In St. Petersburg, Florida, the avenues run east and west and the streets run north and south. Haines Road, however, runs at an angle from the northwest to the southeast.

Haines Road intersects 62nd Avenue at 31st Street on the northwest side and intersects Dr. Martin Luther King St. (formerly called 9th Street) at 34th Avenue on the southeast side.

The distance between 38th Avenue and 54th Avenue is exactly one mile.

Assume that:

• The distance between avenues is in the same proportion as between 38th Avenue and 54th Avenue.



• The distance between streets is the same as the distance between avenues.



• Haines Road is straight.

Then:

1. Draw a map to represent this situation.



2. If you drove north from the intersection of 34th Avenue and Dr. MLK Street and Haines Road, turned west onto 62nd Avenue, then continued to drive west on 62nd Avenue until 31st Street and Haines Road, then how far would you have driven?



3. If, however, you drove northwest on Haines Road from the same starting point until you got to the same ending point, then how far would you have driven?



4. Which route is shorter?



5. Why, in your opinion, do you think that most people still take the longer route?