Our Oldest Superhighway

October 1, 2009

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Profile America — Thursday, October 1st. The first superhighway in America opened on this date in 1940 — the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The highway utilized roadbed and unfinished tunnels from an abandoned railroad project of the 1880s to make the nation’s first limited access, divided highway. The original road ran for 160 miles and featured seven tunnels, 10 service plazas and 11 interchanges. In the years since, the turnpike — now part of the Interstate Highway System — has seen many improvements and is twice its original length. In the U.S. today, there are just under 4 million miles of roads, including nearly 47,000 miles of interstate highways. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at <www.census.gov>.

Sources: www.paturnpike.com/geninfo/history
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2009, t. 1049
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2009edition.html