Article related to the additional route mileage designated for the Interstate highway system dated October, 1957

FINAL MILEAGE DESIGNATED

The 41,000-mile Interstate System Is Now Completely Apportioned

New routes totaling 2,102 miles have been made a part of the 41,000 National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, Secretary of Commerce Weeks announced.

They include the 1,000-mile expansion of the Interstate System authorized by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956.  The remaining 1,102 miles were made possible by estimated savings in mileage resulting from adoption of more direct locations of routes previously designated.

In developing the plan for the routes, Secretary Weeks said, consideration was given to proposals advanced by the various state highway departments for utilization of the 1,000-mile addition to the 40,000-mile Interstate System.  He added that the Department of Defense has concurred in the action.

Under the 1,000-mile addition authorized by Congress in 1956, four city-to-city routes were approved for designation:

- Ellensburg, WA to the vicinity of Pendleton, OR, 132 miles;
- Baton Rouge, LA eastward enroute to Mobile, AL, 91 miles;
- Denver, CO to the vicinity of Cove Fort, UT, 547 miles;
- Fargo, ND to Sioux Falls, SD, 230 miles.

The routes chosen for designation under the original 40,000-mile authorization include five new city-to-city highways totaling 886 miles and 216 miles in or near urban areas.  The city-to-city routes including some mileage in intermediate states are:

- Canton, OH to Charlotte, NC, 431 miles;
- Pittsburgh, PA to Erie, PA, 102 miles;
- Ogden, UT to Echo Junction, UT, 40 miles;
- Nashville, TN to Cairo, IL, 170 miles;
- San Antonio, TX to Corpus Christi, TX, 143 miles.

In addition, the 216 miles include:  urban connections in Chicago, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Washington DC, Kansas City, Louisville, Omaha, and Duluth (MN), as well as the earmarking of mileage to provide circumferential or belt routes for cities more than 200,000 population where routes already designated fail to provide such facilities.

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