Fuel Conservation On The Old Highway System

Summary

The original US highway system, a series of smaller highways assembled into a natinoal highway system prior to the Eisenhower Interstate System, still connects the majority of large- and moderately-sized cities, with well-maintained roads, but with lower speed-limits, curves and hills, and fewer ways to pass other drivers. The lower speed limits will provide gasoline conservation, while opening up smaller communities to the travellers they lost with the Interstate, and leaving the Interstate System to industrial transporation and high-speed travel.

Introduction

My family and I travel from to Milwaukee and Sheboygan many times a year for family, and, of course, we've become quite familiar with the Eisenhower Interstate System. As a military man, Eisenhower served along Europe's well-developed roadways during WWII, traveled across the US' poor roads by car, and his experience followed him to his presidency. Eisenhower believed the US would benefit from a similar infrastructure, connecting our major cities with high-speed, low-access roadways to promote travel and commerce. North Dakota's stretch of I-94 was the first completed, and the system expanded from there. We drive on I-94 from Fargo, through Minneapolis, to Tomah, Wisconsin, where it connects with I-90 and continues to Milwaukee. On other occasions, when we've felt we had more time to spend, we've traveled along sections of [US 10] in both Minnesota and Wisconsin, and we've made some discoveries that might otherwise seem counterintuitive. The slower speed limits and landscape should slow down our driving time, the hills and curves and stop-signs should severely impact fuel efficiency, and it must be difficult to find gas stations and restaurants. In fact, much of the above are untrue, and the benefits of taking a non-Interstate route outweigh the percieved benefits of the straighter, faster route.

Additional Resources

• Drive 55 Conservation Project, a blog promoting lower speed limits as a way to conserve energy and prevent global warming.