Jack Kerouac's On The Road, which celebrates the 50th anniversary of its first publication today, is one of the great landmarks of 20th Century American literature.

It's also a book that gave birth to the modern idea of the road trip.

Of course, the road trip has been an American institution since the settlers hitched up their wagons and headed west. But Kerouac tapped into something else, something new. Something that we're in danger of losing.

The world of 1957 has long gone - indeed, Kerouac himself found that the America he crossed during 1947-51 had changed by the time his book actually came out - and one of the biggest transformations can be seen in the roads on which we travel. Featureless modern interstates, autobahns and motorways that seem to go on forever, have changed our experience of travelling on the road. And not in a good way.

We no longer travel just for the love of it: we just want to get to our destination as quickly as possible.

For Kerouac, the journey, not the destination, was the point of taking to the road. The road trip was a way of learning more about the world, meeting new people, taking risks. It still is, but increasingly we've got to make an effort to go off the beaten track. But the effort is worth it.

As a bit of Kerouac devotee in my youth, a few years ago I managed to take a 10-day road trip around the American west, going off the beaten track as much as possible. It was everything I'd hoped it might be and what grew out of it was, despite its many faults, a sneaking admiration and affection for the US.

And thanks to Kerouac, I still take every opportunity I can to get off the motorway and take the road less well-travelled. Of course, it helps if you've got a car that drives well and a speed camera locator.

So the next time you programme your sat nav before taking a trip, choose the option that avoids motorways. You might just learn something. Man.