The Interstates...

[artguys]

an overview. Some will know that Eisenhower was in large part responsible for the building of our current interstate system. The overall goal was to span the east to the west with roadways that would expedite travel while at the same time link our great cities. Had they been able to fast forward 60-70 yrs they would have realized one very large mistake had been made...the linking of the cities. Travel on the interstates in and around our cities over the years has become nothing less than a bottleneck as well as being dangerous.

Most cities have built bypasses that relieve these conditions and many if not most have turned these bypasses in to commercial zones that lead to even more pressures. As an example...the I459 bypass around Birmingham was one of the better ones when first built. But over the years is also becoming commercialized.

What they designers should have done was to build the interstate system near enough to the cities to be considered linked and yet far enough to not be impacted by commercial traffic.

[wny_pat1]

artguys wrote:
smkettner...every truck/tractor in the US is taxed and has been for many years a special Highway Use tax called a IRS 2290, in the amount of $550.00 annually for that exact reason. There is no industry more taxed per earning ability than the trucking industry and those taxes derived from such go into the general fund...not a area that supports road building or maintenance...Please!

They are taxed much higher than that!!! While it varies by states they operate in, for a typical 80,000 pound GVW tractor-trailer combination truck the federal highway taxes average $8,959 per year.

[Ron_Butler]

Forgot to add from my childhood memories of traveling from Seattle to Portland. It was an all day trip on old Highway 99. Now you can make the roundtrip in one day, if you start south of Seattle!!

Also the camping trip from Seattle to Denver and down through the southwest and back. All 2 lane roads but still remember not only the national parks we visited (which we have redone in the motor home) but also the Jack Rabbit Trading Post; Tepee Motel and the dinosaurs around Holbrook AZ.!!

I'm sure that trip is what whetted my travel and wanderlust as well.

[wny_pat1]

JCR-1 wrote:
The only mistake is that they should have made them bigger to accomodate growth. Further away only would make them have more crowded connector roads. Bigger is better..

But they were huge by 1950 standards. And we're growing ourselves right out of a living earth.

[The_Mad_Norsky]

Good grief. I should read before posting. Gonna post a link to the 1919 Ike road trip, got it all finished and then saw it was already here.

My bad.

[artguys]

smkettner...every truck/tractor in the US is taxed and has been for many years a special Highway Use tax called a IRS 2290, in the amount of $550.00 annually for that exact reason. There is no industry more taxed per earning ability than the trucking industry and those taxes derived from such go into the general fund...not a area that supports road building or maintenance...Please!

[paulj]

Eisenhower's report from 1919

They followed the Lincoln Hwy, such as it was, nearly all the way. It was mostly paved, in one way or other to Illinois, then graded dirt and worse, until California. Some paved stretches were too narrow. Bridges were too low (covered ones in the east), or too weak.

Big trucks were slow and unreliable. They could not handle sandy areas (esp. western Nebraska) or grades. 1.5 ton trucks did well.

Extended trips by trucks through the middle western part of the United States are impracticable until the roads are imporoved, and then only a light truck should be used on long hauls.

[Dog_Folks]

My Bad, I was wrong. I looked it in WIKI also but I misread the statement. He got the idea in 1919 but after he crossed OUR country.


Sorry, there was no attempt to mislead.

[The_Mad_Norsky]

I recall traveling with my family in the late 1950's and during the 1960's.

We lived on one end of the US, Mom's family was the other end, so lots of road trip vacations.

It was quite an adventure, but frustrating to drive in that the Interstate system was in such an infant state there were just so many unfinished areas.

Driving down a good four lane Interstate and boom, back on two lane for a while. Then just as suddenly back on another finished part of the Interstate.

Back and forth. Oh well, still good memories. Gave me the travel bug I have now.

[Ron_Butler]

Eisenhower used the military use of an interstate highway system to get members of his own political party onboard to support it. Attempting to not be political here, but that was part of the politics to build support for it in Congress - I believe it is called compromise!! :B

Now, how could any of the people of age during the 50's & 60's ever have predicted or foreseen the incredible economic and population growth that the highway system helped bring about? Just several concepts to consider: 1 - workers moving out to what was then the "boonies", taking advantage of a "fast" trip into work - total change of thinking about living close to your job. 2. this change of course led to the growth of the suburbs along with higher population growth. 3. How could they have predicted the change of moving goods and products from the railroads to trucks at the rate that happened? 4. As veterans advanced in the work force, they stayed in the areas that had the most job opportunities - not going back to the farms, as well as the young kids leaving the farms and rural areas for the "bright lights" and higher paying jobs. 5. How could have predicted that families got to the point where they had to have 3 or 4 or more vehicles for convenience sakes? That their high school aged kids needed their own wheels to go 1/2 mile to school and park it? 6. Did we totally abandon other forms of mass transit and transportation systems thinking that the highway system would be the be all end all for our transportation considerations? This is only a shallow commentary of the changes that have impacted our highway system.

I have heard the comment about freeways, no doubt taken from a more popular source and movie - "build it and they will come!" Unfortunately, that is so true that I would think that we would somehow realize that we can't just build more highways to help relieve the congestion problems! :h:@

Oh well, we will continue to use the back roads as much as possible!

[time2roll]

I am still wayne_tw wrote:
Eisenhower envisioned the Interstate Highway System to move war material. It was not built primarily for the motoring public. An unintended consequence was it took freight off the railroads onto the highways. The proliferation of tractor trailer trucks on the highway has worn the roads out and caused congestion. If the trucks were banned from the roads, while we would have no goods in our stores, we would have a pleasant motorway.

The trucks could be taxed a bit more to help pay for repairs and encourage rail transit. But then there is politics.

[paulj]

1955 General Location maps
This book from the Bureau of Public Roads of "General location of national system of interstate highways, including all additional routes at urban areas designated in September, 1955 (1955)"
These city maps generally match current Interstates. For smaller towns the highway does bypass, with a spur into town, or for some a loop. But for cities like Seattle, Chicago, is shows the familiar pattern of through routes, passing near downtown, with beltways.

http://www.upa.pdx.edu/IMS/currentprojects/TAHv3/Content/PDFs/Fed_Hwy_Act_1956.pdf
One of the longer histories of the Fed Hwy Act of 1956, with information going back to the Roosevelt years. Location and purpose of the highways was not controversial. Funding was. I don't see any mention of Dept of Defense planning or funding. Eisenhower's war experience was a factor in his enthusiasm for the project, but he did not design the system.

Ike's Grand Plan - presented to a Governors' meeting 1954.

[BillMFl]

Oh and by the way, the railroads are doing just fine hauling heavy freight. Its passenger business that died due to cars and airplanes, The lowest cost for hauling heavy loads long distance is by ship. Rail comes second. Trucks are third but more flexible as to where and when they can deliver. In my old corporate days we shipped heavy loads by rail whenever we could. Used trucks and air for convenience and short hauls. Air only for emergencies. I used to get most of my raw materials by rail and shipped finished goods by rail and truck. Rail still dominates in heavy and bulk on land.

[BillMFl]

I Like Ike. Remember those little campaign buttons. I was just a kid but I remember him as a friendly grampa sort of guy. I just spent four straight days and 1600 miles on the Interstates and other than the Tap Zee it was an easy drive. I cross over from I81 onto 66 and 17 to I95 down to Jax. The truckers seem to prefer I81 now so I don't. Traffic was mostly smooth on 95 both last spring going north and this week going south. For me the trick to using the I system is to stay mostly in the right lane and not be in a hurry.

[paulj]

Dog Folks wrote:
The instate was championed by Eisenhower after he saw the German Autobon system in 1919....

What's your source for that?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_career_of_Dwight_D._Eisenhower#Early_military_career
Eisenhower did not go to Europe during or after WW1. He was part of a US military convoy that drove cross country in 1919 - following the incomplete Lincoln Hwy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcontinental_Motor_Convoy

Autobahn construction began in 1929, with the first section opened in 1932. It was preceeded by an Italian autostrada in 1924. But apparently Hitler's propaganda machine was effective - he is credited with inventing the Autobahn. A lot was constructed in the prewar years (1/4 of current mileage), but it wasn't all that useful for war purposes. Most German troop and equipment movement was by rail.

http://german.about.com/library/blgermyth08.htm

The Pasadena Freeway opened in 1940, as did the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

FHWA history
According to this, there was a 2cent federal gas tax that went to the Treasury. After the 1956 bill, the gas tax was 3 cents, and went exclusively to the Highway Trust Fund. By 1993 this tax had increased to 18 cents (29 cents in current dollars), and for about 5 years the latest increase went to debt reduction. Now the Highway Trust Fund gets infusions from the general budget.