THE ROAD AHEAD INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM CATERPILLAR TRACTOR CO. 44104

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Presented by Caterpillar Tractor Co. and narrated by Walter Cronkite, THE ROAD AHEAD traces the birth of the interstate highway system beginning in June 29, 1956 with the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act and the launching of the Interstate Defense Highway Program. This was the largest construction project in the history of the world, to build highways spanning the North American continent. At 3:00, you will see the first highway built at St. Charles, Missouri. As Cronkite states at 3:45, the investment was estimated at $50 billion dollars through 1975. The era of the automobile had truly arrived once the construction was complete.

At 4:50, Cronkite shows a map showing the interstate highway system and discusses the assignment of numbers to the various highways constituting 40,000 miles of highway. The building of these highways would constitute a more efficient, safer way of travel that would unite the nation in a way never seen before.

At 6:23, the Marine Studios in Florida is seen, and at 7:00 the New Jersey Turnpike. At 13:50, slow traffic is seen on Main Street and the fact that freeways will make main street less congested and safer is emphasized. At 18:30, the argument is made that freeways will provide freedom of movement and allow people to live in the suburbs. At 20:51, early computers are shown used to make calculations about the highway system.

The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, popularly known as the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act (Public Law 84-627), was enacted on June 29, 1956, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill into law. With an original authorization of US$25 billion for the construction of 41,000 miles (66,000 km) of the Interstate Highway System supposedly over a 10-year period, it was the largest public works project in American history through that time.

The addition of the term "Defense" in the Act's title was for two reasons: First, some of the original cost was diverted from defense funds. Secondly, most US Air Force bases have a direct link to the system. The purpose was to provide access in order to defend them during an attack. All of these links were in the original plans, although some, such as Wright Patterson were not connected up in the 1950s, but only somewhat later.

The money for the Interstate Highway and Defense Highways was handled in a Highway Trust Fund that paid for 90 percent of highway construction costs with the states required to pay the remaining 10 percent. It was expected that the money would be generated through new taxes on fuel, automobiles, trucks, and tires. As a matter of practice, the federal portion of the cost of the Interstate Highway System has been paid for by taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel.

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