It's the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5–29 years old.
In the US alone, 40,000 people die in road crashes each year, an average of 109 per day.
Compare this with the number of deaths by homicides and gun violence, you'll see how
road accidents are invisible killing machines.
Road accidents take an additional 2.35 million people injured or disabled.
Economically, it cost the US, $230 Billion or an equivalent of $820 per person per year.
According to this list of US’ most dangerous highways, State Route 99 in California, alone
cost, a total of 264 lives - that is - 62.3 deaths per 100 miles, followed by Interstate
45 and Interstate 95.
On a global scale, Highways in the US have encountered more road accidents and fatalities
than those in other developed countries.
At the extreme bottom of this depressing list, is state highway MH-185, which seems to have
completely escaped the problems of road accidents.
If we ignore a minor accident that happened in 2005, MH-185 has never encountered a single
road accident in its history of 120 years - there have been no fatalities, no major
injuries, nothing - which makes it THE SAFEST HIGHWAY in the United States (and possibly
in the whole world).
okay, so.. what's the secret?
How has MH-185 been able to pull this off?
The answer is very simple.
The authorities have killed the very reason for all the troubles - they have banned all
motor vehicles from running on this highway.
According to an ordinance passed in 1898, no automobiles have been allowed to run on
the asphalt of MH-185 and traffic is limited to foot, on horses, by horse-driven vehicles
or by bicycles only.
That is why, even in the age of electric sports cars, horse-driven carts from the Victorian
era can still be seen working as a viable mode of transport in this corner of the world.
MH-185 is a Michigan State Highway on a tiny Island named Mackinac, located in Lake Huron.
The Island is only 9.8 km2 in land area and around it, runs the 12.8 km long MH-185.
Since the Highway is a circular one, it has no starting or ending point, leads to nowhere
and doesn’t connect to any other highways.
In the 1890s, when Automobiles had started to get popular in the country, some people
attempted to bring cars to the Island, alienating the residents with their noise and disrupting
the island's quiet, contemplative way of life.
Several residents of the island complained that a doctor's car scared their horses and
caused carriage accidents, and these complaints quickly prompted the ban on all motor vehicles.
Since then, other than a handful of emergency and utility vehicles, no cars or trucks are
allowed on the island and no motorized vehicles appear on M-185.
For public transportation, the Island has horses - around 50 of them for 460 permanent
residents.
People bring 600 more horses to accommodate the peak tourism season in the summer when
the island population swells to more than 15,000.
Bike rentals are extremely big business on the Island with 10,000 bikes in use at any
time in the summer.
Naturally, Bike theft is the biggest crime on the island with 'Drunk Biking' popular
among regular pub-goers.
In the name of emergency vehicles, The Island has an Ambulance and a Firetruck.
In the winter months, the Mackinac Island Police is allowed to patrol the Island in
snowmobiles and roadside litter is picked up using a horse-driven wagon.
In 1933, M-185 became a Highway, and M-185 designation was assigned to it for the first
time.
It became the only state highway in the nation where motor vehicles are banned.
nice.... but why would you call a road that has completely banned automobiles a highway
at all?
Aren't highways supposed to support heavy traffic in the first place?
Well...not really.
In practical or popular terms, a "highway" is a major and significant, well-constructed
road that is capable of carrying moderately heavy to extremely heavy traffic but, in reality,
the term "Highway" is older than the automobiles themselves and dates back to as far as the
12th century.
Rulers in older times maintained major public roads that connected cities to facilitate
the movement of troops, they were called "Highway" in the sense that "High" means "Main".
Also, they were constructed higher than the surrounding land so that they didn’t become
waterlogged, so the name Highway.
Under the US' law, a highway is just any road or street open for public use and there's
no requirement of automobile traffic.
Since MH-185 is the only major road on Mackinac Island, it's included into the list of Michigan
State Highways.
For the same reason, the Highway is NOT listed on the National Highway System, which is an
index of strategic highways and roads within the US that’s important to the country's
economy, defense, and mobility.
An unfortunate incident happened on May 13, 2005 - the only known motor collision on the
Island - when island's fire truck hit the open door of the parked ambulance causing
small damage.
Unfortunately, Mh-185 lost its title of "the only state highway that never had an automobile
accident" on this day due to this incident.
In absence of motorized traffic, the Island offers a great scenic view for cycling along
its coastline.
It has a preserved quaint, quiet 19th-century experience that brings people from far away
places to this land.
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