rat run
n.— «This is only a particular example of the nonsense that goes on all the time in local government politics when roads are closed or narrowed to close off “rat runs,” a derogatory term for the use of minor roads as alternative links between trunk roads. The residents are claiming that the roads belong to them and no one else.» —“The rise of localism” by P.P. McGuiness Australian Dec. 1, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Is there such a thing as a “neutral” accent, and if so what does it sound like? And that quirk in the way southern Californians talk about freeways. They’ll say things like take the 405 and get on the 8. Why the definite article...
Floordrobe is the new word for an old habit: piling your clothes on the floor instead of putting them away. The Oxford English Dictionary recently added an entry for it, defining floordrobe as “an untidy heap of discarded clothing left on the floor...