Transport & space · 1956
Interstate Highway System
A 66,000 km network of limited-access highways reorganizes the US around the car.
The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 funded the Interstate system, modeled partly on Germany's Autobahn. It now spans about 78,000 km and carries about a quarter of all US vehicle miles. It boosted trucking, suburbs and cross-country travel.
What it built on 2
Related measurements
The dashed line marks when it first worked.
US households with a car Latest: 91 % of households (2005) Source: Our World in Data
Private cars in the UK Latest: 22M cars (1998) Source: Our World in Data
Fossil fuel consumption Latest: 144k TWh (2025) Source: Our World in Data