Vacation produces too many travel problems

Normally, we drive to our vacation destinations, even if they’re many hours away. But this year, my sons’ summer activities left only one week available for a family trip. Activities the weeks before and after also put pressure on our time, so we opted to fly to Boston rather than make a 12-hour trip by car.

A few years ago we visited Philadelphia, and both my sons liked that trip. Philadelphia and Boston both provide a lot of American history along with modern conveniences of a large city. So that’s how Boston became this year’s destination.

When my wife and I married in 1991, we took our honeymoon to New England. We flew into Boston, then rented a car to drive to New Hampshire, Rhode Island and back to Boston, making quick forays into Vermont and Maine. A couple of facts about that trip ended up coming full circle: trouble with a rental car and Boston drivers.

All of us know certain ages are special: 13, 18, 21. Little did I know that 25 is a magic number for rental car companies. I was only 24 when we married, and once we arrived in Boston I discovered the fact I wasn’t 25 made it difficult to rent a car. But we finally found an agency that would rent us a vehicle.

Driving in a large city always poses more challenges than rural Davidson County, but my wife and I both noticed how aggressive Boston drivers were. I’m used to motorists signaling and then waiting for an opening before changing lanes. In Boston, drivers simply begin to merge and expect other motorists to allow them in.

I’ll share an example from this trip. We were taking our hotel shuttle to the airport to catch the subway. We were stopped at a light in a left-hand lane that went straight. The right-hand lane was for right turns only. Yet we watched not one, not two, but three cars run that red light and use the right-hand lane to continue straight.

While my preference when traveling is to have my own vehicle, it’s certainly possible to visit a large city without one. Our hotel offered excellent shuttle service, and the subway allowed us to reach almost any destination. But we did rent a car one day to travel two hours away for a college visit for my older son, a rising senior.

As we picked up the car, the salesman asked if we wanted renter’s insurance. I was going to say no, but my wife recalled our observation of Boston drivers 22 years prior. She thought it would be worth the extra cost to pay $20 for the insurance, so I agreed. Another factor in her thinking was the fact we’d have to pay the daily rental fee while the car was repaired should we be involved in an accident.

The trip went well except for a $10 parking ticket we received in a small town. We all thought it was unjust, as the parking spot was not well-marked that it required payment. Nevertheless we paid the ticket and headed back to Boston.

On the way we stopped in Lexington, Mass., to see the site where the first shot in the Revolutionary War was fired. We filled up the tank after leaving Lexington and headed back to the rental car agency. A short distance from the gas station a light turned red, and I stopped behind the car in front of me. Unfortunately, the van behind me didn’t stop.

The impact crunched the rear of our Dodge Dart and pushed me into the Honda Civic stopped in front of me. Thankfully, no one was hurt, although my neck and shoulders were pretty sore. A woman walking near-by saw the accident and called 911 for us.

Our other travel adventure occurred on the subway going to a Boston Red Sox game. The train came to a halt, and after a few minutes the conductor came on the intercom and said, “We seem to have a problem.” I thought that was stating the obvious. It took about 25 minutes to reach the next station and disembark, but thankfully the cars never lost power, which meant the lights and air-conditioning stayed on.

Overall, we experienced a good time and pretty much accomplished everything on our to-do list. I learned a life lesson that I wanted to share: Buy insurance if you’re ever renting a car. And I gained even more appreciation for the slower pace of traffic we’re used to here in our Lexington.

Chad Killebrew is executive editor of The Dispatch. He can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 215, or at chad.killebrew@the-dispatch.com.