60th Anniversary of Interstate Highway System



Later this year in June, the 60th anniversary of the signing of the law that established the Interstate Highway System will take place.  President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 on June 29, 1956.  The legislation authorized the construction of a 41,000 mile network of interstate highways that would cover the entire country.  The interstate highway system was intended to: eliminate traffic congestion, make coast-to-coast transportation more efficient, and simplify the ability for residents to leave large cities in the case of an atomic attack.

President Eisenhower had an interest in establishing an interconnected national highway system after his experience traveling across the country as an Army Lieutenant during a 1919 military convoy.  Secondly, when Eisenhower was a General during World War II he saw the importance of having an efficient interconnected road system when he traveled the German Autobahn highway network.

Currently, the Interstate Highway System is 46,876 miles long, making it the second longest road network in the world after China’s road network.  The longest interstate highway is I-90.  At 3,020 miles, I-90 connects Boston, Massachusetts to Seattle, Washington.

The Interstate Highway System allows millions of Americans travel to different sections of the country for work or leisure with relative ease.  The highway system has also caused Americans to become more reliant on cars and gasoline.  In order to preserve the highway system and to reduce traffic congestion and smog, it is important to discover solutions that address the benefits and problems associated with the Interstate Highway System.

Sources:
http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2006/summer/interstate
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/interstate/faq.cfm
http://www.history.com/topic/interstate-highway-system



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Recovery Month supports addiction treatment programs and services

F or twenty-three years Americans have celebrated the month of September as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.   The purpose of Recovery month is to educate Americans about mental health services and addiction treatment programs that can help people struggling with substance abuse.   Recovery month also raises awareness about specific challenges that people in recovery face.   Although drug and alcohol addictions are complex problems with the correct treatment and support people who struggle with these addictions can recover. In a Presidential Proclamation On August 31, 2012, President Barack Obama declared September 2012 as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.   In his proclamation Obama said: “Over the past 3 years, we have worked to strengthen substance abuse prevention and treatment programs, and to support Americans in recovery… Drug and alcohol abuse continue to take a tragic toll on millions of lives across our country.   Yet, while more remai
Read more

The Life and Art of Allan Rohan Crite

Image
The Boston Public Library was one of three locations in the city of Boston to display the art work of longtime Bostonian and artist Allan Rohan Crite. Beginning in the fall of 2007 until February 3, 2008, the BPL, the Boston Athenaeum, and the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists exhibited collected works of art from Crite’s storied career in The Life and Art of Allan Rohan Crite: 1910-2007 . Funded in part by the Boston Public Library Foundation, the exhibit offered onlookers a view into Crite’s lengthy artistic career. When I visited the exhibit on January 19, 2008, over fifty collages, drawings, paintings, and sketches adorned the Wiggins Gallery in the McKim Building of The Boston Public Library. Crite was born on March 20, 1910, in Plainfield, New Jersey. In that same year, his family moved to Boston, Massachusetts. Crite would later make Boston his home as an adult. Over the course of his distinguished career he promoted visual art as a lecturer, p
Read more

Political legislation brings attention to US Dental Care Crisis

A ccording to a report created by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and U.S. Representative Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) there is a national crisis in American dental care.   On June 7, 2012 Cummings and Sanders – the chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging, introduced legislation to address the inefficiencies in the American dental care system.   Approximately 130 million Americans do not have dental insurance.   ¼ of American adults 65 and older have lost all of their teeth.   More than 75% of American adults over 30 have gum disease.   Additionally, about 17 million low-income children do not go to the dentist every year. On June 26, 2012, PBS aired a documentary about the U.S. dental care system on the investigative news program FRONTLINE .   The 50 minute documentary, Dollars and Dentists , analyzes current economic trends and patient access in the dental care industry.   The documentary is a joint investigative piece by FRONTLINE and the Center fo
Read more