Celebrating the U.S. Interstate at 70

In honor of the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Interstate Highway System, Roads & Bridges is dedicating a yearlong series to the people, projects and perspectives that shaped it — and to what comes next. Explore the coverage below to see how we’ll mark the milestone across photos, interviews and conversations that connect the system’s origins to its future. 

Reader Engagement: Share Your Interstate Story 

Roads & Bridges wants to hear from you! If you have photos and memories of your work or travels on the U.S. Interstate Highway System, we would love for you to share them. Tell us about your favorite cross-country road trip. What sights stood out along the way? Or, if you worked on the system, what challenges did your crew face during construction?  The stories of America’s roadway cannot be told without the millions of people that shaped them. 

Then & Now: 50-State Photo Series

 See how the interstate has evolved — one state at a time. Throughout the year, we’ll publish side-by-side images from all 50 states (and Washington, D.C.) highlighting highway and bridge corridors then and now, with brief context on what changed, what endured and why it matters today. 

Interviews: Voices of the Interstate

We are going behind the scenes with interviews with a highway historian and a roadway enthusiast who know the system best. Our interviews will include both written Q&As and on-camera conversations that surface the stories, lessons learned and pivotal moments that helped define America’s most consequential public-works network. 

Roundtable: The Next Era of the Interstate

What should the interstate be in its eighth decade? We’ll convene a roundtable discussion to look ahead at the priorities and tradeoffs facing the network — preservation and modernization, safety, resilience, funding, technology and the changing needs of freight and travelers. 

Check back here regularly as new installments publish throughout the year — each one designed to celebrate 70 years of interstate impact while sparking practical conversation about where the system goes from here.