Forums > General > Traveling Mexico

allyn

May 13, 2002, 4:40 AM

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toll road travel vs old school

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I haven't been to mexico in twelve years. I have much more time than money and want to keep what little I have as long as possible. I'm entering Mexico at Brownsville and traveling to Bucherias north of PV. Are non- toll roads that dangerous now? Last time I was in Mexico I put almost 20,000 miles on my van in six month period and loved it. I don't mind slow going. gracias for the info!

Roberto

May 13, 2002, 12:20 PM

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toll road travel vs old school

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If you travel during the day light hours, you should have no problems. That way you can see any potholes.

Rolly

May 13, 2002, 2:29 PM

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toll road travel vs old school

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: If you travel during the day light hours, you should have no problems. That way you can see any potholes.And topes and buses and burro wagons and cows and goats and people walking and bicycles and the real side of México.If you're in no hurry, go for it.

Scott

May 13, 2002, 6:12 PM

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toll road travel vs old school

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Just returned from Manzanillo and the toll roads
were like 'icing on the cake'. The quaint monster
trucks bearing down on you lose their novelty very
quickly in Mexico. I was even dumb enough to take
highway 80 from Guad. to Melaque once! Even the locals in Melaque thought I was nuts! Yes, the toll roads are expensive, but they have their own
engineering beauty and take you through some wonderful scenery that the driver can enjoy.The
alternative is a 'death grip' on the wheel, and a
terrified navigator! Relax,pay the tolls,enjoy
your destination!

Loco

May 13, 2002, 7:14 PM

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It depends on which back roads (free roads)

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if the back roads aren't a main commerce route from one large city to another .... the back roads can be very pleasant, not crowded and in pretty good shape. Often these little roads don't parallel the cuotas but wind around between small towns.I went to a "water park" in the state of Morelos with a family from DF. The only way they had been there before was on the bus because they didn't trust their car on a LONG trip. Retracing the bus route 'by memory' without a map was quite an experience that ended up hiring a taxi driver to lead us into this place. About a quarter mile before we reached the place we crossed the CUOTA and saw signs to DF. It was about 1/3 the time returning on the cuota. The one thing I'll remember was the TOPES in one town that were difficult to see over. There is a 'special' way to navigate these things in a low centered car like a Tsuru with 4 large people and a dog in it; slow down, turn wheel to the right on the up grade, turn wheels to the left just as you make the peak. I got tired of these gymnastics in a rental car and ended up scraping exhaust a number of times. For these topes that are difficult to see over, I'd suggest driving around ... or stop for a cerveza at the little store there.

Cyn2

May 13, 2002, 7:20 PM

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Topes...

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we did a trip once from San Cris to Agua azul, 5 adults, three teenagers in a Hyundai wagon...the only way to clear the topes was to have everyone jump out before we went over them...we got to the point where we could do this without even stopping the car, causing no end of great amusement to the locals who watched us drive through their towns,....crazy gringos... if the back roads aren't a main commerce route from one large city to another .... the back roads can be very pleasant, not crowded and in pretty good shape. Often these little roads don't parallel the cuotas but wind around between small towns.: I went to a "water park" in the state of Morelos with a family from DF. The only way they had been there before was on the bus because they didn't trust their car on a LONG trip. Retracing the bus route 'by memory' without a map was quite an experience that ended up hiring a taxi driver to lead us into this place. About a quarter mile before we reached the place we crossed the CUOTA and saw signs to DF. It was about 1/3 the time returning on the cuota. The one thing I'll remember was the TOPES in one town that were difficult to see over. There is a 'special' way to navigate these things in a low centered car like a Tsuru with 4 large people and a dog in it; slow down, turn wheel to the right on the up grade, turn wheels to the left just as you make the peak. I got tired of these gymnastics in a rental car and ended up scraping exhaust a number of times. For these topes that are difficult to see over, I'd suggest driving around ... or stop for a cerveza at the little store there.

Rolly

May 13, 2002, 7:33 PM

Post #7 of 10 (1001 views)

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Topes...

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: we did a trip once from San Cris to Agua azul, 5 adults, three teenagers in a Hyundai wagon...the only way to clear the topes was to have everyone jump out before we went over them...we got to the point where we could do this without even stopping the car, causing no end of great amusement to the locals who watched us drive through their towns,....crazy gringos... When I was a teenager -- about a hundred years ago -- we used to a similar thing -- everyone jump out, run around the car and get back in a different seat. We called it a Chinese fire drill; I don't why the name. The local folks – our parents and neighbors – also thought we were crazy.

May 13, 2002, 9:25 PM

Post #8 of 10 (1001 views)

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toll road travel vs old school

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Scott writes:
: Just returned from Manzanillo and the toll roads
: were like 'icing on the cake'. The quaint monster
: trucks bearing down on you lose their novelty very
: quickly in Mexico. I was even dumb enough to take
: highway 80 from Guad. to Melaque once! Even the locals in Melaque thought I was nuts! Yes, the toll roads are expensive, but they have their own
: engineering beauty and take you through some wonderful scenery that the driver can enjoy.The
: alternative is a 'death grip' on the wheel, and a
: terrified navigator! I'm not sure if I would give the cuotas such a one-sided endorsement. In October of last year I drove a circle route from Guadalajara to Barra de Navidad via 80, a libre, and returned via Manzanillo and Colima via 54, a cuota. Each represented a different type of driving experience. The libre was mostly one lane in each direction. Pavement was in very good condition, except in one stretch, which had repair crews busily working (they still need a fair amount of work in the workzone safety department.....). Topes were limited to within towns fronting or straddling the road, and were pretty predictable. Traffic was a mixture of trucks, taxis, and personal vehicles. You'd sometimes get caught behind a slower moving (but not crawling) vehicle but in general you were able to find a place to pass within a few kilometers, or the vehicle would slow or turn out. The main things you had to watch out for were (a) an occasional vehicle approaching from the rear and attempting to pass in a "less than optimal" location, and (b) giving into impatience and machismo and attempting to do the same.The cuota was generally two lanes in each direction. Pavement was in excellent condition and was tope free. Undoubtedly because of the cost (I think I paid a total of $212 MXP to get from Barra to Guadalajara), traffic was overwhelmingly large trucks (many heavily burdened with containerized cargo from the Port of Manzanillo) and intercity busses. I found this combination to be quite a bit more frightening than the traffic on the libre, as both truck and particularly bus drivers would attempt to pass slower traffic if there was even a glimmer of a gap to squeeze through.- Ed

allyn

May 14, 2002, 7:51 AM

Post #9 of 10 (1000 views)

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toll road travel vs old school

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:sounds like things are pretty much the same as they used to be, I had a few pretty hairy episodes ( screeched to a stop just in time to miss a donkey and witnessing a near head-on collision when passed on a steep hill by a monster truck the size of Delaware )but they certainly flavored the trip!
I haven't been to mexico in twelve years. I have much more time than money and want to keep what little I have as long as possible. I'm entering Mexico at Brownsville and traveling to Bucherias north of PV. Are non- toll roads that dangerous now? Last time I was in Mexico I put almost 20,000 miles on my van in six month period and loved it. I don't mind slow going. gracias for the info!

Mereja

May 15, 2002, 10:56 AM

Post #10 of 10 (999 views)

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Topes...

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Hey, we did that when we were teenagers in Seattle. I'm not quite a hundred yet.: : we did a trip once from San Cris to Agua azul, 5 adults, three teenagers in a Hyundai wagon...the only way to clear the topes was to have everyone jump out before we went over them...we got to the point where we could do this without even stopping the car, causing no end of great amusement to the locals who watched us drive through their towns,....crazy gringos... : When I was a teenager -- about a hundred years ago -- we used to a similar thing -- everyone jump out, run around the car and get back in a different seat. We called it a Chinese fire drill; I don't why the name. The local folks – our parents and neighbors – also thought we were crazy.