General Location of National System of Interstate Highways

The General location of national system of interstate highways, including all additional routes at urban areas designated in September, 1955 or the "Yellow Book" was a book published by the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads in 1955. It includes maps of each city that was to receive an Interstate Highway.

Omissions from existing System

* Interstate 24 - Initial plans called for I-24 to be a short interstate highway from Nashville to Chattanooga, but the actual Interstate starts with a junction at I-57 and continues east to Chattanooga with about 4 miles of highway in Georgia to intercept I-59 at its northern terminus.

* Interstate 29 - Initial plans called for I-29 to extend only from Kansas City to Sioux Falls. I-31 was scheduled to go from Fargo to Canada. The existing Highway is all I-29 from Kansas City to the Canadian border.

* Interstate 43 - Although it never appeared on this map, Wisconsin officials wanted, and got a highway that would serve Green Bay.

* Interstate 44 - The Yellow Book map has the Western Terminus at Oklahoma City. Officials extended the highway into Wichita Falls, Texas in order to connect it to US Highway 277.

* Interstate 59 and Interstate 81 - It is unclear which highway was to represent a north-south route starting from New Orleans and ending at the Canadian border in New York state. However, both current interstates roughly follow the Yellow Book plan though a trip from New Orleans to Toronto would include Interstates 20, 24, 75, and 40. I-59 has its northern terminus at I-24 southwest of Chattanooga in Georgia. The interstate also follows I-20 from Meridian, Mississippi to Birmingham, Alabama. I-81 has its start roughly 50-60 miles east of Knoxville and ends at the Canadian border.

* Interstate 70 - The map puts I-70's western terminus at Denver; however, the actual terminus is at I-15 in rural Utah.

External links

[http://www.ajfroggie.com/roads/yellowbook/ Scans of Yellow Book maps]