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The End The "Interstate Highway Act" spelled "Death to Route 66". The time had come to replace an old friend with a more efficient Interstate Highway. US 66 no longer exists officially, not even on maps. The last city on the Route, Williams, Arizona, was circumvented with a bypass in 1985. The old Route dies, 59 years old. When General Eisenhower came back from Germany after World War II, he was very impressed by Hitler's "Autobahnen". Later he recalled: "During World War II, I saw the superlative system of German national highways, crossing that country and offering the possibility, often lacking in the United States, of driving with high speed and safety at the same time." By 1970, Route 66 was nearly fully replaced by a modern four-lane highway. Realizing that time is money, businessmen welcomed this new "Road" where they could transport more goods in less time over a longer distance than it had ever been possible before. Before too long, Route 66 became a "Marvel of the past", at least where speedy travel was preferred. With these new highways many fast-food restaurants and big service stations sprang-up almost overnight. Since they were mostly part of large companies they were able to offer their services at lower prices than had been possible for the smaller, family-owned establishments. Needless to say that kind of competition made it all but impossible for the smaller businesses to survive. A golden era had come to an end. |
