Library

Below are some interesting stories and news articles relating to the Interstate System. If you have any suggestions for stories to be posted here, please e-mail them to Greg Pearson at AASHTO.

(newest articles are first)
"How the Interstate System Reshaped Nation" and "Interstate System Needs Money for Updates" by Matt Milner for CNHI News Service (published in the Traverse City Record Eagle).
This two-day series takes a critical, in-depth look at the history of the Interstate System on its golden anniversary, how it fell into disrepair and what the future might bring to the road network.
"Interstates' Not-So-Happy Birthday" by ABC News. Online video report.
Discusses the Interstate anniversary, emphasising the need for funding for maintenance and expansion of the system.
"The U.S. Interstate Highway System at 50" a series reports from NPR.
Follow NPR coverage of the golden anniversary of federal legislation that sparked an economic and travel revolution – and also led to some unanticipated consequences, for good and ill.
"The Superhighway to Everywhere: Now 50, Interstates Moved America Into Another Lane" by T.R. Reid for the Washington Post.
There were no Wal-Marts in 1956, no Ramada Inns or Best Westerns. Cross-country travel most often meant the railroad and only about two-thirds of adult Americans had a driver's license. But that America began to change on June 29, 1956, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the law launching a massive federal project that had been his dream for decades: the Interstate Highway System.
"America's Interstates: The Next 50 Years" from Colorado Construction magazine.
New funding, technology, materials and methods will help shape a generation of roads.
"Best drives on the big roads" from USA Today.
To honor the 50th Anniversary of the Interstate System and refute the notion that Interstate travel is boring, USA Today's travel writers picked notable 50-mile stretches and hit the road. Selections are based on criteria such as scenery or significant cultural or historical attractions. They drove their routes, straying no more than 5 miles off the highway.
"Operation Interdependence continues to support troops" by Alexandra DeLuca for the North County Times.
Next month, several Operation Interdependence volunteers will take part in a cross-country convoy sponsored by The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System.
"On The Road – Again" by Dan Churney for The Times (Ottawa, Illinois).
Ex-GIs, workers tape memories of 1950s' I-80 work.
"Essential to the National Interest" by Richard F. Weingroff for Public Roads Magazine.
The first decade of the greatest public works project in history began a transportation system yet unrivaled in the world—along with problems to match.
"All Roads Lead Through America" by Angelina Sciolla for AAA member publications, May/June 2006. Downloadable PDF file (727 KB).
AAA celebrates 50 years of the Interstate Highway System.
"50 years down the road" by Gordon Weixel for the Bismarck Tribune.
The 50th anniversary of the nation's interstate system is this year. For George Stelzmiller, that milestone has a little more significance than for most people.
"Report on the Transcontinental Motor Train", by Dwight D. Eisenhower. Excerpted from EISENHOWER: The Prewar Diaries and Selected Papers, 1905-1941, edited by Daniel D. Holt, associate editor James W. Leyerzapf, The John's Hopkins University Press, 1998. Reprinted courtesy of the Eisenhower Library. Downloadable PDF file (6 MB)
November 3, 1919 letter from then-Lt. Colonel Eisenhower to the chief of the U.S. Army's Motor Transport Corps detailing his experiences on the transcontinental convoy.
Moving Washington Timeline: The First Century of the Washington State Department of Transportation, 1905-2005 by Walt Crowley, Kit Oldham & The HistoryLink Staff. $12.95 Paperback.
The Centennial Steering Committee commissioned this paperback book for the WSDOT centennial. Compact and richly illustrated, Moving Washington traces the evolution of Washington's transportation system, with emphasis on the century since creation of the original State Highway Board in 1905.
"Industry's Largest R&D Effort Founded Interstate Construction" by Scott Lewis for Engineering News-Record.
As the U.S. Interstate Highway System was taking shape, state highway agencies charged with building it faced an immense challenge. If the system was to last longer than previous American highways, transportation officials found they needed solid facts and figures on performance and behavior of pavement structures to guide them in designing and building the largest public works project in U.S. history.
"Happy 50th Birthday to Interstate Highways" by Marty Burnstein for Business Week.
Take a drive down memory lane with the history of America's national highway system, first envisioned by Dwight D. Eisenhower.
TRB Ignition – Fall 2005
This issue of Ignition, a quarterly news magazine from TRB's Special Programs Division, examines innovations sponsored by the IDEA program on electric motor technology for railroad locomotives, a formula for reinforcing steel, railroad at grade crossing safety, low-temperature limits of asphalt binders, and video and data recorders for vehicles. In recognition of the 50th anniversary of the Interstate System, this issue also explores highway research needs for the next 50 years.
"The Year of the Interstate" by Richard F. Weingroff for Public Roads Magazine.
In 2006, the 50th anniversary of "the greatest public works project in history" calls for a celebration—and an appeal for a searching look at the future of transportation.
"State Leaders Help Make Interstate Highway System a Reality" by John Horsley for ARTBA Transportation Builder Magazine. Downloadable PDF file.
AASHTO Executive Director John Horsley discusses the role of state departments of transportation in the creation of the Interstate Highway System.
"Texas Transportation Researcher – Special Issue: Celebrating Five Decades of Safety, Mobility and Growth" Downloadable PDF file (23 MB).
Special issue of the Texas Transportation Researcher focusing on the 50th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System.
Divided Highways – Building the Interstate Highways, Transforming American Life by Tom Lewis, Penguin Books 1997. $16 Paperback.
The Anniversary Committee is working with Tom to have him participate in the cross country caravan trip.
American Road: The Story of an Epic Transcontinental Journey at the Dawn of the Motor Age by Pete Davies, Owl Books, Henry Holt and Company 2002. $14 Paperback.
This book gives an excellent historical background on Eisenhower's original 1919 journey. States on the 2006 caravan might want to read this to get an idea where and how the caravan was originally celebrated in their part of the world.
The Roads that Built America – The Incredible Story of the U.S. Interstate System by Dan McNichol, Barnes and Noble Books 2003. $24.95 Hardcover (out of print).
A new version of this book is coming out next year. Good historical overview with lots of photos. Dan is working with RIDOT and its local FHWA office in planning Rhode Island's celebration of the interstate and will be participating in AASHTO's cross-country convoy.
"'It literally put the country on wheels'" by Edie Gross for the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star.
Back in the day: Locals recall I-95's earliest days 40 years ago.