make us thankful that so many cars now come standard with automated accident avoidance tech.

Now, in terms of what they’re doing on their phones, the most common activity for all generations is talking on the phone. This is followed by reading texts and dialing a phone call. Gen-X is the most guilty of these. Millenials are most guilty of sending texts, but when it comes to checking social media (arguably the most distracting of these activities), Gen-X far outpaces all others and the younger Baby Boomers match the Millennials. Gen-Z is barely higher than old Boomers.

One more take away: 33 percent of Americans drive in silence to minimize distractions. What a fun ride that would be.

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