From Anywhere to Everywhere: The Development of the Interstate Highway System in Texas

As part of a series of articles commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System, scholars from the Texas Transportation Institute discuss the growth of the Interstate Highway System in Texas and its role in economic development and other trends in the state, which has the greatest land area of all the lower 48. Nearly 3,000 of the system's initial 40,000 miles were scheduled to be built in Texas. The roots of the Texas Transportation Institute can be traced back to Thomas MacDonald, who was chief of the Federal Bureau of Public Roads from 1919 to 1953 and a key player in the Interstate's formation. Frank Turner, the "father" of the system, was an alumnus of Texas A&M University. Another visionary was Dewitt Greer, who was known in Texas and the nation as the "King of the Highway Builders." Texas was well ahead of the federal government thanks to his efforts.