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2009-11-21

2009-11-18

2009-11-05

Agriculture

Lifestyles

Friday, October 10, 2008 11:41 AM

Young drivers look forward to completed highway project

By JODIE GARCIA, Herald Staff Writer

Mat Simonson knows U.S. 59 well.

For nearly two years, the 28-year-old commuted from Lawrence to Ottawa, witnessing everything from inclement weather to near car crashes.

“I would say it’s quite dangerous at times, depending on the season and amount of farm work going on,” he said.

Simonson is one of many drivers looking forward to a new, four-lane U.S. 59 that will stretch from Ottawa to Lawrence. The new route promises to be safer, faster and easier to travel. The highway is the primary road teenagers and young adults take when commuting to college or looking for entertainment options not offered in Ottawa.

Now that he lives in Ottawa and works here, Simonson said he usually travels to Lawrence every weekend or sometimes twice a week for entertainment and to see his friends.

He said it’s likely his trips to Lawrence will increase with the completion of the new U.S. 59.

“I will feel a lot safer,” Simonson said, adding that during bad weather, he tends to avoid the highway.

Sara Humm, 19, said she doesn’t know how the new U.S. 59 will affect her driving to and from Lawrence.

When Humm attended the University of Kansas last year, she said she made frequent trips to Ottawa for work and for responsibilities related to being a city commissioner.

She said a resurfacing project completed in 2007 made the highway better to travel on.

“It’s definitely better now than it was,” she said.

Humm, who’s attending Ottawa University this year, said she used to drive to Lawrence about once a week, but now it’s down to about once every two weeks now because of high gas prices.

She said even when the new U.S. 59 is completed, she still probably would use what’s left of the “old” highway.

“I’m just so used to it,” she said. “It’s hard to tell.”

Herald staff writer Jodie Garcia can be e-mailed at jgarcia@ottawaherald.com.

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Young drivers look forward to completed highway project

By JODIE GARCIA, Herald Staff Writer

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article | Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article |
Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.