I am sad to report that America's love affair with the automobile, our uniquely American automotive-centric cultural phenomenon, has come to an end.

As a society, we no longer travel the highways. We never see local attractions along the way. As commercial airliners become America's default means of transportation, rural and small town America is becoming less and less known. Now that we fly point-to-point, with no glimpse of what lies between, we have lost access to the width, breadth, and variety of this land we love. I mourn this loss.

My wife and I just returned from an old-fashioned cross-country road trip. We took our time, stopping at roadside attractions and taking unplanned side trips. Roadside billboards influenced our route and schedule. We saw the "Thing," a classic promotion along Interstate-40. We visited America's largest meteor crater, beside I-40, and continued our education at America's second-largest meteor crater, just off I-20. Dinosaur caves, Cadillacs planted nose down, petrified forest, painted desert, and national forests were arrayed and waiting for us, just off interstate highways. In one day we traveled from sea level to 10,000 feet and back to sea level. We stood on the lowest point in the United States from where we could see the highest peak in the lower 48. We stayed one night in a teepee!

And, we met real people: a fifty-something motel owner who has lived his life in a desert town with a population of just over 1000 (on the edge of Death Valley), a family of four from Paris who are seeing a real desert for the first time (there are no deserts in Europe), a Zuni Indian family in Gallup, New Mexico (in full ceremonial regalia having supper at the local Denny's), and an almond farmer from Fresno, California.

We experienced the flavor of small towns and roadside picnic spots.

The only thing missing was the presence of other travelers. On Interstate Highways, it was just us and the truckers. Yes, there were some mobile homes and camper trucks. And, to be accurate, there were occasional automobiles. But the lack of automobiles on the open road was immediately, constantly noticeable.

This lack of traffic is killing roadside America. Fruit stands are closing, motels falling into ruin, cafes empty and abandoned. Even the great American travel meccas, the truck stops, are poorly maintained and seedy. There is not enough interstate traffic to sustain roadside commerce.

Entire towns are dying. The story of Seligman, Arizona, is an example of the power of the automotive culture to influence how people live. In the 1930s and 1940s Seligman was a hotspot on Route 66. The entire town was built around services for the automotive traveler. Hotdog and hamburger stands, souvenir shops, restaurants, bars, and an ice cream parlor. Seligman was an overnight stop along "America's Main Street" between Chicago and Los Angeles.

Construction of the Interstate Highway system bypassed downtown Seligman in 1978. Old Route 66 through town became so quiet that locals claimed that you could take a nap on the road without being bothered by a moving car.

Local business people in Seligman applied their energies and imagination. They saved the city. The "Route 66 Fun Run" and similar events brought car clubs and tourists. Volunteers maintained city park areas, including a downtown gazebo and bandstand picnic park. During the 60s, 70s, and 80s, Seligman boomed again.

Then, the traffic died.

Blame the airlines. By 1989 Southwest Airlines was flying budget hops to major cities from Texas to California. Coast-to-coast flights on major airlines became inexpensive enough to attract family vacationers. For a family of four, a five-hour fight was suddenly cheaper than a four-day road trip.

Blame the environmentalists. Gasoline prices began to rise dramatically in the 1970s. Average family vehicles became economy cars. They were no longer as comfortable or as roomy as earlier models.

Blame the economy. Two-income families have a harder time scheduling two, and three, week vacations. Driving became impractical. Families could no longer find time for eight or ten days of round-trip driving. Why drive for days when Southwest will get you somewhere the same day?

Blame society. Parents no longer have the energy to play eight hours of "I spy". Any trip longer than an average DVD movie is an unacceptable challenge for parents who depend upon video screen to babysit their children.

In years past we traveled highways that intersected real towns and natural attractions. My wife reminisced about a trip her family took in the 1950s. In one trip from Texas to Los Angeles, they saw Carlsbad Caverns, Petrified Forest, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Las Vegas, and Disneyland.

Today, we laud the benefits of urban diversity. Meanwhile, we are killing the natural diversity of small town America. Our heritage is shriveling and dying. We are losing the unique roots upon which we built this mighty nation.

My hope and prayer is that my grandchildren, and yours, will find the inspiration to step off the mighty airliner and take to the old road. I hope that they will find the time to see our Havasu Cascades, Carlsbad Caverns, and Owens Valley.

There are thousands of beautiful, unusual, interesting, real places in our America. They are access able by car. May they live to inspire many more generations of adventurous American families.