Design and planning advances on some historic roads were nationally,
even internationally, recognized at the time of construction
and served as inspiration and guidance for subsequent road
projects. The marriage of aesthetic design considerations
and technological advancements in the first half of the twentieth
century demonstrated that beauty and innovation could exist
together in exquisite harmony. Modern machinery and materials,
and traditional craftsmanship are evident in many of the signs,
bridges and structures of our nation’s parkways and
park roads. Purely modern expressions of art and efficiency
can be seen in the streamlined and fluid forms of early freeways.
In general,
design considerations have added beauty to the landscape and
sensitivity to the environment while technological advances
have enabled roads to cross into new frontiers through the
use of modern materials and safety features. A few of today’s
historic roads elevated the art of highway design to new levels
and previously unimagined functions. Many of today’s
historic roads can directly or indirectly trace the origin
of their design, or even their inspiration, to the new challenges
efficiencies and beauty these innovative pavements represented.
Design
  The
Bronx River Parkway in New York not only introduced many advanced
safety concepts when opened in 1923, but also showcased the
benefits of the environmental restoration of a river valley
that had been obliterated due to industrial development in
the nineteenth century. The engineers for the Historic Columbia
River Highway in Oregon studied the great scenic roads of
Europe with the mission of replicating their beauty along
the Columbia River gorge, while also maintaining a strict
five-percent maximum grade—no easy task when trying
to construct a road through the Cascade Mountains. Residential
road networks in Riverside, Illinois and Baltimore’s
Roland Park were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Frederick
Law Olmsted, Jr. to work with the natural topography of the
area. National Park Service roads such as the Blue Ridge and
Natchez Trace Parkways and the park roads of Glacier National
Park in Montana would establish the park service as a leader
in sensitive highway design. These roads, and many others,
would be studied and imitated across the nation.
Technology
Technological advancements and achievements made many of today’s
historic roads faster and safer, able to cross terrain previously
inaccessible, or overcome natural barriers or hazards. The
development of the Roman arch allowed roads to leap great
chasms across elegant viaducts, while steel technology enabled
the Pulaski Skyway in New Jersey an elegant leap across Hackensack
and the Passaic River as one of the first elevated expressways.
The introduction of macadam surfacing to the United States
on Maryland’s Boonsboro Turnpike in early eighteenth
century literally paved the way for durable all weather surfaces.
The first high speed, limited-access roads such as the Pennsylvania
Turnpike and Arroyo Seco Parkway, slightly more than 100 years
later paved the way for a national grid of superhighways we
know today as the US Interstate System. Less dramatic, but
equally important, are the countless experiments with different
pavements, retaining walls, culverts and drainage systems,
separated-grade interchanges, lighting and even the durable
paints that allowed for modern safety markings on the pavement.
Famous
Association
For some historic roads, notoriety
may be more a result of a famous association than a particular
aesthetic sensibility or technological achievement. Judged
independently from the historic voting rights march, the Selma
to Montgomery highway is little more than a pleasant stretch
of Alabama roadway. Yet due to the events of March, 1965 the
road has taken on an association that embodies the struggles
and triumphs of equality in the United States. It is the events
of March 21 to 25, 1965 that catapult the Selma to Montgomery
highway from the ordinary into the extraordinary—making
it one of the most significant roadways in the nation.
In other instances symbolism
may be a defining feature of a historic road. Consider US
Route 81, the United States’ historic segment of the
great Pan American Highway, running from the plains of Winnipeg
in Manitoba Province to the jungles of southern Panama. The
most comprehensive north-south route in the Western Hemisphere
is worthy of imagination and romance. From this hemispheric
viewpoint one can focus on a particular detail—the Meridian
Bridge between South Dakota and Nebraska. The great lift bridge,
opened in 1924 conquered the final great geographic hurdle,
the Missouri River, in completing the highway.
 New
York’s Broadway, Bourbon Street in New Orleans, the
Sunset Strip in Los Angeles and Castro Street in San Francisco
all have social and cultural associations that transcend their
design and construction. US Route 66, perhaps the nation’s
most recognized historic road has associations in our popular
culture (television and song) and our literary culture (John
Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath)
—John Steinbeck
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