Okla-homey
10/1/2006, 07:35 AM
Oct 1, 1940 : The original US superhighway opens
http://img319.imageshack.us/img319/7690/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzpa 20tak0.jpg
Precisely sixty-six years ago, the Pennsylvania Turnpike (now mostly I-76), America's first example of a toll superhighway, officially opened for service on this day. The year before, this new form of superhighway was featured at the 1939 New York City's World Fair, and was greeted by skepticism by many groups who doubted the merits of the extravagant project.
http://img318.imageshack.us/img318/1933/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzptcd2am0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Inspired by Germany's 100mph autobahns, the Pennsylvania Turnpike was constructed at great expense to serve the needs of its users, leveling any terrain obstructions that hindered efficient travel along the limited-access superhighway.
The turnpike's construction began in earnest in 1937 and was constructed utilizing much of the roadbed and several tunnels of the South Pennsylvania Railroad.
For a three-hour reduction of travel time between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, the turnpike asked travelers to pay tolls, creating revenues that helped cover the turnpike's high construction and maintenance costs. Despite worries about the $70 million price tag of this unproven type of highway, the Pennsylvania Turnpike proved a huge success, hosting an average of over 2,000,000 vehicles every year--a figure nearly twice the original estimate by its planners.
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/8003/xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxcdccont0900aecd802708450900aecd8028 a8dqe6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
From tunnels bored through the Allegheny Mountains to the busy interchanges of the state's largest cities, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is in its sixth decade of service. The Turnpike's original 160-mile route has grown to include 531 miles of roadway managed by 2300 tollway employees and carries 188 million vehicles a year.
http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/7917/insane7zojw3.jpg
http://img319.imageshack.us/img319/7690/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzpa 20tak0.jpg
Precisely sixty-six years ago, the Pennsylvania Turnpike (now mostly I-76), America's first example of a toll superhighway, officially opened for service on this day. The year before, this new form of superhighway was featured at the 1939 New York City's World Fair, and was greeted by skepticism by many groups who doubted the merits of the extravagant project.
http://img318.imageshack.us/img318/1933/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzptcd2am0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Inspired by Germany's 100mph autobahns, the Pennsylvania Turnpike was constructed at great expense to serve the needs of its users, leveling any terrain obstructions that hindered efficient travel along the limited-access superhighway.
The turnpike's construction began in earnest in 1937 and was constructed utilizing much of the roadbed and several tunnels of the South Pennsylvania Railroad.
For a three-hour reduction of travel time between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, the turnpike asked travelers to pay tolls, creating revenues that helped cover the turnpike's high construction and maintenance costs. Despite worries about the $70 million price tag of this unproven type of highway, the Pennsylvania Turnpike proved a huge success, hosting an average of over 2,000,000 vehicles every year--a figure nearly twice the original estimate by its planners.
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/8003/xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxcdccont0900aecd802708450900aecd8028 a8dqe6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
From tunnels bored through the Allegheny Mountains to the busy interchanges of the state's largest cities, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is in its sixth decade of service. The Turnpike's original 160-mile route has grown to include 531 miles of roadway managed by 2300 tollway employees and carries 188 million vehicles a year.
http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/7917/insane7zojw3.jpg