If you’ve ever driven a car in the United States, there is a high likelihood that you have driven on an interstate highway before. The Interstate Highway System is a network of 48,000 miles of limited-access freeway roads that connect every state in the contiguous 48 together. One-quarter of all vehicle-miles driven are on interstate highways.
Although a network of highways existed before the Second World War, America still lacked a network of freeways linking the country together (a freeway is defined as a highway with access and exit limited to on-ramps and off-ramps, with no traffic lights or intersections). After World War II, President Eisenhower, inspired by Germany’s highway network from when he was stationed there during the war, declared a national highway system critical to the nation’s defense. Eisenhower signed the Federal Highway Act of 1956 into law in June that year. The act included a proposed plan of interstate highways linking almost all cities with a population of over 50,000 together. It also stipulated that the federal government would cover 90 percent of the cost of building the highways. All interstate highways had to be divided, with at least four lanes, and no ground-level crossings (overpasses and underpasses only).
Interestingly, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico all have interstate highways, although they are numbered differently and only serve the state they are in.
Like how the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 brought about a boom in the American economy, finally providing a cheap, viable overland transportation method from coast to coast, the interstate highway system changed America forever and shaped America into the country it is today.
The completion of the highway network provided a cheap corridor for goods transportation. There was now an affordable way to quickly transport goods across the country without having to use the railroad. On just about any interstate highway, 18-wheeler trucks hauling goods across the country are a common sight. The interstate highway system completely revolutionized domestic shipping, and companies were able to get their goods across the entire country quicker than ever before, and to places not served by train or air. Containers from ships could first travel on a train after arriving at a port, then quickly moved onto a truck to deliver the container to areas with no rail access. It was significantly more flexible and efficient to move goods across the country with the interstate system.
The economy was also substantially altered with the completion of the highways. Everything was reorganized around a system of standardized highways. Small towns not served by the interstate network slowly withered away, while new towns located next to major highways flourished. As travel between cities was made significantly easier, suburbs grew quickly and allowed connected towns to grow quickly. It also opened up the possibility for many people to commute into large cities for better work, something that would’ve been unthinkable when the only roads that existed were winding country roads.
As the highway system was built during the height of the Cold War, it was thought that the interstate highway system could provide a safe, accessible way for citizens to evacuate along in the event of a nuclear attack. It also provided easy access for the U.S. Army to mobilize troops within the country and defend the country in the face of an attack. For this reason, defense funds were partially used to help construct the highways, and many major military bases are located near a major interstate.
The interstate system also revolutionized America’s car culture. The completion of this new network of highways affirmed the position of the automobile as the primary form of transportation for many. This was because driving, once seen as an excursion and involving a high degree of unpredictability, danger, and skill, was now, for the most part, standardized across the country. The roads all had the same wide width, same road rules, and same road signs.
In conclusion, the interstate highway system greatly influenced the way Americans lived. It is now a crucial backbone of the nation’s transportation network, and large numbers of people now rely on them to get around. Just as how the post office and the railroad revolutionized transportation in the early 1800s and mid-1800s respectively, the interstate highway network revolutionized transportation in the 20th century and beyond.
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