When I saw these markers on the side of the road, I just knew that somehow, there was taxpayer money wrapped up in this whole thing...
The story starts out well enough: it looks like California women paid for the first bells, and AAA took over later. But why am I not surprised: in 1974 the California Legislature decided Caltrans should pay to maintain and replace the bells, and in 2000 Caltrans was awarded a federal grant (i.e. money from taxpayers in Rhode Island, Texas, Minnesota, etc) to add more bells. I hope the people in Nebraska appreciate our set of bells spaced every mile or two.
Read more about the El Camino Real.
