Where have all the Road Side Rests gone ?

 Before modern Interstate Highways where fully completed in late 70's in Pennsylvania  you traveled major roads such as US 19 , 22 , 30  The National Road US 40 or US 422  or Pa Route  8 and 28
to get north /south or east / west ,to Towns Like  Erie , Altoona or State College
Back in those days you did not have  fast food chain restaurants and gas stations  at modern service plazas with attendants  every so many miles .  Often taking a trip was 8-12 hours  hours to get to these towns  as you climbed hills stuck behind trucks or got stuck traveling thru a small  town where traffic was backed up and roads where only 2 lanes in many places .

 Back then there where gas stations,motels and restaurants but they where few and far apart  and traveling at night you better make sure you had a full tank of gas many stations closed at 5 pm or dark .Many people could not afford to eat at a restaurant so they would pack  a lunch or diner and stop  at what where known as Road Side Rests which where run and maintained by Pa. Dept. of Transportation's known as Penndot as a young child  while traveling with my family we often had our lunch or diner at one when we stopped and it was always fun racing my brothers to see who got to pump the water pump handle first. They where a place you could just pull off and relax and enjoy the day light safely as they where not lighted at night as electricity was not close by.

Old hand pump and map shelter

mens and women's out house pit latrines

 They consisted of a  picnic shelter  with a picnic table or 2 and small fire pits with grates to cook your meal and  there where pit latrines either individual outhouses   or combined  latrine building with separate entrance for men and women ,and there where one or two hand water pumps
in a small shelter with a road map. on wall with maps you could take to help with your trip. They where unattended  unlike modern rest stops on Interstates.
as Modern Interstates bypassed these major roads and traffic lessened the rest stops where all closed  the last one along route 28 in 1980's  most due to vandalism,illicit ,homosexual  and  environmental concerns and upkeep costs as well as some where eliminated when the road ways where expanded to 4 lanes . Every once and a while you will pass one of these sites and see an old picnic shelter or out building left over but most there's no trace like on US 22 outside Blairsville just before you went up the summit  and US 422 near Portersville  and Pa 28 near Bethlehem .
But I was surprised the other day while traveling along US 422 to find a frozen in time relic of these rest stops near Kittaning  normally you do not see it you blow right past it. But with harsh winter all the weeds etc where flattened and there it was fond  memories of my child hood.
I wish they where still open but something that just is not going to happen in a world where people can not behave them selves and vandalism and homosexual  and illicit activity prohibits them being allowed,add in environmental rules no longer allow the pit latrines you now must have septic systems and  the costs just prohibit it.

There where also 3 road pull overs along Allegheny River Blvd. which where popular  in 50's and 60's before air-conditioning was more affordable  and where neat places to pull over in evening  and enjoy the cool breeze off the Allegheny River  all 3 closed again due to illicit and homosexual activity including a pull over along I 79  north  at Lone Pine  in Washington county closed because of homosexual activity after state police found a naked man chained to a tree and being fondled. A group in Penn Hills is trying to preserve and reopen the pull overs with gates which would be closed in the evenings  but Penndot is not interested in doing so.

Now closed AVR pull over  2# even had a running spring at one time

AVR pull Over 1#

All thats left of road side rest along US 22 Blairsville

Rules of road side rests  code 1961

http://www.pacode.com/secure/data/067/chapter443/chap443toc.html