hitchhiking - a different time and different place.
Up until the 1960s hitchhiking was relatively safe. Growing up in the 1950s I would hitch hike all over. I think it comes out of the depression years when people were willing to share what little that they had with others.
Our society began to change during the 1960s so that hitch hiking went out of favor as it became more dangerous.
I know all about it.
I hitched a ride in the 80s to go three miles straight up the access road to the freeway in Phoenix az. Two guys picked me up. I got in the back when the guy got out and opened the door for me. After he closed the door he got in and they began to speed toward the entrance of the freeway. I had asked to get off at the light 3 miles up.
It was then I discovered, as I watched the guy in the passenger seat pick up a large metal pipe and began laughing and hitting his palm with it repeatedly, looking at the driver that also was laughing, that on my door was no handle to get out of the car. It had been removed.
Luckily, when we got to the light it was red and there was a cop next to us in his car. I began to pound on the window, screaming for help.
The light turned green, they attempted to swing into the lane that gets you onto the freeway but the cop put on his lights and pulled them over.
The guy in the passenger side of the car jumped out and opened my door and I began running for dear life down that access road away from the car as the cop got out and came over to the drivers side. I looked back once to see him talking to them but I have no idea what happened after that. I just kept running.