These Are The Worst Places To Break Down, According To Drivers

Most people think fondly of taking a road trip to faraway and interesting places. Whether they're excited for the journey itself, or the destination, they almost always end up as fond memories that we gleefully share with friends and family, and often yearn to repeat in the future. If you're currently planning a road trip, our readers have some solid suggestions on road trips worth taking, even with expensive fuel prices. Though all these happy emotions and positive vibes could come crashing down if something goes wrong.

It might be an inadvertent detour to one of the world's worst highway rest stops, or an unfortunate encounter with brutal traffic. But few things can instantly sour a road trip as completely as mechanical trouble. We've combed the worldwide web in search of the least-convenient places to do so; these are the worst places to break down, according to drivers. They include lonesome stretches of highway, cities with high auto repair labor rates, and places with little access to transit in case you need an alternative way of reaching your destination.

First in our rundown of the worst places to break down is a stretch of Nevada that all reports indicate is quite pretty and full of fascinating history: Highway 50, or "The Loneliest Road." It runs 287 miles between Ely and Fernly, and, according to Carwow, has few gas stations along the way. And, as the name suggests, there's little activity on its black top. It could take a while to get a ride to the closest service station (or get a tow), and that service station could be quite far away. Death Valley is also inconvenient for the same reasons, and both roads can be uncomfortable depending on the season, too. Be sure to have plenty of water, snacks, and even some basic tools/supplies if you plan on traversing these stretches of roadway.

At the opposite end of the scale, some big and bustling cities are inconvenient to break down in due to high labor rates, poor transit, and the number of mechanics ready to help. Las Vegas is the worst according to TheZebra.com, as it has the highest average labor rate for scanning a check engine light at $150 per hour — serious repairs could quickly inflate the bill thereafter. The mechanic-to-everyone-else ratio is also quite small at 0.78:1, and AllTransit ranks its public transit at 6.1. By comparison, New York City earns a 9.6. Austin, Texas and Louisville, Kentucky, also have pretty poor scores for public transit.

This means that it could be as much of a pain to have a breakdown in cities that are well-spread out around the country as on the lonely Highway 50 in Nevada — it's just a different kind of pain. Moral of the story: be as prepared as possible before embarking on the open road.