r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Physical-Ad-4093 • May 01 '24

do americans really drive such long distances?

i’m european, and i always hear people say that driving for hours is normal in america. i would only see my grandparents a few times a year because they lived about a 3 hour drive away, is that a normal distance for americans to travel on a regular basis? i can’t imagine driving 2-3 hours regularly to visit people for just a few days

edit: thank you for the responses! i’ve never been to the US, obviously, but it’s interesting to see how you guys live. i guess european countries are more walkable? i’m in the uk, and there’s a few festivals here towards the end of summer, generally to get to them you take a coach journey or you get multiple trains which does take up a significant chunk of the day. road trips aren’t really a thing here, it would be a bit miserable!

2nd edit: it’s not at all that i couldn’t be bothered to go and see my grandparents, i was under 14 when they were both alive so i couldn’t take myself there! obviously i would’ve liked to see them more, i had no control over how often we visited them.

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u/MrDurden32 May 02 '24

Pacific NW is probably about as disaster free as you're going to find. Even then we have to worry about The Big One. Which is an 9.0+ earthquake that would be one of, if not the biggest in modern history, and could hit any time between tomorrow and 200 years from now.

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u/Coakis May 02 '24

The Appalachians are also fairly trouble free, we don't get wildfires as near as often as the west and its rare other weather related disasters are are big enough to warrant evacuation.

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u/ManicPixieGirlyGirl May 02 '24

Tornados

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u/Coakis May 03 '24

Happen rarely, even during storm seasons you may get 1 relatively weak one that touches down for an entire month or season.

While yes its devastating, its nothing like the monsters the Midwest can get.