When Henry Ford’s Model T rolled off the assembly line in 1908, there were only 148 miles of paved highways in America. It took Congress nearly two decades to enact the first legislation to improve road conditions.
In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916. This was the first time national funding was available for state highway projects. Five years later, President Warren G. Harding signed the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921, creating the National Highway Commission to establish a national road plan.
In 1926, the American Association of State Highway Officials established the United States Numbered Highway System. The nonfederal agency set road standards, created a grid numbering system, and oversaw a cohesive organization of the federal highways.
Today, we call them U.S. Highways.
U.S. Highways are my favorite road trip routes. These highways are well maintained, connect more destinations than Interstate Highways, and travel through scenic landscapes across America.
List of U.S. Highways
Browse this list of U.S. Highways. Visit the Destinations page to search for U.S. Highways by region and state.
Travel Articles
Read the most recent travel articles about the scenic highways to find inspiration, road trip itineraries, and helpful information.