Drive through Louisville on I64, and you’ve probably driven under the one considerable tunnel in town that runs underneath Cochran Hill Road. Chances are that if you’ve driven through the tunnel you’ve also noticed something else a bit peculiar - horn honkers. And a lot of them. It isn’t just a Louisville thing either, in fact people do it all over the country and even some places elsewhere in the world. The question that is begged by this odd tradition is obvious - why do people do it? Is there a historical reason for it, a superstitious one, or is it just plain fun to deafen the neighboring cars?
For starters, let me disclaim that there seems to be very little reputable information about this phenomenon out there, unless you consider various forum posts, occult and paranormal sites, and blog posts to be authoritative. I for one certainly do not. On that note, there are any number of reasons listed for why people continue to keep this noisy tradition alive.
One of the most common myths floating around seems to be that making noise in a tunnel was a way to . This seems to happen all over the world, and some sources cite the potential nasties as trolls and not spirits. I’ve never seen a troll, so I’m going to bank on evil spirits since we’re not supposed to be able to see those in the first place.
Another reason given is that honking in a tunnel is a form of , also done by holding your breath throughout the duration of the time in said tunnel (note to drivers: don’t do this in long tunnels). Of course, there are any number of superstitions like this, whether it be crossing train tracks, going over a bridge, or any number of variations in road surface. It sounds to me like it’s just a way to shut the children up on long car rides, honestly.
Of course, these superstitions and rituals could have something to do with safety or making someone aware of your presence. Some posters have mentioned that it could be a way to announce to approaching vehicles that someone is coming, or to clear out an old, narrow and unlit tunnel that someone else may be passing through in the days before highways and decent roads. Unfortunately, there’s no recorded basis for this belief either, and it seems just as probable an origin as the others.
Last on the list of possibilities comes from a post on Reddit about the particular habit that Americans have of tunnel honking. User EthicalReasoning (which from the name I can assume is an individual of sound judgement) gives this explanation:
“sound reverberations from the honking of the horn are what support the tunnel as a vehicle passes through it. the strength of the arch is only as strong as the sound of the horn being blown underneath the arch, which exerts pressure on the walls and causes a tighter seal. this is the same reason bicyclists whistle or yell when they pass through tunnels, every bit of sound helps to reinforce the support. if the sound echos within the tunnel, you know it is safe to pass through as long as you continue to make the sound. every american knows this because every american is taught this in school, and americans are safe people.” (sic)
The bottom line seems to be that there are as many reasons for honking in a tunnel as there are tunnels. What’s the likeliest one? That some people are just loud and find your ears to be unnecessary.
Photo courtesy of Shutterstock
