This was interesting to read in the article:

“Lancaster is 66 miles from the Philadelphia International Airport if you travel along Route 30, which is the old Lincoln Highway, where there is a traffic light every other block,” Senator Specter said in introducing the legislation in June 2003. He added that “any rational person” would take Interstate 222 to the Pennsylvania Turnpike, a faster route, at about 80 miles. Similar arguments were made for Alamogordo and for Brookings."

While it may be in the service of a misplaced federal program, I kinda like it that Arlen Specter has at least some idea of some of his constituent's driving arrangements. As far as the program goes, you can tell the real purpose of said program when you take a look at who flies them. Do you think the tax prepaper for the Dept. of Army would fly that if she wasnt' paid mileage by DofA?

Of course, the folks who thought of Allegiant Air are on to something: Get folks from smaller metro areas to take a weekend getaway to Vegas or Orlando cheap, then not fly the rest of the week.

"If poor black folk flew these routes we'd get rid of them." "Them", black folks or routes?