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National Highway System (United States)

Not to be confused with United States Numbered Highways or Interstate Highway System.

The National Highway System (NHS) is a network of strategic highways within the United
States, including the Interstate Highway System and other roads serving major airports,
ports, rail or truck terminals, railway stations, pipeline terminals and other strategic
transport facilities. Altogether, it constitutes the largest highway system in the world.

Individual states are encouraged to focus

federal funds on improving the efficiency
National Highway System
and safety of this network. The roads
within the system were identified by the
United States Department of
Transportation in cooperation with the
states, local officials, and metropolitan
planning organizations and approved by
the United States Congress in 1995.

Contents
System map with Interstate Highways in blue
and other components in red

Legislation System information

Length 160,955 mi
The Intermodal Surface Transportation (259,032 km)
Efficiency Act of 1991 provided that
Formed November 28, 1995
certain key routes such as the Interstate
Highway System, be included.[1] Highway names

The National Highway System Interstates Interstate nn (I-nn)

Designation Act of 1995 (Pub.L. 104–
US Highways U.S. Highway nn,
59 , 109 Stat. 568 ) is a United States
U.S. Route nn
Act of Congress that was signed into law (US nn, US-nn)
by President Bill Clinton on November 28,
State Varies by state
1995. The legislation designated about
160,955 miles (259,032 km) of roads, County roads County Road nn,
including the Interstate Highway System, County Route nn (CR
as the NHS. nn, Co. Rd. nn)

Aside from designating the system, the Other local roads Varies by locality

act served several other purposes, System links

including restoring $5.4 billion in funding
National Highway System
to state highway departments, giving
Interstate · STRAHNET
Congress the power to prioritize highway
system projects, repealing all federal
speed limit controls, and prohibits the federal government from requiring states to use
federal-aid highway funds to convert existing signs or purchase new signs with metric
units.[2]

The act also created a State Infrastructure Bank pilot program. Ten states were chosen in
1996 for this new method of road financing. These banks would lend money like regular
banks, with funding coming from the federal government or the private sector, and they
would be repaid through such means as highway tolls or taxes. In 1997, 28 more states
asked to be part of the program. Ohio was the first state to use a state infrastructure bank
to start building a road. An advantage to this method was completing projects faster; state
laws and the lack of appropriate projects were potential problems.[3]

Overview

According to the Federal Highway Administration, the

160,000-mile (260,000 km) National Highway System
includes roads important to the United States' economy,
defense, and mobility, from one or more of the following
road networks (specific routes may be part of more than
one sub-system):[4]
A map of the Strategic Highway
Interstate Highway System: The entire Interstate Network, one component of the
Highway System (which is also known as the Dwight D. NHS.

Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense

Highways) is included in the NHS, but retains its
separate identity within the NHS.

Other Principal Arterials: Highways in rural and urban

areas which provide access between an arterial and a
major port, airport, public transportation facility, or
other intermodal transportation facility. (Facilities
Map of average freight truck traffic
accessed include 207 airports, 198 ports, 190 rail or
on the NHS, 2015
truck terminals, 67 Amtrak railway stations, 58 pipeline
terminals as well as 82 intercity bus terminals, 307 public transit stations, 37 ferry
terminals, and 20 multi-purpose passenger terminals.)[5]

Strategic Highway Network (STRAHNET): The entire network of highways which are
important to the United Statesʼ strategic defense policy and which provide defense
access, continuity, and emergency capabilities for defense purposes.[6]

Major Strategic Highway Network Connectors: Highways which provide access between
major military installations and routes which are part of STRAHNET.

Intermodal Conectors: Routes which provide access between major intermodal facilities
and the other four subsystems making up the NHS.[7]

The system includes 4% of the nation's roads, but carries more than 40% of all highway
traffic, 75% of heavy truck traffic, and 90% of tourist traffic.[5] All urban areas with a
population of over 50,000 and about 90% of America's population live within 5 miles
(8.0 km) of the network,[5] which is the longest in the world.[8]

See also

U.S. Roads portal

References

e. ^ National Transportation Library. "Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of

1991" . National Transportation Library. Retrieved April 2, 2013.

g. ^ Federal Highway Administration. "Interstate FAQ: Why don't you put metric speed
and distance signs on the Interstate System?" . Celebrating the Eisenhower
Interstate Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved August 23,
2008.

k. ^ Schienberg, Phyllis (March 6, 1997). "Statement of Phyllis Schienberg, Prospects for

Innovation Through Research, Intelligent Transportation Systems, State Infrastructure
Banks, and Design-Build Contracting" . US Senate Committee on Environment and
Public Works. Retrieved July 9, 2012.

m. ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderly, Kevin (September 29, 2017). "What is the
National Highway System?" . National Highway System. Federal Highway
Administration. Retrieved January 29, 2019.

p. ^ a b c Slater, Rodney E. (Spring 1996). "The National Highway System: A Commitment

to America's Future" . Public Roads. Washington, DC: Federal Highway
Administration. 59 (4). ISSN 0033-3735 . Retrieved July 9, 2012.

r. ^ Federal Highway Administration (November 7, 2014). "Chapter 18: Strategic Highway

Network (STRAHNET)" . Status of the Nation's Highways, Bridges, and Transit: 2004
Conditions and Performance. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved August 27,
2015.

s. ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderly, Kevin (April 6, 2018). "Intermodal
Connectors" . National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved
January 29, 2019.

t. ^ Cox, Wendell (January 22, 2011). "China Expressway System to Exceed US

Interstates" . New Geography. Retrieved July 9, 2012.

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the
United States Department of Transportation.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to National Highway System (United

States).

STRAHNET description at US military's Transportation Engineering Agency

STRAHNET article at the GlobalSecurity.org

Weingroff, Richard F. "Backbone: Creation Of The National Highway System "

National Highways System Proposed in 1913

State-by-state maps of the National Highway System of the Federal Highway

Administration

Last edited 2 months ago by Chaswmsday

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