U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for June 29

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29: INTERSTATES

Profile America -- Wednesday, June 29th.  Fifty-five years ago today, something got started that many of use every day and that most of us take for granted.   It was in 1956 that President Eisenhower signed a bill establishing the Interstate Highway System.  Today, that system is America's main street -- linking all 48 continental states along its more than 46,000 miles.  From rural dirt roads to the interstate highways, there are just over four million miles of roads in the U.S.  The projected original cost of the interstate system was more than $25 billion -- at the time, the largest public works project in the nation's history.  Today, building new roads and maintaining existing ones costs close to $140 billion a year.  You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at www.census.gov.

Sources:  Chase's Calendar of Events 2011, p. 342

Statistical Abstract of the United States 2011, t. 1088, 1094

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).  

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau