Highways in the United States: The World's Most Expensive Megaproject! With 6 Million Km, the American Road Network Is the Largest on the Planet, but the Bill Is Steep

Highways in the United States: The World’s Most Expensive Megaproject! With 6 Million Km, the American Road Network Is the Largest on the Planet, but the Bill Is Steep

Written by Bruno Teles

Published on 19/07/2024 at 16:12

Rodovias dos EUA: O Megaprojeto Mais Caro do Mundo Imagem: CPG/Divulgação

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With Over 6 Million Kilometers Traveled, This Megaproject of the US Road Network Is Currently the Longest in the World

The United States Highway System is massive, with over 6 million kilometers, representing 14% of the world’s roads. Within this megaproject, the Cat Freeway in Texas stands out with its 26 lanes. The journey to build this network began in the early 20th century and continues to this day, with constant expansions and renewals.

Since 1918, the number of cars in the United States has grown dramatically. At that time, only one family in every 13 owned a vehicle. Within ten years, that number jumped to four out of five families. This explosion in car usage was fueled by advancements in productivity, with Henry Ford and his Model T making the automobile accessible and reliable.

Megaproject to Create a System of Interstate Highways

To accommodate this growth, the country adopted its first numbered highway system in 1926. However, each state financed and maintained its own roads, without national design, signage, or safety standards. This began to change under Aidan Howard’s administration, which in 1953 embarked on the megaproject to create a system of interstate highways. In 1956, the Federal Highway Act was passed, establishing a network of controlled-access roads with standardized signage on a national scale.

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Highway Trust Fund

The largest part of this funding comes from the Highway Trust Fund, which is fed by tolls and fuel taxes. In 2022, the fund raised $48 billion, of which $42 billion was allocated to highways. However, revenues have been insufficient to cover expenditures, and the fund is projected to deplete by 2028, creating a deficit of $241 billion between 2024 and 2033.

Despite the high costs, the economic return from highways is significant. A study by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association shows that every dollar invested generates a return of $5. The United States Highway System has allowed for the efficient distribution of products, reduction in delivery times, and business growth, with notable examples like McDonald’s, which rapidly expanded along new highways.

In Chicago, Drivers Lost 155 Hours in Traffic Jams in 2022

This network has also transformed American cities, promoting urban decentralization. Highways facilitated the migration of homes and businesses away from urban centers, creating suburban areas. However, this has brought problems such as congestion. In Chicago, drivers lost 155 hours in traffic jams in 2022.

To address these challenges, the 2022 bipartisan infrastructure bill allocated over $550 billion for alternative transportation projects. One major project is the Gateway, which aims to improve the rail line between New Jersey and New York, with an initial subsidy of $292 million and an estimated total cost of $16 billion.

Despite the importance of railroads and aviation, the car remains the most used mode of transportation in the United States. The extensive United States Highway System, part of the world’s most expensive megaproject, still has much to offer and surprise.

Highways in the United States: The World’s Most Expensive Megaproject! With 6 Million Km, the American Road Network Is the Largest on the Planet, but the Bill Is Steep

With Over 6 Million Kilometers Traveled, This Megaproject of the US Road Network Is Currently the Longest in the World

Megaproject to Create a System of Interstate Highways

Highway Trust Fund

In Chicago, Drivers Lost 155 Hours in Traffic Jams in 2022

A giant printer called the “Ferrari” of concrete has landed in Latin America and can already build a 120-square-meter house in just 48 hours, making the traditional construction site look like something from the last century.

A British company has installed in the middle of the ocean the world’s first floating platform that generates electricity 24 hours a day from the temperature difference between the surface and the depths of the Atlantic, without relying on wind or sun.

Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt has ceased to be a climatic phenomenon and has become a biological system that feeds on itself, with 8,000 kilometers in length, 37 million tons of algae, and scientists confirm that it is now permanent.

China is building an artificial island in the middle of the sea, covering 20 km², to construct the largest offshore airport in the world, the Dalian Jinzhouwan. This $4.3 billion project is anchored on more than 3,000 pillars embedded in the rock beneath the ocean and is scheduled to open in 2035.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Engineers had to pour concrete mixed with tons of ice throughout entire nights in the Dubai desert to erect the Burj Khalifa; any carelessness could clog the pipes half a mile high.

The James Webb telescope spotted a planet 700 light-years from Earth with mornings full of sand clouds and nights with clear skies, the temperature difference between the two hemispheres reaches an impressive 170 degrees.

Celso Portiolli flies over a beach in SC by helicopter, calls the destination the ‘diamond of Brazil’ and buys an apartment for up to R$ 2.4 million in a city of 27,000 inhabitants that moved R$ 4 billion in real estate.

BYD officially enters the semiconductor race by launching the Xuanji A3, a self-developed chip in China that reinforces the technological verticalization strategy and can reduce costs in millions of smart vehicles.

While SpaceX lands rockets as a routine, Spain wants to enter orbit with its own recoverable microlauncher; the Miura 5 emerged from a Spanish startup, gained a complex in Kourou, and aims to transform small satellites into a sovereign European market.

India tested the Agni-5 capable of carrying multiple independent warheads and, in the same round, conducted the first firing of a scramjet engine, joining a group that only the United States, Russia, and China were part of.

Canada is preparing a billion-dollar megaproject with 3.5 GW of wind energy, up to 530 turbines, green hydrogen, and ammonia for export, in a bid that could place the country at the center of the new global race for clean fuels.

Highways in the United States: The World’s Most Expensive Megaproject! With 6 Million Km, the American Road Network Is the Largest on the Planet, but the Bill Is Steep

With Over 6 Million Kilometers Traveled, This Megaproject of the US Road Network Is Currently the Longest in the World

Megaproject to Create a System of Interstate Highways

Highway Trust Fund

In Chicago, Drivers Lost 155 Hours in Traffic Jams in 2022

A giant printer called the “Ferrari” of concrete has landed in Latin America and can already build a 120-square-meter house in just 48 hours, making the traditional construction site look like something from the last century.

A British company has installed in the middle of the ocean the world’s first floating platform that generates electricity 24 hours a day from the temperature difference between the surface and the depths of the Atlantic, without relying on wind or sun.

Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt has ceased to be a climatic phenomenon and has become a biological system that feeds on itself, with 8,000 kilometers in length, 37 million tons of algae, and scientists confirm that it is now permanent.

China is building an artificial island in the middle of the sea, covering 20 km², to construct the largest offshore airport in the world, the Dalian Jinzhouwan. This $4.3 billion project is anchored on more than 3,000 pillars embedded in the rock beneath the ocean and is scheduled to open in 2035.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Engineers had to pour concrete mixed with tons of ice throughout entire nights in the Dubai desert to erect the Burj Khalifa; any carelessness could clog the pipes half a mile high.

The James Webb telescope spotted a planet 700 light-years from Earth with mornings full of sand clouds and nights with clear skies, the temperature difference between the two hemispheres reaches an impressive 170 degrees.

It is now official: Correios and AliExpress join forces to speed up deliveries throughout Brazil, enhance package tracking, and strengthen the digital logistics infrastructure that supports the rapid growth of e-commerce in 2026.

A viaduct over 40 years old in a city in Minas Gerais was closed due to the risk of collapse, blocked routes for months, exposed maintenance failures, and now requires a R$ 1.7 million project to prevent a collapse in the urban heart for decades.

Viaduct used every day by cars, buses, and pedestrians in the center of a São Paulo city becomes a legal case after a report indicates “imminent danger,” cracks, corrosion, and high lethality risk.

The truck that “bent physics” in the Monte Carlo case: report indicates impossible route between São Paulo and Mato Grosso, R$ 4 million in recorded refueling, R$ 3 million advanced, and suspicion of entries without real correspondence.

ANTT authorizes new electronic tolls without barriers on highways in Paraná and Goiás, expands free flow toll collection, and introduces drivers to a new rule that may result in a fine if the toll is not paid on time.

Celso Portiolli flies over a beach in SC by helicopter, calls the destination the ‘diamond of Brazil’ and buys an apartment for up to R$ 2.4 million in a city of 27,000 inhabitants that moved R$ 4 billion in real estate.

BYD officially enters the semiconductor race by launching the Xuanji A3, a self-developed chip in China that reinforces the technological verticalization strategy and can reduce costs in millions of smart vehicles.

While SpaceX lands rockets as a routine, Spain wants to enter orbit with its own recoverable microlauncher; the Miura 5 emerged from a Spanish startup, gained a complex in Kourou, and aims to transform small satellites into a sovereign European market.

India tested the Agni-5 capable of carrying multiple independent warheads and, in the same round, conducted the first firing of a scramjet engine, joining a group that only the United States, Russia, and China were part of.

Canada is preparing a billion-dollar megaproject with 3.5 GW of wind energy, up to 530 turbines, green hydrogen, and ammonia for export, in a bid that could place the country at the center of the new global race for clean fuels.