As
a As a young Army officer in 1919, Dwight Eisenhower took part in a U.S.
Army convoy from Washington to San Francisco that took 62 days to travel
the country -- averaging 6 mph. During World War II, he saw how quickly
the German army could move thanks to the autobahn. Those two
recollections help power President Eisenhower's support for the bill
that passed Congress on this day in 1956 creating the U.S. interstate
highway system. At a cost of $129 billion and covering 46,876 miles, the
system ranks as the largest public-works project ever devised by
humanity, and one that made America what it is today, for better and
worse. Something to remember when you're stuck on one in a single file
row moving 6 mph between orange barrels this summer.Tuesday, June 26, 2012
The anniversary of the U.S. Highway system
June 26, 1956
As
a As a young Army officer in 1919, Dwight Eisenhower took part in a U.S.
Army convoy from Washington to San Francisco that took 62 days to travel
the country -- averaging 6 mph. During World War II, he saw how quickly
the German army could move thanks to the autobahn. Those two
recollections help power President Eisenhower's support for the bill
that passed Congress on this day in 1956 creating the U.S. interstate
highway system. At a cost of $129 billion and covering 46,876 miles, the
system ranks as the largest public-works project ever devised by
humanity, and one that made America what it is today, for better and
worse. Something to remember when you're stuck on one in a single file
row moving 6 mph between orange barrels this summer.
As
a As a young Army officer in 1919, Dwight Eisenhower took part in a U.S.
Army convoy from Washington to San Francisco that took 62 days to travel
the country -- averaging 6 mph. During World War II, he saw how quickly
the German army could move thanks to the autobahn. Those two
recollections help power President Eisenhower's support for the bill
that passed Congress on this day in 1956 creating the U.S. interstate
highway system. At a cost of $129 billion and covering 46,876 miles, the
system ranks as the largest public-works project ever devised by
humanity, and one that made America what it is today, for better and
worse. Something to remember when you're stuck on one in a single file
row moving 6 mph between orange barrels this summer.
Thank God for Ike's vision.
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