Roadgeek
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A roadgeek (from road + geek) is a person involved in "roadgeeking" or "road enthusiasm", an enthusiasm for roads, fond of road trips as a hobby. One may also be called a road enthusiast, road buff, roadfan or Roads Scholar, the latter a play on "Rhodes Scholar".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Failed verification
InterestEdit
Roadgeeks view their interest as an appreciation of engineering and planning feats: Template:Cquote
Roadgeeks are not necessarily interested in motor vehicles;<ref name=Gupta/> there may also be an interest in cartography and map design. Enthusiasts may focus on a single activity related to roads, such as driving the full length of a highway (known as 'clinching') or researching the history, planning and quirks of a particular road or national highway system. Sometimes, road geeks are called "highway historians" for the knowledge and interests.<ref name=LSJ>Template:Cite news</ref>
Even the numbering system can be a subject of deep interest, as Joe Moran describes in his book "On Roads: A Hidden History": Template:Cquote
OnlineEdit
In 2002, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that road enthusiasm was an Internet phenomenon. There is a Usenet newsgroup, misc.transport.road, where participants discuss all facets of roads and road trips from "construction projects to quirks and inconsistencies in signage".<ref name=Lamb/> Those who await each annual Rand McNally road atlas release found a community of others online who were also interested in roads as a hobby. These communities of people could share photos, swap their thoughts on the highways in their areas and "debate the finer points of interchange design".<ref name=Lamb>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref>
Web based forums are popular; one of the largest is AARoads Forum.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Failed verification
SABREEdit
Started in 1999, the Society for All British and Irish Road Enthusiasts (SABRE), originally known as "Study and Appreciation of the British Roads Experience",<ref name=SABRE>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> is one of the larger and most prominent communities of road enthusiasts online.<ref name=Milmo>Template:Cite news</ref> The organization hosts a large collection of articles and histories of particular roads and terminology, online photo galleries, discussion forums,<ref name=totalvauxhall>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and an application to overlay and compare historical roadmaps.<ref name=SABRE/> Although SABRE is primarily an online group, members organize group tours to visit sites of interest.<ref name=Gupta/>
Taiwan websitesEdit
In 2006, a board called "Road" (Template:Lang-zh) in the PTT Bulletin Board System, which is a Taiwanese forum, was established.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Because some Taiwanese road enthusiasts didn't know how to use a terminal or BBS reader to access it, the web forum Taiwan Highway Club (Template:Lang-zh; literally, "Highway State") was started in 2008.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:In lang</ref> It contains subforums where users discuss road policies and post highway news and images.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Relationship with governmentsEdit
In Taiwan, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications' Directorate General of Highways ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) has held occasional Road Fan Conferences ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) since 2011 where roadfans and highway transportation-related organizations made suggestions to the government.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Lang-zh</ref>