Editing United States Numbered Highway System

{{short description|Highway system of the United States of America}}
{{About|a set of roads typically called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways|other numbered highways in the United States|Numbered highways in the United States}}
{{Confuse|National Highway System (United States)|Interstate Highway System}}
{{good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{infobox state highway system
|title=United States Numbered Highway System
|shields=[[File:US shield evolution.svg|300px]]
|caption=[[U.S. Route shield|Design changes of U.S. Highway shield]]
|map=Map of current U.S. Routes.svg
|map_alt=
|map_notes=Map of the present U.S. Highway network; Purple are double-digit U.S. Routes, blue are triple-digit U.S. Routes, and orange are Interstate Routes
|formed={{start date|1926|11|11}}<ref name="FHWA planning"/>
|length_mi=157724
|length_ref={{efn|{{As of|1989}}.<ref name=USRN>{{cite book |author = Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering |url = http://route.transportation.org/Documents/USRN_Cover_to_page_ix.pdf |publisher = [[American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials]] |title = United States Numbered Highways |edition = 5th |year = 1989 |page = iv |access-date = March 16, 2012 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140101004029/http://route.transportation.org/Documents/USRN_Cover_to_page_ix.pdf |archive-date = January 1, 2014 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>}}
|maint=primarily [[State governments of the United States|state]] or [[Local government in the United States|local governments]]; numbers and routings approved by [[American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials|AASHTO]]{{efn|The American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) was renamed the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) on November 11, 1973.<ref>{{cite web |author = Federal Highway Administration |date = December 4, 2012 |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/byday/fhbd1113.htm |title = November 13 |work = Highway History |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |access-date = August 18, 2013 }}</ref>|name=AASHTO}}
|interstate=
|us=U.S. Highway&nbsp;nn (US&nbsp;nn) <br />U.S. Route&nbsp;nn (US&nbsp;nn)
|notes=
|links=US
}}
The '''United States Numbered Highway System''' (often called '''U.S. Routes''' or '''U.S. Highways''') is an integrated network of [[road]]s and [[highway]]s numbered within a nationwide grid in the [[contiguous United States]]. As the designation and numbering of these highways were coordinated among the states, they are sometimes called '''Federal Highways''', but the roadways were built and have always been maintained by [[State governments of the United States|state]] or [[Local government in the United States|local governments]] since their initial designation in 1926.

The route numbers and locations are coordinated by the [[American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials]] (AASHTO).<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/> The only federal involvement in AASHTO is a nonvoting seat for the [[United States Department of Transportation]].<!-- The Interstate Highway System has a different numbering scheme with different directions. Do not confuse the two and change the following information. --> Generally, most north-to-south highways are odd-numbered, with the lowest numbers in the east and the highest in the west, while east-to-west highways are typically even-numbered, with the lowest numbers in the north, and the highest in the south, though the grid guidelines are not rigidly followed, and many exceptions exist. Major north–south routes generally have numbers ending in "1", while major east–west routes usually have numbers ending in "0".<ref name="FHWA planning" />{{#tag:ref|The [[Interstate Highway System]] also assigns even numbers to east–west highways and odd numbers to north–south highways. It uses different origins, with the lowest numbers in the south and west. That system also skips some numbers so that generally speaking, a state would not have highways in both systems with the same number.<ref name="AASHTO purpose">{{cite book |author = American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials |date = January 2000 |chapter-url = http://cms.transportation.org/sites/route/docs/HO2_Policy_Retention_HO1.pdf |chapter = Establishment of a Marking System of the Routes Comprising the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways |title = AASHTO Transportation Policy Book |publisher = American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials |access-date = January 23, 2008 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061101234238/http://cms.transportation.org/sites/route/docs/HO2_Policy_Retention_HO1.pdf |archive-date = November 1, 2006 }}</ref><ref name="fhwa-faq19" >{{cite web |author = Federal Highway Administration |date = n.d. |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/interstate/faq.cfm |title = Interstate FAQ |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |access-date = June 26, 2009 |quote = Proposed I-41 in Wisconsin and partly completed I-74 in North Carolina respectively are possible and current exceptions not adhering to the guideline. It is not known if the U.S. Highways with the same numbers will be retained in the states upon completion of the Interstate routes. |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130507121442/http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/interstate/faq.htm#question19 |archive-date = May 7, 2013 |url-status = live }}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} Three-digit numbered highways are generally spur routes of parent highways; for example, [[U.S. Route 421]] (US&nbsp;421) is a spur off [[U.S. Route 21|US&nbsp;21]]. Some [[List of divided U.S. Routes|divided routes]], such as [[U.S. Route 19E|US&nbsp;19E]]/[[U.S. Route 19W|US&nbsp;19W]] and [[U.S. Route 25E|US&nbsp;25E]]/[[U.S. Route 25W|US&nbsp;25W]], exist to provide two alignments for one route. Special routes, which can be labeled as alternate, bypass or business, depending on the intended use, provide a parallel routing to the mainline U.S. Highway—an example being [[U.S. Route 74|US&nbsp;74]] and [[Special routes of U.S. Route 74|its many special routes]].

Before the U.S. Routes were designated, [[auto trail]]s designated by auto trail associations were the main means of marking roads through the United States.  These were private organizations, and the system of road marking at the time was haphazard and not uniform.  In 1925, the '''Joint Board on Interstate Highways''', recommended by the [[American Association of State Highway Officials]] (AASHO), worked to form a national numbering system to rationalize the roads. After several meetings, a final report was approved by the [[United States Department of Agriculture|U.S. Department of Agriculture]] in November 1925. After getting feedback from the states, they made several modifications; the U.S. Highway System was approved on November 11, 1926.

Expansion of the U.S. Highway System continued until 1956, when the [[Interstate Highway System]] was laid out and began construction under the administration of President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]]. After the national implementation of the Interstate Highway System, many U.S. Routes that had been bypassed or overlaid with Interstate Highways were decommissioned and removed from the system. In some places, the U.S. Routes remain alongside the Interstates and serve as a means for interstate travelers to access local services and as secondary feeder roads or as important major arteries in their own right.  In other places, where there are no nearby Interstate Highways, the U.S. Routes often remain as the most well-developed roads for long-distance travel. While the system's growth has slowed in recent decades, the U.S. Highway System remains in place to this day and new routes are occasionally added to the system.

==System details==
{{See also|List of United States Numbered Highways}}

In general, U.S. Routes do not have a minimum design standard, unlike the later [[Interstate Highway]]s, and are not usually built to [[controlled-access highway|freeway]] standards. Some stretches of U.S. Routes do meet those standards. Many are designated using the [[main street]]s of the cities and towns through which they run. New additions to the system, however, must "substantially meet the current [[AASHTO design standards]]".<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/> {{As of|1989|post=,}} the United States Numbered Highways system had a total length of {{convert|157724|mi|km}}.<ref name=USRN/>

Except for [[toll bridge]]s and [[toll tunnel|tunnels]], very few U.S. Routes are [[toll road]]s. AASHTO policy says that a toll road may only be included as a [[special route]], and that "a toll-free routing between the same termini shall continue to be retained and marked as a part of the U.S. Numbered System."<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/> [[U.S. Route 3|US&nbsp;3]] meets this obligation; in [[U.S. Route 3 in New Hampshire|New Hampshire]], it does not follow tolled portions of the [[Everett Turnpike]]. However, U.S. Routes in the system do use parts of five toll roads:<ref>{{cite map |author = [[Rand McNally]] |year = 2013 |title = The Road Atlas: United States, Canada & Mexico |location = Chicago |publisher = Rand McNally |at = p. 32, § A9; p. 83, §§ D15, D19; p. 92, § J8 |edition = 2013 Walmart |isbn = 0-528-00626-6 }}</ref>
* [[U.S. Route 51 in Illinois|US&nbsp;51]] uses part of the [[Jane Addams Memorial Tollway]] in [[Illinois]]; the old road is [[Illinois Route&nbsp;251]].
* [[U.S. Route 278 in South Carolina|US&nbsp;278]] uses the tolled [[Cross Island Parkway (Hilton Head Island)|Cross Island Parkway]] in [[South Carolina]]; the old road is [[U.S. Route 278 Business (Hilton Head Island, South Carolina)|US&nbsp;278 Business]].  The tolls were removed in July 2021.
* [[U.S. Route 301 in Delaware|US&nbsp;301]] is a toll road through [[Delaware]]; the former routing is a free road and uses several Delaware state routes.
* [[U.S. Route 412 in Oklahoma|US&nbsp;412]] uses the [[Cimarron Turnpike]] in [[Oklahoma]]; the old road is [[U.S. Route 64 in Oklahoma|US&nbsp;64]].
* US&nbsp;412 also uses the [[Cherokee Turnpike]] in Oklahoma; the old road is [[Alternate U.S. Highway 412|US&nbsp;412 Alternate]].

===Numbering===
U.S. Routes in the [[contiguous United States]] follow a grid pattern, in which odd-numbered routes run generally north to south and even-numbered routes run generally east to west, though three-digit spur routes can be either-or.{{efn|These three-digit spur routes are not to be confused with [[special route]]s signposted as "SPUR", such as [[Special routes of U.S. Route 95#Payette spur|US&nbsp;95&nbsp;Spur]].}} Usually, one- and two-digit routes are major routes, and three-digit routes are numbered as shorter spur routes from a main route. Odd numbers generally increase from east to west; [[U.S. Route 1|US&nbsp;1]] follows the Atlantic Coast and [[U.S. Route 101|US&nbsp;101]] follows the Pacific Coast. (US&nbsp;101 is one of the many exceptions to the standard numbering grid; its first "digit" is "10", and it is a main route on its own and not a spur of US&nbsp;1.) Even numbers tend to increase from north to south; [[U.S. Route 2|US&nbsp;2]] closely follows the Canadian border, and [[U.S. Route 98|US&nbsp;98]] hugs the Gulf Coast. The longest routes connecting major cities are generally numbered to end in a 1 or a 0;<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/longest.cfm |title = Ask the Rambler: What Is The Longest Road in the United States? |publisher = [[Federal Highway Administration]] |date = April 7, 2011 |access-date = April 11, 2010 }}</ref> however, extensions and truncations have made this distinction largely meaningless.<ref name="mcnichol71">{{cite book |last = McNichol |first = Dan |title = The Roads that Built America: The Incredible Story of the U.S. Interstate System |location = New York |publisher = Sterling Publishing |year = 2006 |isbn = 1-4027-3468-9 |page = 71 }}</ref>  These guidelines are very rough, and exceptions to all of the basic numbering rules exist.

The numbering system also extended beyond the borders of the United States in an unofficial manner. Many Canadian highways were renumbered in the 1940s and 1950s to adopt the same number as the U.S. Route they connected to – mostly in the western provinces.{{cn|date=September 2023}} Examples include [[British Columbia]]'s highways [[British Columbia Highway 93|93]], [[British Columbia Highway 95|95]], [[British Columbia Highway 97|97]], and [[British Columbia Highway 99|99]]; [[Manitoba]]'s highways [[Manitoba Highway 59|59]], [[Manitoba Highway 75|75]], and [[Manitoba Highway 83|83]]; or Ontario King's Highway [[Ontario Highway 71|71]].{{cn|date=September 2023}} The reverse happened with [[U.S. Route 57]], originally a Texas state highway numbered to match [[Mexican Federal Highway 57]].<ref>{{cite web |date=September 15, 1970 |title=An Application From the State Highway Department of Texas For the Establishment of a U.S. Route (US&nbsp;57) |pages=2–3 |publisher=American Association of State Highway Officials |url=https://grmservices.grmims.com/vsearch/portal/public/na4/aashto/default |via=AASHTO Route Numbering Archive |accessdate=March 14, 2023}}</ref>

In the 1950s, the numbering grid for the new Interstate Highway System was established as intentionally opposite from the U.S. grid insofar as the direction the route numbers increase. Interstate Highway numbers increase from west-to-east and south-to-north, to keep identically numbered routes geographically apart in order to keep them from being confused with one another,<ref name="mcnichol71"/> and it omits 50 and 60 which would potentially conflict with [[U.S. Route 50|US&nbsp;50]] and [[U.S. Route 60|US&nbsp;60]].{{efn|Exceptions to this rule do occur.}}

In the U.S. Highway system, three-digit numbers are assigned to spurs of one or two-digit routes. [[U.S. Route 201|US&nbsp;201]], for example, splits from [[U.S. Route 1|US&nbsp;1]] at [[Brunswick, Maine]], and runs north to Canada.<ref name="rm">{{cite map |author = Rand McNally |title = The Road Atlas and Travel Guide |year = 2009 |scale = Scale not given |location = Chicago |publisher = Rand McNally |isbn = 978-0-528-94209-9 }}</ref>  Not all spurs travel in the same direction as their "parents"; some are connected to their parents only by other spurs, or not at all, instead only traveling near their parents, Also, a spur may travel in different cardinal directions than its parent, such as [[U.S. Route 522|US&nbsp;522]], which is a north–south route, unlike its parent [[U.S. Route 22|US&nbsp;22]], which is east–west. As originally assigned, the first digit of the spurs increased from north to south and east to west along the parent; for example, [[U.S. Route 60 (1925)|US&nbsp;60]] had spurs, running from east to west, designated as [[U.S. Route 160 (1925)|US&nbsp;160]] in [[Missouri]], [[U.S. Route 260 (1925)|US&nbsp;260]] in [[Oklahoma]], [[U.S. Route 360 (1925)|US&nbsp;360]] in [[Texas]], and [[U.S. Route 460|US&nbsp;460]] and [[U.S. Route 560 (1925)|US&nbsp;560]] in [[New Mexico]].<ref name="1925 list"/>  As with the two-digit routes, three-digit routes have been added, removed, extended and shortened; the "parent-child" relationship is not always present.<ref name="rm"/><ref name="esso">{{cite map |author1 = [[Esso]] |title = United States Featuring the Interstate Highway System |year = 1966 |author2 = [[General Drafting]] |name-list-style = amp |scale = [c. 1:3,870,000] |location = Convent Station, NJ |publisher = General Drafting |oclc = 749860157 }}</ref>

AASHTO guidelines specifically prohibit [[Interstate Highway]]s and U.S. Routes from sharing a number within the same state.<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/> As with other guidelines, exceptions exist across the U.S.<ref name="esso"/>

Some two-digit numbers have never been applied to any U.S. Route, including 37, 39, 47, 86, and 88.

===Signage===
{{Main|U.S. Route shield}}
[[File:US 70.svg|100px|right|alt=U.S. Highway shield]]
Route numbers are displayed on a distinctively-shaped white shield with large black numerals in the center.  Often, the shield is displayed against a black square or rectangular background.<ref name="2009-mutcd">{{cite book |author = Federal Highway Administration |year = 2009 |title = Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices |edition = 2009 |url = https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/kno_2009.htm |location = Washington, D.C. |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |access-date = June 5, 2010 |isbn = 9781615835171 }}</ref> Each state manufactures their own signage, and as such subtle variations exist all across the United States.  Individual states may use cut-out or rectangular designs, some have black outlines, and California prints the letters "US" above the numerals.<ref name="aasho-manual-1961">{{cite book |author1 = American Association of State Highway Officials |author2 = Bureau of Public Roads |title = Manual for Signing and Pavement for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways |year = 1961 |edition = 1961 |location = Washington, D.C. |publisher = 	American Association of State Highway Officials |oclc = 43890586 }}</ref> One- and two-digit shields generally feature the same large, bold numerals on a square-dimension shield, while 3-digit routes may either use the same shield with a narrower font, or a wider rectangular-dimension shield.  Special routes may be indicated with a banner above the route number, or with a letter suffixed to the route number.  Signs are generally displayed in several different locations.  First, they are shown along the side of the route at regular intervals or after major intersections (called [[reassurance marker]]s), which shows the route and the nominal direction of travel.  Second, they are displayed at intersections with other major roads, so that intersecting traffic can follow their chosen course.  Third, they can be displayed on large green [[Road signs in the United States#Guide signs|guide signs]] that indicate upcoming interchanges on freeways and expressways.<ref name="2009-mutcd"/>

===Divided and special routes===
{{Main|List of divided U.S. Routes|List of special routes of the United States Numbered Highway System}}

Since 1926, some divided routes were designated to serve related areas, and designate roughly-equivalent splits of routes.  For instance, [[U.S. Route 11|US&nbsp;11]] splits into [[U.S. Route 11E|US&nbsp;11E]] (east) and [[U.S. Route 11W|US&nbsp;11W]] (west) in [[Bristol, Virginia]], and the routes rejoin in [[Knoxville, Tennessee]]. Occasionally only one of the two routes is suffixed; [[U.S. Route 6N|US&nbsp;6N]] in [[Pennsylvania]] does not rejoin US&nbsp;6 at its west end. AASHTO has been trying to eliminate these since 1934;<ref name="FHWA US 11">{{cite web |first = Richard F. |last = Weingroff |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/us11.cfm |title = US&nbsp;11 Rouses Point, New York, to New Orleans, Louisiana |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |work = Highway History |date = April 7, 2011 |access-date = June 9, 2011 }}</ref> its current policy is to deny approval of new split routes and to eliminate existing ones "as rapidly as the State Highway Department and the Standing Committee on Highways can reach agreement with reference thereto".<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/>

[[Special route]]s—those with a banner such as [[alternate route|alternate]] or [[bypass (road)|bypass]]—are also managed by AASHTO.<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/>  These are sometimes designated with lettered suffixes, like A for alternate or B for business.{{efn|For example, compare the following for an alternate route in Ohio:
* {{cite map |author = [[Ohio Department of Transportation]] Office of Technical Services, GIS/Mapping Section |year = 2011 |title = Official Transportation Map |sections = B2–F2 |scale = 1:570,240 |location = Columbus |publisher = Ohio Department of Transportation }}
* {{google maps |url= http://maps.google.com/?ll=41.629366,-84.553778&spn=0.000874,0.001875&t=m&z=19&layer=c&cbll=41.629366,-84.553778&panoid=BmzMseUriz3xI25OjMxnMw&cbp=12,6.79,,0,27.13 |title= Street View of US&nbsp;20A/SR&nbsp;15 near Pioneer, OH |access-date= May 5, 2013}}
* {{cite map |author = Rand McNally |year = 2013 |title = The Road Atlas: United States, Canada & Mexico |location = Chicago |publisher = Rand McNally |edition = 2013 Walmart |sections = NE2–NE6 |scale = 1:760,320 |page = 78 |isbn = 0-528-00626-6 }}}}

===Naming===
The official route log, last published by AASHTO in 1989, has been named ''United States Numbered Highways'' since its initial publication in 1926.  Within the route log, "U.S. Route" is used in the table of contents, while "United States Highway" appears as the heading for each route.  All reports of the Special Committee on Route Numbering since 1989 use "U.S. Route", and federal laws relating to highways use "United States Route" or "U.S. Route" more often than the "Highway" variants.{{Cn|date=August 2024}} The use of U.S. Route or U.S. Highway on a local level depends on the state, with some states such as Delaware using "route" and others such as Colorado using "highway".<ref name=DelDOT>{{cite web |url = http://www.deldot.gov/information/pubs_forms/manuals/traffic_counts/2006/pdf/rpt_pgs1_38_rev.pdf |author = [[Delaware Department of Transportation]] |publisher = Delaware Department of Transportation |title = 2006 Traffic Count and Mileage Report |year = 2006 |access-date = June 10, 2011 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090318163528/http://www.deldot.gov/information/pubs_forms/manuals/traffic_counts/2006/pdf/rpt_pgs1_38_rev.pdf |archive-date = March 18, 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://apps.coloradodot.info/dataaccess/Highways/index.cfm?fuseaction=Description&route=006&begRefPt=0&endRefPt=500&Printable=true |title = Segment Descriptions for Highway 006 |author = [[Colorado Department of Transportation]] |publisher = Colorado Department of Transportation |access-date = June 10, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120526142107/http://apps.coloradodot.info/dataaccess/Highways/index.cfm?fuseaction=Description&route=006&begRefPt=0&endRefPt=500&Printable=true |archive-date = May 26, 2012 |url-status = dead }}</ref>

==History==

===Early auto trails===
{{Main|Auto trail}}
In 1903, [[Horatio Nelson Jackson]] became the first documented person to drive an automobile from [[San Francisco]] to [[New York City|New York]] using only a connection of dirt roads, cow paths, and railroad beds. His journey, covered by the press, became a national sensation and called for a system of long-distance roads.<ref>{{cite book |last1 = Duncan |first1 = Dayton |last2 = Burns |first2 = Ken |title = Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip |year = 2003 |publisher = Alfred A. Knopf |location = New York |isbn = 0-375-41536-X |edition = 1st |page = ix |url-access = registration |url = https://archive.org/details/horatiosdriveame00dunc }}</ref>

In the early 1910s, [[auto trail]] organizations—most prominently the [[Lincoln Highway]]—began to spring up, marking and promoting routes for the new recreation of long-distance automobile travel. The [[Yellowstone Trail]] was another of the earliest examples. While many of these organizations worked with towns and states along the route to improve the roadways, others simply chose a route based on towns that were willing to pay dues, put up signs, and did little else.<ref name="FHWA planning">{{cite web |last = Weingroff |first = Richard F. |date = April 7, 2011 |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/numbers.cfm |title = From Names to Numbers: The Origins of the U.S. Numbered Highway System |work = Highway History |publisher = [[Federal Highway Administration]] |access-date = June 10, 2011 }}</ref>

===Planning===
{{wikisource|1=Report of Joint Board on Interstate Highways October 30, 1925}}
Wisconsin was the first state in the U.S. to number [[list of Wisconsin numbered highways|its highways]], erecting signs in May 1918.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>  Other states soon followed. In 1922, the [[New England]] states got together to establish the six-state [[New England Interstate Routes]].<ref name="nyt April 16">{{cite news |title = Motor Sign Uniformity |work = [[The New York Times]] |date = April 16, 1922 }}</ref>

Behind the scenes, the [[federal aid]] program had begun with the passage of the [[Federal Aid Road Act of 1916]], providing 50% monetary support from the [[federal government of the United States|federal government]] for improvement of major roads.  The [[Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921]] limited the routes to 7% of each state's roads, while 3 in every 7 roads had to be "interstate in character". Identification of these main roads was completed in 1923.<!--anyone got a map of them?--><ref name="FHWA planning"/>

The [[American Association of State Highway Officials]] (AASHO), formed in 1914 to help establish roadway standards, began to plan a system of marked and numbered "interstate highways" at its 1924 meeting.<ref>{{harvp|ps=.|McNichol|2006|p=67}}</ref> AASHO recommended that the [[Secretary of Agriculture (US)|Secretary of Agriculture]] work with the states to designate these routes.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

Secretary [[Howard M. Gore]] appointed the ''Joint Board on Interstate Highways'', as recommended by AASHO, on March 2, 1925.  The Board was composed of 21 state highway officials and three federal [[Bureau of Public Roads]] officials.  At the first meeting, on April 20 and 21, the group chose the name "U.S. Highway" as the designation for the routes. They decided that the system would not be limited to the federal-aid network; if the best route did not receive federal funds, it would still be included.  The tentative design for the [[U.S. Route shield]] was also chosen,<ref>{{harvp|ps=.|McNichol|2006|p=121}}</ref> based on the shield found on the [[Great Seal of the United States]].<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

The auto trail associations rejected the elimination of the highway names.  Six regional meetings were held to hammer out the details—May 15 for the [[Western United States|West]], May 27 for the [[Mississippi Valley]], June 3 for the [[Great Lakes]], June 8 for the [[Southern United States|South]], June 15 for the [[Atlantic Northeast|North Atlantic]], and June 15<!--typo?--> for [[New England]].  Representatives of the auto trail associations were not able to formally address the meetings.  However, as a compromise, they talked with the Joint Board members. The associations finally settled on a general agreement with the numbering plans, as named trails would still be included.<!--could be worded better-->  The tentative system added up to 81,000 miles (130,000&nbsp;km), 2.8% of the public road mileage at the time.<!--seems high even then&nbsp;— maybe state highways only?--><ref name="FHWA planning"/>

{{multiple image
|align= right
|direction= horizontal
|width= 100
|image1= US 32 Iowa 1926.svg
|alt1= US 32 Iowa 1926 shield marker
|image2= US 28 Oregon 1948.svg
|alt2= US 28 Oregon 1948 shield marker
|footer= 1926 and 1948 versions of the [[U.S. Route shield]]
}}
The second full meeting was held August 3 and 4, 1925.  At that meeting, discussion was held over the appropriate density of routes. William F. Williams of [[Massachusetts]] and Frederick S. Greene of New York favored a system of only major transcontinental highways, while many states recommended a large number of roads of only regional importance.  Greene in particular intended New York's system to have four major through routes<!--2 and 4 ended at 9, he wanted 109 gone--> as an example to the other states.  Many states agreed in general with the scope of the system, but believed the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] to have added too many routes to the system.  The group adopted the shield, with few modifications from the original sketch, at that meeting, as well as the decision to number rather than name the routes.  A preliminary numbering system, with eight major east–west and ten major north–south routes, was deferred to a numbering committee "without instructions".<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

After working with states to get their approval, the committee expanded the highway system to 75,800 miles (122,000&nbsp;km), or 2.6% of total mileage, over 50% more than the plan approved August 4.  The skeleton of the numbering plan was suggested on August 27 by Edwin Warley James of the BPR, who matched [[parity (number)|parity]] to direction, and laid out a rough grid.  Major routes from the earlier map were assigned numbers ending in 0, 1 or 5 (5 was soon relegated to less-major status), and short connections received three-digit numbers based on the main highway from which they spurred.  The five-man committee met September 25, and submitted the final report to the Joint Board secretary on October 26.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>  The board sent the report to the Secretary of Agriculture on October 30, and he approved it November 18, 1925.<ref name="1925 list">{{cite book |type= Report |author = Joint Board on Interstate Highways |year = 1925 |url = https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Report_of_Joint_Board_on_Interstate_Highways_October_30,_1925 |title = Report of Joint Board on Interstate Highways, October 30, 1925, Approved by the Secretary of Agriculture, November 18, 1925 |location= Washington, DC |publisher= [[United States Department of Agriculture]] |id= {{OCLC|733875457|55123355|71026428}} |via = [[Wikisource]] |access-date = November 14, 2017 }}</ref>

===Disagreement and refinement, 1925–26===
[[File: United States System of Highways Adopted for Uniform Marking by the American Association of State Highway Officials.jpg|thumb|The "final" U.S. Highway plan as approved November 11, 1926]]

The new system was both praised and criticized by local newspapers, often depending on whether that city was connected to a major route.  While the [[Lincoln Highway Association]] understood and supported the plan, partly because they were assured of getting the [[U.S. Route 30|US&nbsp;30]] designation as much as possible, most other trail associations lamented their obsolescence.  At their January 14–15, 1926 meeting, AASHO was flooded with complaints.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

In the Northeast, New York held out for fewer routes designated as U.S. Highways. The Pennsylvania representative, who had not attended the local meetings, convinced AASHO to add a dense network of routes, which had the effect of giving six routes termini along the state line.  (Only [[U.S. Route 220|US&nbsp;220]] still ends near the state line, and now it ends at an intersection with future [[Interstate 86 in New York|I-86]].)  Because [[U.S. Route 20|US&nbsp;20]] seemed indirect, passing through [[Yellowstone National Park]], [[Idaho]] and [[Oregon]] requested that [[U.S. Route 30|US&nbsp;30]] be swapped with US&nbsp;20 to the [[Pacific coast]].<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

Many local disputes arose related to the committee's choices between designation of two roughly equal parallel routes, which were often competing auto trails.  At their January meeting, AASHO approved the first two of many split routes (specifically [[U.S. Route 40|US&nbsp;40]] between [[Manhattan, Kansas]] and [[Limon, Colorado]] and [[U.S. Route 50|US&nbsp;50]] between [[Baldwin City, Kansas]] and [[Garden City, Kansas]]).  In effect, each of the two routes received the same number, with a directional suffix indicating its relation to the other.  These splits were initially shown in the log as—for instance—US&nbsp;40 North and US&nbsp;40 South, but were always posted as simply US&nbsp;40N and US&nbsp;40S.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

The most heated argument, however, was the issue of US&nbsp;60.  The Joint Board had assigned that number to the Chicago-Los Angeles route, which ran more north–south than west–east in Illinois, and then angled sharply to the southwest to [[Oklahoma City]], from where it ran west to [[Los Angeles]]. [[Kentucky]] strongly objected to this designated route, as it had been left off any of the major east–west routes, instead receiving the [[U.S. Route 62 (1925)|US&nbsp;62]] designation. In January 1926, the committee designated this, along with the part of [[U.S. Route 52|US&nbsp;52]] east of [[Ashland, Kentucky]], as [[U.S. Route 60|US&nbsp;60]]. They assigned US&nbsp;62 to the Chicago-Los Angeles route, contingent on the approval of the states along the former US&nbsp;60.  But Missouri and Oklahoma did object—Missouri had already printed maps, and Oklahoma had prepared signs.  A compromise was proposed, in which US&nbsp;60 would split at [[Springfield, Missouri]], into US&nbsp;60E and US&nbsp;60N, but both sides objected.  The final solution resulted in the assignment of [[U.S. Route 66|US&nbsp;66]] to the Chicago-Los Angeles portion of the U.S. highway, which did not end in zero, but was still seen as a satisfyingly round number.<ref name="FHWA planning"/> Route 66 came to have a prominent place in popular culture, being featured in song and films.

With 32&nbsp;states already marking their routes, the plan was approved by AASHO on November 11, 1926.<ref name="FHWA planning"/>  This plan included a number of directionally split routes, several discontinuous routes (including [[U.S. Route 6|US&nbsp;6]], [[U.S. Route 19|US&nbsp;19]] and [[U.S. Route 50|US&nbsp;50]]), and some termini at state lines.<ref name="1926 map">{{cite map |author1 = [[Bureau of Public Roads]] |author2 = [[American Association of State Highway Officials]] |date = November 11, 1926 |title = United States System of Highways Adopted for Uniform Marking by the American Association of State Highway Officials |url = https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_System_of_Highways_Adopted_for_Uniform_Marking_by_the_American_Association_of_State_Highway_Officials.jpg |scale = 1:7,000,000 |location = Washington, DC |publisher = [[United States Geological Survey]] |oclc = 32889555 |access-date = November 7, 2013 |via = [[Wikimedia Commons]] |name-list-style = amp }}</ref>  By the time the first route log was published in April 1927, major numbering changes had been made in Pennsylvania in order to align the routes to the existing auto trails.<ref name="FHWA PA">{{cite web |last = Weingroff |first = Richard F. |url = https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/us22.cfm |title = US&nbsp;22: The William Penn Highway |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |work = Highway History |date = April 7, 2011 |access-date = June 9, 2011 }}</ref> In addition, [[U.S. Route 15|US&nbsp;15]] had been extended across [[Virginia]].<ref name="1927 log">{{cite journal |title = United States Numbered Highways |journal = [[American Highways]] |publisher = American Association of State Highway Officials |date = April 1927 |issn = 0002-8746 }}</ref>

Much of the early criticism of the U.S. Highway System focused on the choice of numbers to designate the highways, rather than names.  Some thought a numbered highway system to be cold  compared to the more colorful names and historic value of the auto trail systems.  ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote, "The traveler may shed tears as he drives the [[Lincoln Highway]] or dream dreams as he speeds over the [[Jefferson Highway]], but how can he get a 'kick' out of 46, 55 or 33 or 21?"<ref>{{harvp|ps=.|McNichol|2006|p=78}}</ref> (A popular song later promised, "[[(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66|Get your kicks on Route 66!]]") The writer Ernest McGaffey was quoted as saying, "Logarithms will take the place of legends, and 'hokum' for history."<ref name="FHWA planning"/>

===Expansion and adjustment, 1926–1956===
[[File:Highway Sign.jpg|thumb|This sign, photographed in 1941 on US&nbsp;99 between [[Seattle|Seattle, Washington]], and [[Portland, Oregon]], illustrates one rationale for a federal highway system: national defense.]]

When the U.S. numbered system was started in 1925, a few optional routings were established which were designated with a suffixed letter after the number indicating "north", "south", "east", or "west". While a few roads in the system are still numbered in this manner, AASHO believes that they should be eliminated wherever possible, by the absorption of one of the optional routes into another route.

In 1934, AASHO tried to eliminate many of the split routes by removing them from the log, and designating one of each pair as a three-digit or alternate route, or in one case [[U.S. Route 37|US&nbsp;37]]. AASHO described its renumbering concept in the October 1934 issue of ''American Highways'':<ref name="FHWA US 11"/>
<blockquote>"Wherever an alternate route is not suitable for its own unique two-digit designation, standard procedure assigns the unqualified number to the older or shorter route, while the other route uses the same number marked by a standard strip above its shield carrying the word 'Alternate'."</blockquote>Most states adhere to this approach. However, some maintain legacy routes that violate the rules in various ways.  Examples can be found in [[California]], [[Mississippi]], [[Nebraska]], [[Oregon]], and [[Tennessee]]. In 1952, AASHO permanently recognized the splits in [[U.S. Route 11|US&nbsp;11]],<ref name="FHWA US 11"/> [[U.S. Route 19|US&nbsp;19]], [[U.S. Route 25|US&nbsp;25]], [[U.S. Route 31|US&nbsp;31]], [[U.S. Route 45|US&nbsp;45]], [[U.S. Route 49|US&nbsp;49]], [[U.S. Route 73|US&nbsp;73]], and [[U.S. Route 99|US&nbsp;99]].<ref name="FHWA US 11"/>

For the most part, the U.S. Routes were the primary means of inter-city vehicle travel; the main exceptions were [[toll road]]s such as the [[Pennsylvania Turnpike]] and [[parkway]] routes such as the [[Merritt Parkway]]. Many of the first high-speed roads were U.S. Highways: the [[Gulf Freeway (Houston)|Gulf Freeway]] carried [[U.S. Route 75|US&nbsp;75]],<ref>{{cite news |first = Dan |last = Feldstein |title = A rare quiet interlude for area's first freeway/ Next major upgrade: Causeway in 2002 |work = [[Houston Chronicle]] |date = June 27, 1999 |access-date = June 9, 2009 |url = http://www.texasfreeway.com/Houston/photos/45s/chron_27-june-99_gulf_freeway.shtml }}</ref> the [[Pasadena Freeway]] carried [[U.S. Route 66|US&nbsp;66]],<ref>Correspondence between the [[Division of Highways (California)|Division of Highways]] and [[American Association of State Highway Officials]], transcribed at {{cite web |url = http://cahighways.org/065-072.html#066 |publisher = California Highways |title = State Route 66 |access-date = June 10, 2011 }}{{sps|certain=y|date= August 2011}}</ref> and the [[Pulaski Skyway]] carries [[U.S. Route 1|US&nbsp;1]] and [[U.S. Route 9|US&nbsp;9]].<ref>{{cite map |author = Rand McNally |title = Road Atlas |year = 1946 |url = http://www.broermapsonline.org/members/NorthAmerica/UnitedStates/Midatlantic/NewYork/NewYorkCity/randmcnally_ra_1946_040.html |scale = Scale not given |location = Chicago |publisher = Rand McNally |page = 42 |inset = New York and Vicinity |access-date = June 9, 2009 |archive-date = July 25, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110725194757/http://www.broermapsonline.org/members/NorthAmerica/UnitedStates/Midatlantic/NewYork/NewYorkCity/randmcnally_ra_1946_040.html |url-status = dead }}</ref>

===Interstate era, 1956–present===
[[File:US 34 (1961).svg|thumb|100px|1961 version of the U.S. Route shield]]

The [[Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956]] appropriated funding for the Interstate Highway System, to construct a vast network of [[controlled-access highway|freeways]] across the country. By 1957, AASHO had decided to assign a new grid to the new routes, to be numbered in the opposite directions as the U.S. Highway grid. Though the Interstate numbers were to supplement—rather than replace—the U.S. Route numbers, in many cases (especially in the [[Western United States|West]]) the U.S. Highways were rerouted along the new Interstates.<ref name="esso"/> Major decommissioning of former routes began with [[California]]'s [[1964 state highway renumbering (California)|highway renumbering in 1964]]. The 1985 removal of [[U.S. Route 66|US&nbsp;66]] is often seen as the end of an era of U.S. Highways.<ref>{{cite journal |url = https://archive.org/stream/californiahighwa196465calirich#page/n85/mode/2up |title = Route Renumbering: New Green Markers Will Replace Old Shields |journal = California Highways and Public Works |date = March–April 1964 |volume = 43 |issue = 3–4 |pages = 11–13 |issn = 0008-1159 |access-date = June 10, 2011 }}</ref>

A few major connections not served by Interstate Highways include US&nbsp;6 from Hartford, Connecticut, to Providence, Rhode Island and US&nbsp;93 from Phoenix, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada, though the latter is planned to be upgraded to [[Interstate 11]]. Three state capitals in the contiguous U.S. are served only by U.S. Routes: [[Dover, Delaware]]; [[Jefferson City, Missouri]]; and [[Pierre, South Dakota]].

In 1995, the [[National Highway System (United States)|National Highway System]] was defined to include both the Interstate Highway System and other roads designated as important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.

AASHTO is in the process of eliminating all [[List of Intrastate U.S. Highways|intrastate U.S. Highways]] less than {{convert|300|mi|km}} in length "as rapidly as the State Highway Department and the Standing Committee on Highways of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials can reach agreement with reference thereto". New additions to the system must serve more than one state and "substantially meet the current [[AASHTO design standards]]".<ref name="AASHTO purpose"/> A version of this policy has been in place since 1937.<ref name=newsigning1937>{{cite journal |url = https://archive.org/stream/california193638highwacalirich#page/n521/mode/2up |title = New Signing Policy on U.S. Routes |journal = California Highways and Public Works |date = October 1937 |volume = 15 |issue = 10 |pages = 13, 28 |issn = 0008-1159 |access-date = July 24, 2015 |via = Archive.org }}</ref>

==The 1925 routes==
The original major transcontinental routes in 1925, along with the [[auto trail]]s which they roughly replaced, were as follows:<ref name="FHWA planning"/><ref name="1925 list"/>
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break|width=50%}}
* [[U.S. Route 1|US&nbsp;1]], [[Fort Kent, Maine]], to [[Miami|Miami, Florida]]: [[Atlantic Highway (United States)|Atlantic Highway]]
* [[U.S. Route 11|US&nbsp;11]], [[Rouses Point, New York]], to [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]]
* [[U.S. Route 21|US&nbsp;21]], [[Cleveland|Cleveland, Ohio]], to [[Jacksonville, Florida]] (where it met US&nbsp;1)
* [[U.S. Route 31|US&nbsp;31]], [[Mackinaw City, Michigan]], to [[Mobile, Alabama]]
* [[U.S. Route 41|US&nbsp;41]], [[Copper Harbor, Michigan]], to [[Naples, Florida]]: [[Dixie Highway]]<!--rather rough-->
* [[U.S. Route 51|US&nbsp;51]], [[Hurley, Wisconsin]], to [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]]
* [[U.S. Route 61|US&nbsp;61]], [[Canada–United States border|Canadian border]] north of [[Grand Portage, Minnesota]], to [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]]
* [[U.S. Route 71|US&nbsp;71]], [[International Falls, Minnesota]], to [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana]] (where it met US&nbsp;61): [[Jefferson Highway]]<!--rather rough-->
* [[U.S. Route 81|US&nbsp;81]], [[Canada–United States border|Canadian border]] north of [[Pembina, North Dakota]], to [[Laredo, Texas]]: [[Meridian Highway]]
* [[U.S. Route 91|US&nbsp;91]], [[Great Falls, Montana]], to south of [[Las Vegas|Las Vegas, Nevada]]
* [[U.S. Route 101|US&nbsp;101]], [[Port Angeles, Washington]], to [[San Diego|San Diego, California]]: [[Pacific Highway (United States)|Pacific Highway]]<!--rather rough-->
{{col-break|width=50%}}
* [[U.S. Route 2|US&nbsp;2]], [[Houlton, Maine]], to [[Bonners Ferry, Idaho]]<!--listed on http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/longest.htm-->
* [[U.S. Route 10|US&nbsp;10]], [[Detroit|Detroit, Michigan]], to [[Seattle|Seattle, Washington]]: [[National Parks Highway]]<!--rather rough, also only reached Chicago-->
* [[U.S. Route 20|US&nbsp;20]], [[Boston|Boston, Massachusetts]], to [[Newport, Oregon]]
* [[U.S. Route 30|US&nbsp;30]], [[Atlantic City, New Jersey]]: [[White Horse Pike]], to [[Salt Lake City|Salt Lake City, Utah]]: [[Lincoln Highway]]
* [[U.S. Route 40|US&nbsp;40]], [[Atlantic City, New Jersey]]: [[Black Horse Pike]], to [[San Francisco|San Francisco, California]]: [[Victory Highway]]
* [[U.S. Route 50|US&nbsp;50]], [[Annapolis, Maryland]], to [[Wadsworth, Nevada]] (where it met US&nbsp;40)
* [[U.S. Route 60 (1925)|US&nbsp;60]], [[Chicago|Chicago, Illinois]], to [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, California]]
* [[U.S. Route 70|US&nbsp;70]], [[Morehead City, North Carolina]], to [[Holbrook, Arizona]] (where it met US&nbsp;60)
* [[U.S. Route 80|US&nbsp;80]], [[Savannah, Georgia]], to [[San Diego|San Diego, California]]: [[Dixie Overland Highway]]
* [[U.S. Route 90|US&nbsp;90]], [[Jacksonville, Florida]] to [[Van Horn, Texas]], (where it met US&nbsp;80): [[Old Spanish Trail (auto trail)|Old Spanish Trail]]
{{col-end}}
US&nbsp;10, US&nbsp;60, and US&nbsp;90 only ran about two thirds of the way across the country, while US&nbsp;11 and US&nbsp;60 ran significantly diagonally.  US&nbsp;60's violation of two of the conventions would prove to be one of the major sticking points; US&nbsp;60 eventually was designated as US&nbsp;66 in 1926, and later it became a part of popular culture.  US&nbsp;101 continues east and then south to end at [[Olympia, Washington]].<ref name="1926 map"/>  The western terminus of US&nbsp;2 is now at [[Everett, Washington]].<ref name="rm"/>
{{clear}}

==See also==
{{Portal|U.S. Roads}}
* [[New England road marking system]]
* [[United States Bicycle Route System]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last = Ingram |first = Tammy |title = Dixie Highway: Road Building and the Making of the Modern South, 1900–1930 |year = 2014 |location = Chapel Hill |publisher = University of North Carolina Press |isbn = 9781469615523 }}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|United States Numbered Highway System}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150416012239/http://route.transportation.org/Pages/default.aspx AASHTO Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130320024135/http://route.transportation.org/Pages/U.S.NumberedHighways-1989Edition(current).aspx U.S. Numbered Highways - 1989 Edition] ([[American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials|AASHTO]])
* [https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/highwayhistory/history_misc.cfm;jsessionid=609904E9C4E8F08334393C240DC17842.fhwa?CFID=1176207826&CFTOKEN=b003c874639362ae-39E09DB5-EC93-0E0D-A9616A404764E403 Highway History - Other Articles] ([[Federal Highway Administration]])
* [http://usends.com/ US Highway Ends: maps and terminus photos]

{{US Highways}}
{{US numbered highways}}
{{US route types}}

[[Category:1926 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:United States Numbered Highway System| ]]