41°46′N 86°11′W / 41.76°N 86.19°W / 41.76; -86.19
136-670: Interstate 94 ( I-94 ) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Billings, Montana , to the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan . In Michigan, it is a state trunkline highway that enters the state south of New Buffalo and runs eastward through several metropolitan areas in the southern section of the state. The highway serves Benton Harbor – St. Joseph near Lake Michigan before turning inland toward Kalamazoo and Battle Creek on
272-535: A concurrency or overlap. For example, I‑75 and I‑85 share the same roadway in Atlanta ; this 7.4-mile (11.9 km) section, called the Downtown Connector , is labeled both I‑75 and I‑85. Concurrencies between Interstate and US Highway numbers are also allowed in accordance with AASHTO policy, as long as the length of the concurrency is reasonable. In rare instances, two highway designations sharing
408-651: A 28-year-old brevet lieutenant colonel, accompanied the trip "through darkest America with truck and tank," as he later described it. Some roads in the West were a "succession of dust, ruts, pits, and holes." As the landmark 1916 law expired, new legislation was passed—the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 (Phipps Act). This new road construction initiative once again provided for federal matching funds for road construction and improvement, $ 75 million allocated annually. Moreover, this new legislation for
544-476: A change in the numbering system as a result of a new policy adopted in 1973. Previously, letter-suffixed numbers were used for long spurs off primary routes; for example, western I‑84 was I‑80N, as it went north from I‑80 . The new policy stated, "No new divided numbers (such as I-35W and I-35E , etc.) shall be adopted." The new policy also recommended that existing divided numbers be eliminated as quickly as possible; however, an I-35W and I-35E still exist in
680-482: A jog around Parma . West of the county airport , the Jackson business loop follows M-60 southward, and I-94 travels through the north side of Jackson . North of downtown, US 127 merges in from the north and runs concurrently with I-94 around the city. Southeast of Michigan State Prison , US 127 departs to the south, and I-94 continues eastward through the rest of the county. The freeway runs north of
816-635: A major impact after 1970, and by 2013, only 27% of the employment was in manufacturing, 20% was in hospitality, 12% in healthcare, 11% in government, 8% in business services, 5% in transportation, and 4% in education. In 2013, three of the top 10 Michiana employers were in the Elkhart area and focused on recreational vehicles, trailers, and related products, including Forest River with 7600 employees, Thor Industries with 7500, and Drew industries with 4700. Many hospitals were consolidated, as health spending doubled and tripled. By 2013 three health systems were among
952-595: A national road grid with the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 . In 1926, the United States Numbered Highway System was established, creating the first national road numbering system for cross-country travel. The roads were state-funded and maintained, and there were few national standards for road design. United States Numbered Highways ranged from two-lane country roads to multi-lane freeways. After Dwight D. Eisenhower became president in 1953, his administration developed
1088-618: A network of roadways important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility. The freeway carried 168,200 vehicles on average between I-75 and Chene Street in Detroit , which is the peak traffic count in 2015, and it carried 12,554 vehicles immediately west of the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron , the lowest traffic count in 2015. As the state trunkline highway closest to the lake shore in these areas, I-94 carries
1224-515: A northerly bypass of Jackson opened, and the former route through downtown on Michigan Avenue became another Bus. US 12. By the next year, the western half of the Jackson bypass opened, including a bypass of Parma . In 1954, a new bypass of Kalamazoo and Galesburg opened; US 12 was rerouted to follow the new highway while M-96 replaced part of the old route and US 12A in the area. The first planning maps from 1947 for what later became
1360-589: A numbering scheme in which primary Interstates are assigned one- or two-digit numbers, and shorter routes which branch off of longer ones are assigned three-digit numbers where the last two digits match the parent route. The Interstate Highway System is partially financed through the Highway Trust Fund , which itself is funded by a combination of a federal fuel tax and transfers from the Treasury's general fund. Though federal legislation initially banned
1496-491: A proposal for an interstate highway system, eventually resulting in the enactment of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 . Unlike the earlier United States Numbered Highway System, the interstates were designed to be all freeways, with nationally unified standards for construction and signage. While some older freeways were adopted into the system, most of the routes were completely new. In dense urban areas,
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#17327879891291632-559: A report called Toll Roads and Free Roads , "the first formal description of what became the Interstate Highway System" and, in 1944, the similarly themed Interregional Highways . The Interstate Highway System gained a champion in President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was influenced by his experiences as a young Army officer crossing the country in the 1919 Motor Transport Corps convoy that drove in part on
1768-500: A segment between Galesburg to Battle Creek. The overall 45-mile (72 km) section from Paw Paw to Battle Creek was dedicated on December 7, 1959. In addition, a new northwest–southeast section of freeway was built east of Ypsilanti to create a more gradual curve in the routing between present-day exits 185 and 186, the original routing of the Willow Run Expressway having followed present-day Wiard Road. Signage for
1904-409: A single digit prefixed to the two-digit number of its parent Interstate Highway. Spur routes deviate from their parent and do not return; these are given an odd first digit. Circumferential and radial loop routes return to the parent, and are given an even first digit. Unlike primary Interstates, three-digit Interstates are signed as either east–west or north–south, depending on the general orientation of
2040-594: A single number for a more direct routing of a Detroit–Chicago freeway; the state proposed rerouting I-94 to replace I-92 in the state, but retained the I-77 designation. On June 27, 1958, AASHO adopted their original numbering plan for Michigan, minus the state's proposed changes. Around the same time, a section of M-146 near Port Huron was converted into an approach freeway for the Blue Water Bridge. In January 1959, officials announced that sections of US 12,
2176-801: A speed limit of 45 mph (70 km/h) because it is a parkway that consists of only one lane per side of the highway. On the other hand, Interstates 15, 80, 84, and 215 in Utah have speed limits as high as 70 mph (115 km/h) within the Wasatch Front , Cedar City , and St. George areas, and I-25 in New Mexico within the Santa Fe and Las Vegas areas along with I-20 in Texas along Odessa and Midland and I-29 in North Dakota along
2312-460: A speed limit of 80 mph (130 km/h). Other Interstates in Idaho, Montana, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wyoming also have the same high speed limits. In some areas, speed limits on Interstates can be significantly lower in areas where they traverse significantly hazardous areas. The maximum speed limit on I-90 is 50 mph (80 km/h) in downtown Cleveland because of two sharp curves with
2448-474: A suggested limit of 35 mph (55 km/h) in a heavily congested area; I-70 through Wheeling, West Virginia , has a maximum speed limit of 45 mph (70 km/h) through the Wheeling Tunnel and most of downtown Wheeling; and I-68 has a maximum speed limit of 40 mph (65 km/h) through Cumberland, Maryland , because of multiple hazards including sharp curves and narrow lanes through
2584-461: A western bypass of Detroit which was under construction at the time. The Willow Run segment was also resurfaced at this point, as the old road bed did not contain steel mesh. Construction of this interchange also obliterated a partial interchange with Huron River Drive. The final section of I-94 in Michigan opened to traffic on November 2, 1972, when the connection across the state line into Indiana
2720-931: A western entrance to the city. Further east, the Interstate intersects M-39 (Southfield Freeway) and passes the Uniroyal Giant Tire in Allen Park . I-94 then turns to the northeast through the Ford River Rouge complex in Dearborn before turning back easterly on the Edsel Ford Freeway into Detroit. I-94 traverses Detroit in an east–west direction well inland of, and parallel to, the Detroit River . The freeway intersects I-96 (Jeffries Freeway) and M-10 (Lodge Freeway) on
2856-497: Is a region in northern Indiana and southwestern Michigan centered on the city of South Bend, Indiana . The Chamber of Commerce of St. Joseph County, Indiana defines Michiana as St. Joseph County and "counties that contribute at least 500 inbound commuting workers to St. Joseph County daily." Those counties include Elkhart , La Porte , Marshall , St. Joseph , and Starke in Indiana, and Berrien and Cass in Michigan. As of
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#17327879891292992-543: Is also commonly believed the Interstate Highway System was built for the sole purpose of evacuating cities in the event of nuclear warfare . While military motivations were present, the primary motivations were civilian. The numbering scheme for the Interstate Highway System was developed in 1957 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). The association's present numbering policy dates back to August 10, 1973. Within
3128-736: Is known as a common summer vacation destination for wealthy Chicagoans; the Wall Street Journal called the area "the Hamptons of the Midwest". Throughout the twentieth century, the economy of Michiana was based on heavy industry, especially as connected to the automobile industry centered in nearby Detroit. In 1960, 41% of the employment was in manufacturing, followed by 17% in hospitality 8% in business services, 6% in transportation, 5% in education, and 5% in agriculture, with healthcare at 4% and government at 2%. Deindustrialization had
3264-511: Is not included in the Chamber's list of Greater Michiana counties. Because Michiana is not a legal or political entity, opinions differ about what counties and communities constitute the region. Some definitions of the entire Michiana area include fewer than 15 counties; others include Pulaski County and exclude some other outlying counties, notably, those in extreme Northwest Indiana , whose residents identify more closely with Chicago than with
3400-505: Is now called the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission. Indiana Counties Michigan Counties Greater Michiana includes the following 15 counties in Indiana and Michigan: The Chamber of Commerce of St. Joseph County (Indiana) defines Greater Michiana as "counties within a 60-mile driving distance to St. Joseph County" that are not included in the seven counties making up Michiana "proper." However,
3536-685: Is the official Metropolitan Planning Organization for north central Indiana and the South Bend-Mishawaka metropolitan area . MACOG conducts planning for transportation, water quality, and economic development. Currently, 22 cities and towns as well as 29 townships participate in MACOG. Despite the Michiana name, none of these participants are currently from the state of Michigan, although Berrien and Cass Counties were until they along with Van Buren County were combined into their own MPO, what
3672-480: Is to have the highway route extend from Tamaulipas , Mexico to Ontario , Canada. The planned I-11 will then bridge the Interstate gap between Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada , and thus form part of the CANAMEX Corridor (along with I-19 , and portions of I-10 and I-15 ) between Sonora , Mexico and Alberta , Canada. Political opposition from residents canceled many freeway projects around
3808-517: The Black River north of downtown. On the eastern bank of the river, there is one final interchange for M-25 and BL I-69/ BL I-94 before the freeway reaches the toll and customs plazas for the twin-span Blue Water Bridge. Past these plazas, I-94/I-69 ascends the approach to the bridge which crosses the St. Clair River to Point Edward ( Sarnia ), Ontario. At the international boundary at the center of
3944-474: The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex in Texas, and an I-35W and I-35E that run through Minneapolis and Saint Paul , Minnesota, still exist. Additionally, due to Congressional requirements, three sections of I-69 in southern Texas will be divided into I-69W , I-69E , and I-69C (for Central). AASHTO policy allows dual numbering to provide continuity between major control points. This is referred to as
4080-552: The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 into law. Under the act, the federal government would pay for 90 percent of the cost of construction of Interstate Highways. Each Interstate Highway was required to be a freeway with at least four lanes and no at-grade crossings. The publication in 1955 of the General Location of National System of Interstate Highways , informally known as the Yellow Book , mapped out what became
4216-630: The Grand Forks area have higher speed limits of 75 mph (120 km/h). As one of the components of the National Highway System , Interstate Highways improve the mobility of military troops to and from airports, seaports, rail terminals, and other military bases. Interstate Highways also connect to other roads that are a part of the Strategic Highway Network , a system of roads identified as critical to
Interstate 94 in Michigan - Misplaced Pages Continue
4352-584: The Interstate Highway System included a highway along I-94's route in Michigan. This highway was included on the 1955 plan for the "National System of Interstate and Defense Highways" with a proposed spur in the Battle Creek area. The modern I-94 was numbered I-92 between Benton Harbor–St. Joseph and Detroit with I-77 from Detroit to Port Huron in the August 1957 plans. In April 1958, the MSHD wanted to provide
4488-802: The Interstate Highway System , or the Eisenhower Interstate System , is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States . The system extends throughout the contiguous United States and has routes in Hawaii , Alaska , and Puerto Rico . In the 20th century, the United States Congress began funding roadways through the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916 , and started an effort to construct
4624-665: The Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport , the Interstate passes into the southeastern corner of Kalamazoo before entering Comstock Township . The freeway intersects the eastern end of Business Spur I-94 (BS I-94) at a partial interchange near Morrow Lake in the township. I-94 continues out of the eastern Kalamazoo suburbs, paralleling the Kalamazoo River through the Galesburg area. Before crossing into Calhoun County on
4760-839: The Lake Michigan Circle Tour south of Benton Harbor – St. Joseph and the Lake Huron Circle Tour in the Port Huron area. Sections through the Detroit area are named the Detroit Industrial and Edsel Ford freeways. I-94 in the state is either a four- or six-lane freeway for most of its length; one segment in the Detroit area has up to 10 lanes total near the airport. I-94 enters Michigan from Indiana south of New Buffalo. The freeway runs northeasterly through rural Michiana farmland in
4896-529: The Lincoln Highway , the first road across America. He recalled that, "The old convoy had started me thinking about good two-lane highways... the wisdom of broader ribbons across our land." Eisenhower also gained an appreciation of the Reichsautobahn system, the first "national" implementation of modern Germany's Autobahn network, as a necessary component of a national defense system while he
5032-688: The Michigan Legislature . O'Hara was a World War II veteran who served in the US House of Representatives from 1959 until 1977. During his tenure in Congress, he procured federal funds for the construction of I-94 through his district. The first attempt to name the highway after him failed in 1991, but the honor was included in a budget bill passed in 1997. The section of I-94 was dedicated on October 16, 1998, after donors privately raised nearly $ 10,000 (equivalent to $ 17,000 in 2023) to pay for
5168-476: The St. Clair River . The Interstate travels along the western edge of residential areas for Marysville and Port Huron as it continues northward. Immediately west of downtown Port Huron, it intersects I-69; the two freeways merge and turn first east and then north through an interchange that also features connections to BL I-69 . I-94/I-69 turns back to the east about a mile (1.6 km) north of their confluence to span
5304-506: The US Department of Defense . The system has also been used to facilitate evacuations in the face of hurricanes and other natural disasters. An option for maximizing traffic throughput on a highway is to reverse the flow of traffic on one side of a divider so that all lanes become outbound lanes. This procedure, known as contraflow lane reversal , has been employed several times for hurricane evacuations. After public outcry regarding
5440-470: The US Highways , which increase from east to west and north to south). This numbering system usually holds true even if the local direction of the route does not match the compass directions. Numbers divisible by five are intended to be major arteries among the primary routes, carrying traffic long distances. Primary north–south Interstates increase in number from I-5 between Canada and Mexico along
5576-553: The West Coast to I‑95 between Canada and Miami, Florida along the East Coast . Major west–east arterial Interstates increase in number from I-10 between Santa Monica, California , and Jacksonville, Florida , to I-90 between Seattle, Washington , and Boston, Massachusetts , with two exceptions. There are no I-50 and I-60, as routes with those numbers would likely pass through states that currently have US Highways with
Interstate 94 in Michigan - Misplaced Pages Continue
5712-518: The business loop for Marshall follows I-69 southward. Continuing eastward, I-94 traverses rural land on the north side of Marshall. The freeway runs north of, and parallel to, the Kalamazoo River through eastern Calhoun County. It angles southeasterly toward Albion before returning to an easterly course on the north side of town. I-94 crosses into western Jackson County before intersecting M-99 . From there, it runs generally due east with
5848-556: The 2020 census, those seven counties had a population of 867,747 (661,842 in Indiana and 205,905 in Michigan). The name is a portmanteau of " Michigan " and " Indiana " and was chosen as the winning entry, purportedly submitted by Indiana politician Thurman C. Crook , among others, in a contest to name the area held by the Associated South Bend Merchants in 1934. The term is frequently used throughout
5984-710: The Chrysler Chelsea Proving Grounds in Chelsea next to the M-52 interchange. As I-94 continues easterly, it passes into the western edge of the Ann Arbor area. West of downtown, the M-14 freeway splits off to the northeast, and the Interstate turns to the south and southeast to curve around the south side of the city. The freeway passes between Briarwood Mall and Ann Arbor Municipal Airport . On
6120-576: The Congress Hotel in Chicago. In the plan, Mehren proposed a 50,000-mile (80,000 km) system, consisting of five east–west routes and 10 north–south routes. The system would include two percent of all roads and would pass through every state at a cost of $ 25,000 per mile ($ 16,000/km), providing commercial as well as military transport benefits. In 1919, the US Army sent an expedition across
6256-486: The Detroit Industrial Expressway, continued the route of the Willow Run Expressway eastward into Detroit. Both highways were built to move workers from Detroit to the industrial plants at Willow Run during the war and were later incorporated into I-94 in the 1950s as part of a Detroit–Chicago highway. The section of I-94 northeast of Detroit was named after former Congressman James G. O'Hara by
6392-541: The I-94 freeway to follow I-196, and I-94 continues its course away from Lake Michigan. South of Coloma , the trunkline turns eastward and roughly follows the Paw Paw River on a course that takes it south of Watervliet and Hartford . Between the latter two cities, the freeway transitions from northeastern Berrien County into western Van Buren County . It curves around and between Lake Cora and Threemile Lake near
6528-515: The Interstate Highway System. Assisting in the planning was Charles Erwin Wilson , who was still head of General Motors when President Eisenhower selected him as Secretary of Defense in January 1953. Some sections of highways that became part of the Interstate Highway System actually began construction earlier. Three states have claimed the title of first Interstate Highway. Missouri claims that
6664-493: The Interstate Highway program. The Interstates of Alaska and Puerto Rico are numbered sequentially in order of funding without regard to the rules on odd and even numbers. They also carry the prefixes A and PR , respectively. However, these highways are signed according to their local designations, not their Interstate Highway numbers. Furthermore, these routes were neither planned according to nor constructed to
6800-457: The Interstate parallels the north shore of Belleville Lake . East of the water body, it intersects I-275 near the northwest corner of Detroit Metropolitan Airport and angles northeasterly through the southwestern Detroit suburbs along the Detroit Industrial Freeway. I-94 uses the Gateway Bridge over the single-point urban interchange (SPUI) at US 24 (Telegraph Road) in Taylor ; these bridges were inspired by Super Bowl XL and provide
6936-408: The Lodge Freeway and the Edsel Ford Freeway was built in 1953 as the first full freeway-to-freeway interchange in the US. In mid-1956, the M-112 designation was decommissioned and replaced by a rerouted US 12. During the mid-1950s, the Detroit Streets and Rails campaign proposed a high-speed rail line in the median of the Willow Run, Detroit Industrial and Edsel Ford freeways; instead of building
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#17327879891297072-399: The Port Huron area started in late 2013 to rebuild and reconfigure the I-94/I-69 interchange outside the city. The project improved 3.7 miles (6.0 km) of freeway, replaced several bridges and ramps and cost $ 76 million (equivalent to $ 98 million in 2023). In June 2014, MDOT closed the ramps from I-69 eastbound to BL I-69 through the interchange until later in the year. The project
7208-451: The South Bend area. Michiana's borders overlap with those of the Chicago metropolitan area , and the two regions have significant cultural ties. South Bend in particular has strong ties to Chicago: it is home to the last stop on the South Shore Line , a commuter rail line connecting Chicago's downtown and south side to Indiana, and the nearby University of Notre Dame is noted for its strong connection with Chicago. Berrien County, Michigan,
7344-527: The Taylor Police Department, who was killed in 2010 while helping motorists who had car trouble. There are nine highways related to I-94 in Michigan. The first is the spur into downtown Battle Creek numbered I-194 and nicknamed "The Penetrator" and officially called the "Sojourner Truth Downtown Parkway". This auxiliary Interstate Highway runs for about three miles (4.8 km) to connect I-94 northward into downtown. The other eight highways are business loops of I-94 that connect various cities' downtowns with
7480-506: The US to determine the difficulties that military vehicles would have on a cross-country trip. Leaving from the Ellipse near the White House on July 7, the Motor Transport Corps convoy needed 62 days to drive 3,200 miles (5,100 km) on the Lincoln Highway to the Presidio of San Francisco along the Golden Gate . The convoy suffered many setbacks and problems on the route, such as poor-quality bridges, broken crankshafts, and engines clogged with desert sand. Dwight Eisenhower , then
7616-418: The United States , connecting to the Lodge Freeway ( M-10 ), and for comprising the first complete border-to-border toll-free freeway in a state in the United States. The highway has one auxiliary route, I-194 , which serves downtown Battle Creek, and eight business routes . Various segments have been dedicated to multiple people and places. The entire length of I-94 is listed on the National Highway System ,
7752-631: The United States, including: In addition to cancellations, removals of freeways are planned: The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) has defined a set of standards that all new Interstates must meet unless a waiver from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is obtained. One almost absolute standard is the controlled access nature of the roads. With few exceptions , traffic lights (and cross traffic in general) are limited to toll booths and ramp meters (metered flow control for lane merging during rush hour ). Being freeways , Interstate Highways usually have
7888-412: The Wayne–Macomb county line and the end of the freeway near Mount Clemens was filled in when another section of freeway opened. In late 1964, a plan was approved to improve the interchange with Telegraph Road ( US 24 ), as the original interchange did not feature access in all directions. North of Albion , the route of the freeway previously crossed a branch of the New York Central Railroad at-grade;
8024-399: The West Side, passing the main campus of Wayne State University before entering the East Side at M-1 (Woodward Avenue). Immediately east of the interchange with I-75 (Chrysler Freeway), I-94 forms the southern border of the Milwaukee Junction district. The Edsel Ford Freeway continues through residential neighborhoods of Detroit's East Side. The Interstate turns more northerly, mimicking
8160-449: The Willow Run, Detroit Industrial and Edsel Ford expressways were to be given the I-94 designation, temporarily co-designated with US 12. These sections connected Ann Arbor to Detroit, along with a bypass of Kalamazoo to Galesburg and a bypass of Jackson. Later that year, additional segments of I-94 were opened, starting with a 10-mile (16 km) section from Hartford to Coloma, then another from Paw Paw to Kalamazoo which connected with
8296-413: The act was signed, and paving started September 26, 1956. The state marked its portion of I-70 as the first project in the United States completed under the provisions of the new Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956. The Pennsylvania Turnpike could also be considered one of the first Interstate Highways, and is nicknamed "Grandfather of the Interstate System". On October 1, 1940, 162 miles (261 km) of
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#17327879891298432-410: The appliance maker, with 3400 employees, is based in Benton Harbor. Martin's Super Markets operated 21 grocery stores in the region with 3100 employees. With the loss of manufacturing, per capita income in Michiana has declined from 105% of the national average in 1960 to 82% in 2013. For more information and other points of interest not listed below, see the articles on the individual communities in
8568-465: The area, particularly by local radio and television stations based in South Bend that serve the entire area, but also by businesses that seek to draw customers from Indiana into Michigan or vice versa. A 2016 report stated that residents in the Michigan portion are particularly fond of the term because it contains part of the state name as opposed to generic terms for the area such as "the South Bend region." The Michiana Area Council of Governments (MACOG)
8704-419: The area. US 31 was rerouted to follow its new freeway section for 1.8 miles (2.9 km) from the previous end of the freeway at Napier Avenue that opened in 2003 to I-94 at BL I-94, where US 31 then followed I-94 to the I-196 interchange as before. This new routing opened on November 9, 2022. In December 2022, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) procured a statewide tolling study. Under
8840-418: The business loop for Benton Harbor and St. Joseph ( Business Loop I-94 , [BL I-94]). The Interstate curves further inland to bridge the St. Joseph River near Riverview Park. East of Benton Harbor, I-94 meets the other end of BL I-94 at an interchange where US 31 merges onto the freeway. East of the Southwest Michigan Regional Airport , I-94/US 31 meets the southern end of I-196 ; US 31 departs
8976-399: The cancellation of the Somerset Freeway . This situation was remedied when the construction of the Pennsylvania Turnpike/Interstate 95 Interchange Project started in 2010 and partially opened on September 22, 2018, which was already enough to fill the gap. However, I-70 remains discontinuous in Pennsylvania , because of the lack of a direct interchange with the Pennsylvania Turnpike at
9112-413: The center of Detroit was being planned in the 1940s, it was unofficially named the Harper–McGraw Expressway after the streets along which it was to run. There was some initial support to name it after Roy D. Chapin , the late president of the Hudson Motor Car Company and a former US secretary of commerce under President Herbert Hoover . On April 23, 1946, the Detroit Common Council voted instead to name
9248-406: The choice of routing destroyed many well-established neighborhoods, often intentionally as part of a program of " urban renewal ". In the two decades following the 1956 Highway Act, the construction of the freeways displaced one million people, and as a result of the many freeway revolts during this era, several planned Interstates were abandoned or re-routed to avoid urban cores. Construction of
9384-538: The city. In some locations, low speed limits are the result of lawsuits and resident demands; after holding up the completion of I-35E in St. Paul, Minnesota , for nearly 30 years in the courts, residents along the stretch of the freeway from the southern city limit to downtown successfully lobbied for a 45 mph (70 km/h) speed limit in addition to a prohibition on any vehicle weighing more than 9,000 pounds (4,100 kg) gross vehicle weight . I-93 in Franconia Notch State Park in northern New Hampshire has
9520-401: The collection of tolls, some Interstate routes are toll roads , either because they were grandfathered into the system or because subsequent legislation has allowed for tolling of Interstates in some cases. As of 2022 , about one quarter of all vehicle miles driven in the country used the Interstate Highway System, which has a total length of 48,890 miles (78,680 km). In 2022 and 2023,
9656-431: The construction and improvement of highways. The nation's revenue needs associated with World War I prevented any significant implementation of this policy, which expired in 1921. In December 1918, E. J. Mehren, a civil engineer and the editor of Engineering News-Record , presented his "A Suggested National Highway Policy and Plan" during a gathering of the State Highway Officials and Highway Industries Association at
9792-407: The contiguous United States, primary Interstates—also called main line Interstates or two-digit Interstates—are assigned numbers less than 100. While numerous exceptions do exist, there is a general scheme for numbering Interstates. Primary Interstates are assigned one- or two-digit numbers, while shorter routes (such as spurs, loops, and short connecting roads) are assigned three-digit numbers where
9928-548: The crossing was eliminated when the tracks were removed in 1968. The sections originally designated as the Willow Run Expressway were rebuilt from Rawsonville Road in Belleville to Ozga Road in Romulus starting in 1972. As part of this reconstruction, the segment between Haggerty and Ozga roads was widened from four to six lanes, and the eastbound lanes were realigned to facilitate construction of an interchange with I-275 ,
10064-471: The designation terminates on the Blue Water Bridge at the Canada–United States border . The first segment of what later became I-94 within the state, the Willow Run Expressway, was built near Ypsilanti and Belleville in 1941, with an easterly extension to Detroit in 1945. This expressway was initially numbered M-112 . In the mid-1950s, state and federal officials planned an Interstate to replace
10200-623: The discontinuity, but they have been blocked by local opposition, fearing a loss of business. The Interstate Highway System has been expanded numerous times. The expansions have both created new designations and extended existing designations. For example, I-49 , added to the system in the 1980s as a freeway in Louisiana , was designated as an expansion corridor, and FHWA approved the expanded route north from Lafayette, Louisiana , to Kansas City, Missouri . The freeway exists today as separate completed segments, with segments under construction or in
10336-448: The dissemination of public information. As a result, the 2005 evacuation of New Orleans, Louisiana, prior to Hurricane Katrina ran much more smoothly. According to urban legend , early regulations required that one out of every five miles of the Interstate Highway System must be built straight and flat, so as to be usable by aircraft during times of war. There is no evidence of this rule being included in any Interstate legislation. It
10472-512: The driving distance presumably refers to the distance between the metropolitan South Bend area and significant population centers in outlying areas, since a strict definition allowing for 60 miles from any point in St. Joseph County would add even more counties to the Greater Michiana area. For example, Walkerton in southwestern St. Joseph County is located approximately 30 miles from Monterey in northeastern Pulaski County , yet Pulaski
10608-496: The eastern end of the concurrency near Breezewood . Traveling in either direction, I-70 traffic must exit the freeway and use a short stretch of US 30 (which includes a number of roadside services) to rejoin I-70. The interchange was not originally built because of a legacy federal funding rule, since relaxed, which restricted the use of federal funds to improve roads financed with tolls. Solutions have been proposed to eliminate
10744-450: The economy. Not just as a public works measure, but for future growth. Clay's committee proposed a 10-year, $ 100 billion program ($ 1.13 trillion in 2023), which would build 40,000 miles (64,000 km) of divided highways linking all American cities with a population of greater than 50,000. Eisenhower initially preferred a system consisting of toll roads , but Clay convinced Eisenhower that toll roads were not feasible outside of
10880-555: The existing, largely non-freeway, United States Numbered Highways system. By the late 1930s, planning had expanded to a system of new superhighways. In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave Thomas MacDonald , chief at the Bureau of Public Roads, a hand-drawn map of the United States marked with eight superhighway corridors for study. In 1939, Bureau of Public Roads Division of Information chief Herbert S. Fairbank wrote
11016-426: The federal government, Interstate Highways are owned by the state in which they were built. With few exceptions , all Interstates must meet specific standards , such as having controlled access, physical barriers or median strips between lanes of oncoming traffic, breakdown lanes , avoiding at-grade intersections , no traffic lights , and complying with federal traffic sign specifications. Interstate Highways use
11152-489: The first state to complete a border-to-border toll-free Interstate within their state, running for 205 miles (330 km) from Detroit toward New Buffalo, creating the longest toll-free freeway in the country at the time. In January 1962, the US ;12 designation was removed from the I-94 freeway. In the process, the designation was transferred to replace the US 112 designation in its entirety. After this transfer, I-94
11288-467: The first three contracts under the new program were signed in Missouri on August 2, 1956. The first contract signed was for upgrading a section of US Route 66 to what is now designated Interstate 44 . On August 13, 1956, work began on US 40 (now I-70) in St. Charles County. Kansas claims that it was the first to start paving after the act was signed. Preliminary construction had taken place before
11424-614: The first time sought to target these funds to the construction of a national road grid of interconnected "primary highways", setting up cooperation among the various state highway planning boards. The Bureau of Public Roads asked the Army to provide a list of roads that it considered necessary for national defense. In 1922, General John J. Pershing , former head of the American Expeditionary Force in Europe during
11560-521: The freeway from the New Baltimore area northward. The eastern terminus of I-94 in the Port Huron area was dedicated on October 14, 1964, signaling the completion of the highway between Marysville and the Blue Water Bridge. This completion displaced part of the M-146 bypass of Port Huron, the southern leg of which was retained as a connector to present-day Lapeer Road. Two years later, the gap between
11696-400: The freeway's right lane, while also moving the carriageways of I-94 closer together. On August 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed after attempting to take off from Detroit Metropolitan Airport , killing all but one passenger upon exploding at the I-94 overpass over Middlebelt Road; that overpass was not damaged in the crash. The freeway was closed until August 18, and a memorial
11832-806: The freeway, the Legislature added the designation by passing Public Act 305 of 2002. The name was dedicated in ceremonies at a rest stop along the section of I-94 on September 28, 2002. Another piece of I-94 in Calhoun County was designated in 2004 as part of the Underground Railroad Memorial Highway. Starting in 1990, the National Park Service started working to identify routes of the Underground Railroad . The Battle Creek area
11968-556: The highest speed limits in a given area. Speed limits are determined by individual states. From 1975 to 1986, the maximum speed limit on any highway in the United States was 55 miles per hour (90 km/h), in accordance with federal law. Typically, lower limits are established in Northeastern and coastal states, while higher speed limits are established in inland states west of the Mississippi River . For example,
12104-553: The highly populated coastal regions. In February 1955, Eisenhower forwarded Clay's proposal to Congress. The bill quickly won approval in the Senate, but House Democrats objected to the use of public bonds as the means to finance construction. Eisenhower and the House Democrats agreed to instead finance the system through the Highway Trust Fund , which itself would be funded by a gasoline tax. In June 1956, Eisenhower signed
12240-569: The highway after Edsel Ford , the son of Henry Ford and president of the Ford Motor Company from 1918 until his death in 1943. Two other original sections of I-94's predecessor highways in the Detroit area were given early names. The westernmost of these is the Willow Run Expressway, named for the Willow Run complex. The plants at Willow Run produced B-24 Liberator bombers for Ford Motor Company during World War II. The second,
12376-617: The highway now designated I‑70 and I‑76 opened between Irwin and Carlisle . The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania refers to the turnpike as the Granddaddy of the Pikes, a reference to turnpikes . Milestones in the construction of the Interstate Highway System include: The initial cost estimate for the system was $ 25 billion over 12 years; it ended up costing $ 114 billion (equivalent to $ 425 billion in 2006 or $ 618 billion in 2023 ) and took 35 years. The system
12512-639: The highway signs. A segment of I-94 in Battle Creek between the exits for BL I-94 and I-194 was named the 94th Combat Infantry Division Memorial Highway by the Michigan Legislature in 2002. The name honors the US Army's 94th Infantry Division , which was activated at nearby Fort Custer in 1942 and served with distinction in the European theater of World War II. Because the unit originated in Battle Creek, and its number matched that of
12648-459: The inefficiency of evacuating from southern Louisiana prior to Hurricane Georges ' landfall in September 1998, government officials looked towards contraflow to improve evacuation times. In Savannah, Georgia , and Charleston, South Carolina , in 1999, lanes of I-16 and I-26 were used in a contraflow configuration in anticipation of Hurricane Floyd with mixed results. In 2004, contraflow
12784-583: The junction with the northern end of M-51 . About four miles (6.4 km) further east, I-94 crosses M-40 south of Paw Paw . Continuing eastward, the Interstate runs through Mattawan before entering western Kalamazoo County . In Texas Township , the freeway enters the western edges of the Kalamazoo suburbs. South of the campus for Western Michigan University 's College of Engineering & Applied Sciences in Portage , I-94 intersects US 131 . Near
12920-705: The lakeshore and travels to the west of Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township . It turns back to the northeast at 23 Mile Road at the interchange with M-3 and M-29 . North of 26 Mile Road, the freeway exits the northern suburbs and passes into farmland in The Thumb region. South of Michigan Meadows Golf Course, I-94 crosses County Line Road and enters St. Clair County . The freeway continues northeasterly as far as Marysville before turning northward near St. Clair County International Airport . From there, it runs roughly parallel to
13056-431: The last two digits match the parent route (thus, I-294 is a loop that connects at both ends to I-94 , while I-787 is a short spur route attached to I-87 ). In the numbering scheme for the primary routes, east–west highways are assigned even numbers and north–south highways are assigned odd numbers. Odd route numbers increase from west to east, and even-numbered routes increase from south to north (to avoid confusion with
13192-412: The main freeway. Unlike I-194, these loops are not freeways. Located from west to east along I-94's routing in Michigan, they serve Benton Harbor–St. Joseph , Kalamazoo , Battle Creek , Marshall , Albion , Jackson , Ann Arbor , and Port Huron . Interstate Highway System [REDACTED] The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways , commonly known as
13328-454: The mainline. Some auxiliary highways do not follow these guidelines, however. The Interstate Highway System also extends to Alaska , Hawaii , and Puerto Rico , even though they have no direct land connections to any other states or territories. However, their residents still pay federal fuel and tire taxes. The Interstates in Hawaii, all located on the most populous island of Oahu , carry
13464-753: The maximum speed limit is 75 mph (120 km/h) in northern Maine, varies between 50 and 70 mph (80 and 115 km/h) from southern Maine to New Jersey, and is 50 mph (80 km/h) in New York City and the District of Columbia. Currently, rural speed limits elsewhere generally range from 65 to 80 miles per hour (105 to 130 km/h). Several portions of various highways such as I-10 and I-20 in rural western Texas, I-80 in Nevada between Fernley and Winnemucca (except around Lovelock) and portions of I-15 , I-70 , I-80 , and I-84 in Utah have
13600-487: The northwest to round Beadle Lake , intersecting M-294 before spanning the Kalamazoo River. East of the river crossing, the freeway meets an interchange for M-96 , M-311 , and the eastern end of the Battle Creek business loop near FireKeepers Casino Hotel in Emmett Township . Turning back eastward, the Interstate exits the eastern Battle Creek suburbs and continues to an interchange with I-69 near Marshall ;
13736-404: The number of fatalities on the Interstate Highway System amounted to more than 5,000 people annually, with nearly 5,600 fatalities in 2022. The United States government's efforts to construct a national network of highways began on an ad hoc basis with the passage of the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916 , which provided $ 75 million over a five-year period for matching funds to the states for
13872-468: The official Interstate Highway standards . On one- or two-digit Interstates, the mile marker numbering almost always begins at the southern or western state line. If an Interstate originates within a state, the numbering begins from the location where the road begins in the south or west. As with all guidelines for Interstate routes, however, numerous exceptions exist. Michiana Michiana ( / ˌ m ɪ ʃ i ˈ æ n ə / MISH -ee- AN -ə )
14008-561: The original Interstate Highway System was proclaimed complete in 1992, despite deviations from the original 1956 plan and several stretches that did not fully conform with federal standards . The construction of the Interstate Highway System cost approximately $ 114 billion (equivalent to $ 618 billion in 2023). The system has continued to expand and grow as additional federal funding has provided for new routes to be added, and many future Interstate Highways are currently either being planned or under construction. Though heavily funded by
14144-414: The original route of US Highway 12 (US 12). By 1960, the length of I-94 was completed from Detroit to New Buffalo. Two years later, the US 12 designation was dropped from the freeway. Subsequent extensions in the 1960s completed most of the rest of the route, including the remaining sections between Detroit and Port Huron which superseded the routing of US 25 . The last segment opened to
14280-656: The planning phase between them. In 1966, the FHWA designated the entire Interstate Highway System as part of the larger Pan-American Highway System, and at least two proposed Interstate expansions were initiated to help trade with Canada and Mexico spurred by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Long-term plans for I-69 , which currently exists in several separate completed segments (the largest of which are in Indiana and Texas ),
14416-411: The prefix H . There are three one-digit routes in the state ( H-1 , H-2 , and H-3 ) and one auxiliary route ( H-201 ). These Interstates connect several military and naval bases together, as well as the important communities spread across Oahu, and especially within the urban core of Honolulu . Both Alaska and Puerto Rico also have public highways that receive 90 percent of their funding from
14552-419: The public in 1972 when Indiana completed its connection across the state line. Since completion, I-94 has remained relatively unchanged; a few interchanges have been rebuilt, a second span was constructed for the Blue Water Bridge, and, in 1987, a plane crashed on the freeway during takeoff from the airport in Detroit. The routing of I-94 is notable for containing the first full freeway-to-freeway interchange in
14688-448: The rail line, special boarding stations adjacent to dedicated bus lanes in the interchanges along the highway were used. In other parts of the state, other segments of highway were built to bypass the cities along the future I-94 corridor. In 1940, a southern bypass of Battle Creek opened along Columbia Avenue, and the former routing through downtown on Michigan Avenue became Business US 12 (Bus. US 12). In late 1951 or early 1952,
14824-531: The river, the Interstate designations jointly terminate, becoming Ontario Highway 402 . The first major overland transportation corridors in the future state of Michigan were the Indian foot trails. One of these, the St. Joseph Trail, followed the general route of the modern I-94 across the state from the Benton Harbor – St. Joseph area east to the Ann Arbor area. The State Trunkline Highway System
14960-537: The route, without regard to the route number. For instance, I-190 in Massachusetts is labeled north–south, while I-195 in New Jersey is labeled east–west. Some looped Interstate routes use inner–outer directions instead of compass directions, when the use of compass directions would create ambiguity. Due to the large number of these routes, auxiliary route numbers may be repeated in different states along
15096-419: The same numbers, which is generally disallowed under highway administration guidelines. Several two-digit numbers are shared between unconnected road segments at opposite ends of the country for various reasons. Some such highways are incomplete Interstates (such as I-69 and I-74 ) and some just happen to share route designations (such as I-76 , I-84 , I‑86 , I-87 , and I-88 ). Some of these were due to
15232-503: The same roadway are signed as traveling in opposite directions; one such wrong-way concurrency is found between Wytheville and Fort Chiswell , Virginia, where I‑81 north and I‑77 south are equivalent (with that section of road traveling almost due east), as are I‑81 south and I‑77 north. Auxiliary Interstate Highways are circumferential, radial, or spur highways that principally serve urban areas . These types of Interstate Highways are given three-digit route numbers, which consist of
15368-411: The second span between Port Huron and Point Edward, Ontario in 1995. In July 1997, the second span opened. The original span was closed for rehabilitation, and both were opened to traffic in 1999. The interchange with US 24 (Telegraph Road) following its mid-1960s redesign had only two bridges, and left-hand exits were used throughout. This interchange was reconfigured in 2005 to a SPUI design that
15504-408: The shoreline of Lake St. Clair , and exits Detroit for Harper Woods . Just north of the interchange for M-102 (Vernier Road), the freeway crosses 8 Mile Road and enters Macomb County . Running northward through Macomb County, I-94 meets the eastern end of I-696 (Reuther Freeway) about three miles (4.8 km) north of the county line in St. Clair Shores . The freeway continues to parallel
15640-464: The southeastern corner of Ann Arbor, I-94 intersects US 23 and continues around the south side of Ypsilanti . South of that city, the freeway also carries US 12 and crosses the Huron River north of the river's mouth at Ford Lake . I-94 jogs southeasterly around the south side of Willow Run Airport complex, separating from US 12 and entering Wayne County . South of Willow Run,
15776-714: The southwestern corner of the Lower Peninsula and parallels the Lake Michigan shoreline about three miles (4.8 km) inland. I-94 traverses an area just east of the Warren Dunes State Park as the freeway runs parallel to the Red Arrow Highway, a former routing of US 12 named after the 32nd Infantry Division (Red Arrow Division). The freeway crosses its companion highway south of St. Joseph; Red Arrow turns northward carrying
15912-519: The state's Interstate Highways was placed on hold pending finalization of the numbering scheme, and by late 1959 that signage was being added starting with I-75 and followed by the other open segments of freeway in the state. Sections of freeway opened in southwestern Michigan in 1960 between the Benton Harbor–St Joseph area and between Jackson and Ann Arbor; the latter was built over existing portions of US 12. In this year, Michigan became
16048-419: The study, I-94 would be the first highway to be converted into a toll road starting in 2028. Lawmakers have not yet acted upon the department's recommendation in the proposal. Construction began on August 7, 2023, on a privately funded three-mile (4.8 km) MDOT pilot project to upgrade the left lane for connected and autonomous vehicles between Ann Arbor and Detroit. As the original expressway through
16184-567: The top 10 employers: Beacon Health System (7000 employees; based in Elkhart and South Bend); Lakeland Regional Health System (4100 employees; based in St. Joseph and Niles), and Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center (2700; based in Mishawaka and Plymouth). The University of Notre Dame had 5700 employees in the educational sector, and the South Bend Community School Corporation had 3000. Whirlpool Corporation,
16320-495: The war, complied by submitting a detailed network of 20,000 miles (32,000 km) of interconnected primary highways—the so-called Pershing Map . A boom in road construction followed throughout the decade of the 1920s, with such projects as the New York parkway system constructed as part of a new national highway system. As automobile traffic increased, planners saw a need for such an interconnected national system to supplement
16456-685: The west side of Battle Creek , I-94 has the only driveway on any of Michigan's Interstate Highways for a gate providing access for military vehicles into the Fort Custer Training Center . The Interstate enters Calhoun County southwest of the W. K. Kellogg Airport and enters the city of Battle Creek. Immediately east of the county line, the freeway has an interchange with the western end of Battle Creek's business loop . Next to Lakeview Square Mall , I-94 meets its only auxiliary Interstate in Michigan: I-194 . I-94 turns to
16592-427: The west side of the peninsula. Heading farther east, I-94 passes through rural areas in the middle of the southern Lower Peninsula, crossing I-69 in the process. I-94 then runs through Jackson , Ann Arbor , and portions of Metro Detroit , connecting Michigan's largest city to its main airport . Past the east side of Detroit , the Interstate angles northeasterly through farmlands in The Thumb to Port Huron , where
16728-490: Was M-19 from Detroit northeast to Port Huron . On November 11, 1926, the United States Numbered Highway System was approved by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO), and the original route of US 12 replaced the highways from the state line northeasterly to Detroit; US 31 overlapped the highway between St. Joseph and Watervliet . The remainder of the future I-94 corridor
16864-584: Was active in the railroad during the Civil War, and the section of I-94 between exits 98 and 110 east of Battle Creek was included in the memorial designation. In June 2012, after a resolution passed by the Michigan Legislature was signed by Governor Rick Snyder , a portion of I-94 in Taylor between Inkster and Pelham roads was named the Auxiliary Lt. Dan Kromer Memorial Highway after a 20-year veteran of
17000-737: Was completed in December of that year. A pair of bridges called the Gateway Arch Bridges (alternately "Gateway to Detroit") was incorporated in the new interchange. In 2011, construction was started to widen I-94/I-69 approaching the Blue Water Bridge and to allow for dedicated local traffic and bridge traffic lanes. The lane configuration changes confused drivers in the area, especially motorists with outdated GPS devices; because of this, MDOT installed updated signs complete with American and Canadian flags to help prevent drivers from heading to Canada by mistake. Additional construction in
17136-543: Was completed in September 2015. In 2016, the sections of I-94 from the Indiana state line to the M-63 interchange was designated as part of the West Michigan Pike Pure Michigan Byway . The West Michigan Pike originated in efforts in the 1910s to improve a highway along the western part of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and to increase tourism along the Lake Michigan shore. The auto trail
17272-550: Was created on May 13, 1913, by an act of the Michigan Legislature ; at the time, Division 6 corresponded to the rough path of today's I-94. In 1919, the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) signposted the highway system for the first time, and three different highways followed sections of the modern I-94 corridor. The original M-11 ran from the Indiana state line north to Coloma where M-17 connected easterly to Detroit . The third highway
17408-483: Was dedicated. This last segment in Michigan between M-239 and the state line opened when Indiana completed an 18-mile (29 km) segment of freeway in their state. The interchange with the Southfield Freeway ( M-39 ) was closed entirely in 1985 to replace the original exit design, which included four on-ramps that sharply merged into the left lanes of I-94. Reconstruction added new on-ramps that merge into
17544-551: Was employed ahead of Hurricane Charley in the Tampa, Florida area and on the Gulf Coast before the landfall of Hurricane Ivan ; however, evacuation times there were no better than previous evacuation operations. Engineers began to apply lessons learned from the analysis of prior contraflow operations, including limiting exits, removing troopers (to keep traffic flowing instead of having drivers stop for directions), and improving
17680-426: Was eventually superseded by US 12 and US 31 after the creation of the United States Numbered Highway System in 1926. In 2020, work began on the final link of the St. Joseph Valley Parkway to connect the US 31 freeway to I-94 east of Benton Harbor. The project cost $ 121.5 million and involved reconstructing the interchange with the eastern terminus of BL I-94 and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) of I-94 in
17816-606: Was given the M-112 designation at the time. The expressway was extended eastward as the Detroit Industrial Expressway into Detroit; the first section opened in 1943 and the remainder was completed in March 1945. Land acquisition for the Edsel Ford Freeway started in 1945. Originally referred to as the Crosstown Freeway, the freeway became known as the Edsel Ford Freeway following an April 1946 petition. The interchange between
17952-464: Was later installed near the interchange between I-94 and Middlebelt Road. The completion of I-69 in the 1980s, and the approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement , increased traffic at the Blue Water Bridge. A new toll and customs plaza was built in 1991, and, later the next year, an international task force determined that traffic on the existing structure was exceeding capacity. Environmental planning started in 1993, and construction started on
18088-549: Was no longer concurrent with US 12, except for the Ypsilanti bypass. In 1963, the freeway was extended south of New Buffalo to end at M-239 . Traffic was diverted down M-239 into Indiana where State Road 39 carried traffic the rest of the way to the Indiana Toll Road . By the end of the year, a section of highway opened between Mount Clemens and Marysville, and US 25 was rerouted to run concurrently along
18224-422: Was proclaimed complete in 1992, but two of the original Interstates— I-95 and I-70 —were not continuous: both of these discontinuities were due to local opposition, which blocked efforts to build the necessary connections to fully complete the system. I-95 was made a continuous freeway in 2018, and thus I-70 remains the only original Interstate with a discontinuity. I-95 was discontinuous in New Jersey because of
18360-490: Was served by US 25 between Detroit and Port Huron. The first span of the Blue Water Bridge opened between Port Huron and Point Edward, Ontario , in 1938. The first segments of upgraded highways along the future route of I-94 were added during World War II . Construction on the Willow Run Expressway started in 1941 before the US entered the war. It was opened on September 12, 1942, to provide improved access to Ford Motor Company 's Willow Run bomber plants. The highway
18496-494: Was serving as Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe during World War II . In 1954, Eisenhower appointed General Lucius D. Clay to head a committee charged with proposing an interstate highway system plan. Summing up motivations for the construction of such a system, Clay stated, It was evident we needed better highways. We needed them for safety, to accommodate more automobiles. We needed them for defense purposes, if that should ever be necessary. And we needed them for
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