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THE NATIONAL SYSTEM OF INTERSTATE AND DEFENSE HIGHWAYS.

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The Interstate System, when completed, will consist of 43,000 mi of the most important highways in the country. It connects and extends into most of our larger cities (See Fig. 2-2). Joint selection was first authorized by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1944, was approved by the state highway departments and the Commissioner of Public Roads, and was finally adopted4 in August 1947. Included by 1980, were about 33,000 rural and 9400 urban radial and circum-ferential miles. Although 40,000 mi were in service, only 8200 mi were complete in every detail. Some 2300 mi are toll roads. Although it constitutes only 1.1% of all road mileage it carries roughly 20% of all motor-vehicle traffic. ADT (average daily traffic) in 1978 was about 16,000 vehicles on the rural and

46,0 on the urban sections. Initially, the total cost of the system was set at $26 billion. The 1979 estimate to complete a slightly extended mileage is $113 billion of which $46 billion is yet to be spent.
The Interstate System has been and is being designed to the highest standards appropriate for the terrain traversed and the traffic served. Rights of way are wide and access is controlled; some 85% of its length is on new locations, since existing developments, poor vertical and horizontal alignments, and other features of the present highways along the same routes could not be reconciled to the extremely high standards.
Congress has given construction of the Interstate System tremendous impetus by providing special funding. (See Chapter 5.) The original aim was that the en¬tire system be finished in a 12 to 15 yr period, or by about 1972. However, that target has not been met. The 1978 Surface Transportation Act prohibits con¬struction starts after September 30, 1986, and authorizes $3,625 million annually through 1990 for construction and reconstruction.

SPECIAL FEDERAL HIGHWAY SYSTEMS. The federal government has full re¬sponsibility for about 221,000 mi of forest highways, forest developmental roads, highways in national parks and Indian reservations, and in certain other federally administered areas. But, as indicated earlier, it has left the principal highway and mass transportation roles to the states.

Title Post: THE NATIONAL SYSTEM OF INTERSTATE AND DEFENSE HIGHWAYS.
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Author: aditya