RESTORING MISSOURI’S

VEHIC
INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM:
Meeting Missouri’s Transportation Needs with a Reliable,
Safe & Well-Maintained National Highway Network

AUGUST 2021

Founded in 1971, TRIP ® of Washington, DC, is a nonprofit organization that researches, evaluates and
distributes economic and technical data on surface transportation issues. TRIP is sponsored by insurance
companies, equipment manufacturers, distributors and suppliers; businesses involved in highway and transit
engineering and construction; labor unions; and organizations concerned with efficient and safe surface
transportation.
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
At sixty-five years old, Missouri’s 1,380-mile Interstate Highway System remains the workhorse
of the state’s surface transportation network: heavily traveled and providing the most important link in
the supply chain, and the primary connection between and within urban communities. The
importance of the Interstate Highway System and the reliable movement of goods it provides has been
heightened during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. But many Interstate highways are wearing
out and showing signs of their advanced age, often heavily congested, and in need of significant
reconstruction, modernization and expansion.
In 2015, as part of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, the U.S. Congress
asked the Transportation Research Board (TRB), a division of the National Academy of Sciences,
Engineering and Medicine, to conduct a study to determine actions needed to upgrade and restore the
Interstate Highway System to fulfill its role of safely and efficiently meeting the nation’s future critical
personal, commercial and military travel needs. In 2019, the TRB provided Congress with a report that
found that the nation’s Interstates are heavily congested and aging, with large portions of the system
in need of major reconstruction and modernization. The report found that addressing the needs of the
Interstate Highway System will require more than a doubling of current investment to adequately
improve the system’s condition, reliability and safety, and that the restoration of the nation’s
Interstate Highway System should be based on strong federal leadership of a collaborative effort with
the states.
TRIP’s Restoring Missouri’s Interstate Highway System report provides the latest information on
the state’s Interstate system, including pavement conditions, bridge conditions, travel trends, traffic
congestion levels, truck use, and traffic safety. It reviews the findings of the TRB Interstate report and
concludes with recommended actions - based on the findings of the TRB report - to ensure that the
system is able to meet the nation’s transportation needs.

MISSOURI INTERSTATE HISTORY

The need for a transcontinental highway system in the U.S. was recognized as early as 1919, and an
initial Interstate plan was completed in the late 1930s. But, it was not until Congress approved a
suitable funding mechanism in 1956 that the Interstate Highway System became a reality.
• In 1919, Lieutenant Dwight D. Eisenhower participated in the U.S. Army’s first transcontinental
motor convoy, from Washington, DC, to San Francisco, California. The trip took 62 days, largely
due to inadequate roads and highways.

• In 1954, President Eisenhower appointed a committee to draft a proposal to fund a national

system of Interstate Highways. The initial proposal, subsequently dismissed by Congress, called
for financing a national Interstate system through bond financing.

• Nationwide construction of the Interstate Highway System began in 1956 following the
approval of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956. Some segments of urban and regional
highways built prior to 1956 were later incorporated into the Interstate Highway System.

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 • The first construction contracts awarded under the provisions of the 1956 Interstate legislation
were in Missouri in August of 1956, for portions of Interstate 44 in Laclede County and a
portion of Interstate 70 in St. Charles County.

• The majority of the nation’s Interstate system was completed by 1986, when 92 percent of the
Interstate system’s current length and 86 percent of lane miles were complete. By 1996, 98
percent of the Interstate system’s current length and 96 percent of lane miles were complete.

• The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, signed into law by President Dwight Eisenhower on June
29, 1956, called for the construction of a 41,000-mile system of Interstate highways. The Act
called for the Interstates to be paid for by taxes on motorists, such as the federal motor fuel
tax, with the federal government paying 90 percent of the initial construction costs.

• The federal motor fuel tax was set at three cents-per-gallon in 1956. Last increased in 1993, the
tax is currently 18.4 cents-per-gallon.

• Revenue collected from the 18.4 cents-per-gallon federal motor fuel tax and the 24.4 cents-per-
gallon federal diesel fuel tax are the primary sources of funding for the federal Highway Trust
Fund, which distributes funds to state and local governments for highway and bridge repairs as
well as other surface transportation improvements, including public transit, pedestrian and
bicycling facilities.

MISSOURI’S INTERSTATE ROAD AND BRIDGE CONDITIONS

Pavements and bridges on Missouri’s Interstate system are showing deterioration and signs of their
advancing age. As the aging Interstate system’s foundations continue to deteriorate, most Interstate
highways, bridges and interchanges will need to be rebuilt or replaced.
• Five percent of Missouri’s Interstate bridges are rated in poor/structurally deficient condition,
the tenth highest rate in the nation. A bridge is rated in poor/structurally deficient condition if
there is significant deterioration of the bridge deck, supports or other major components.
Seventy-one percent of the state’s Interstate bridges are rated in fair condition and the
remaining 25 percent are in good condition.

• The chart below shows the top 20 states with the greatest share of Interstate bridges in
poor/structurally deficient condition.

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 INTERSTATE BRIDGES
RANK STATE POOR/STRUCTURALLY
DEFICIENT
1 West Virginia 13%
2 Rhode Island 12%
3 Illinois 8%
4 Massachusetts 7%
5 New York 6%
6 Michigan 6%
7 Colorado 5%
8 Maine 5%
9 Washington 5%
10 Missouri 5%
11 Idaho 4%
12 Pennsylvania 4%
13 Wyoming 3%
14 Montana 3%
15 Louisiana 3%
16 California 3%
17 Connecticut 3%
18 New Mexico 3%
19 New Jersey 3%
20 North Carolina 3%

• The intended lifespan of many of the nation’s Interstate bridges at the time of their
construction is 50 years, though newer bridges are often built with longer-lasting materials and
techniques that allow for a longer intended lifespan. Older bridges often need significant
repairs or rehabilitation or may need to be replaced to continue to provide adequate service.

• The average age of Missouri’s Interstate bridges is 46 years. Fifty-six percent of the state’s
Interstate bridges are at least 50 years old.

• One percent of Missouri’s Interstates have pavement in poor condition, lower than the national
average of three percent. Four percent of Missouri’s Interstate pavements are rated in
mediocre condition, five percent are in fair condition and the remaining 89 percent are in good
condition.

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MISSOURI INTERSTATE USE AND CONGESTION
Missouri’s Interstate Highway System is among the most critical links in the state’s transportation
system and a vital part of Missouri’s transportation network. Traffic congestion is increasing on
Missouri’s Interstate Highway System as the amount of vehicle travel far outstrips the capacity
added to the system. Nearly half of the length of Missouri’s urban Interstates is congested.
• While Missouri’s Interstate Highway System accounts for two percent of all roadway lane miles
in the state, it carries 27 percent of the state’s vehicle travel – 21.5 million vehicle miles of
travel annually.

• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, vehicle travel on Missouri’s roads dropped by as much as 38
percent in April 2020 (as compared to vehicle travel during the same month the previous year)
but rebounded to three percent above May 2019 (the previous pre-COVID-19 May) levels by
May 2021.

• Since 1956 when funding of the Interstate system was approved, the number of vehicles in
Missouri increased more than three and a half times, from approximately 1.5 million vehicles to
5.5 million vehicles. Missouri’s population increased by 47 percent, from approximately 4.2
million to 6.1 million during this time.

• Forty-seven percent of Missouri’s urban Interstate highways are considered congested because
they carry traffic levels that result in significant delays during peak travel hours. Missouri’s
urban Interstates carry 12,607 vehicles per urban lane mile daily.

INTERSTATE FATALITY RATES AND SAFETY

Missouri’s Interstate Highway System provides a network of highways with a variety of safety
designs that greatly reduce the likelihood of serious crashes. Travel on the state’s Interstate
highways is nearly twice as safe as travel on all other roadways in the state.
• Missouri’s Interstate Highway System, which carried 27 percent of the state’s travel in 2019,
accounted for only 17 percent of the state’s traffic fatalities as a result of superior safety
features.

• The features that make Interstates safer than other roads include a separation from other roads
and rail lines, a minimum of four-lanes, gentler curves, paved shoulders, median barriers, and
rumble strips to warn drivers when they are leaving the roadway.

• Travel on Missouri’s Interstate highways is nearly twice as safe as travel on all other roadways
in the state. The fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles of travel on Missouri’s Interstate
system in 2019 was 0.69 compared to 1.27 on Missouri’s non-Interstate routes.

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 • TRIP estimates that Missouri’s Interstate Highway System saved 137 lives in 2019, based on an
estimate of the number of additional fatalities that would have occurred had Interstate traffic
been carried by other major roadways, which often have higher traffic fatality rates and may
lack the safety features common to Interstate routes.

INTERSTATE TRAVEL AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

Missouri’s Interstate Highway System is the backbone of the state’s economy and has played a
critical role in improving business productivity.
• Travel by combination trucks, which are the large trucks that carry the majority of freight
shipped in the U.S., accounted for 17 percent of all vehicle miles of travel on Missouri’s
Interstate Highway System in 2019, the ninth highest rate in the nation. The chart below shows
the top 20 states with the highest rate of vehicle travel by large trucks on their Interstate
system.

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 Percent Interstate
RANK STATE Vehicle Travel by
Combination Trucks
1 Wyoming 30%
2 Arkansas 28%
3 Indiana 23%
4 Nebraska 22%
5 Iowa 19%
6 South Dakota 18%
7 North Dakota 18%
8 Montana 17%
9 Missouri 17%
10 West Virginia 17%
11 Illinois 17%
12 Mississippi 17%
13 Kentucky 17%
14 Maine 16%
15 Kansas 16%
16 Tennessee 16%
17 Oregon 16%
18 Idaho 15%
19 Oklahoma 15%
20 Alabama 14%

• Every year, $481 billion in goods are shipped to and from sites in Missouri, primarily by truck.
Sixty-seven percent of the goods shipped annually from sites in Missouri are carried by trucks
and another five percent are carried by courier services, which use trucks for part of the
deliveries.

• The completion of the vast majority of the Interstate system by the 1980s, and the deregulation
of the U.S. trucking industry, resulted in a significant improvement in the competitiveness of
U.S. business. The cost of moving freight, as measured by U.S. business logistics costs, dropped
from 16 percent of U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 1980 to eight percent in 2018.

• The TRB report found that U.S. counties either on an Interstate highway or within 20 miles of an
Interstate are anticipated to grow in population through 2060 at a rate approximately seven
times greater than counties that are at least 20 miles from an Interstate highway (36 percent
versus five percent).

• The Interstate Highway System has reduced travel times between destinations throughout the
U.S. The improved mobility provided by the Interstate Highway System has given Americans
greater choices about where they live, work, shop and spend their leisure time.

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 • Missouri is home to the eighth worst truck bottleneck in the US, as identified by the American
Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) in its 2021 annual list of the nation’s top 100 truck
bottlenecks. The 54th worst bottleneck identified by the report is also in Kanas City: I-70 at I-670
and US 71.

• The top 20 truck bottlenecks in the U.S. are listed below.

RANK STATE Top Bottlenecks

1 NJ Fort Lee, NJ I-95 at SR 4

2 OH Cincinnati, OH I-71 at I-75
3 GA Atlanta, GA I-285 at I-85 (North)
4 GA Atlanta, GA I-20 at I-285 (West)
5 TX Houston, TX I-45 at I-69/US 59
6 IL Chicago, IL I-290 at I-90/I-94
7 TN Chattanooga, TN I-75 at I-24
8 MO St. Louis, MO I-64/I-55 at I-44
9 NY Rye, NY I-95 at I-287
10 CA San Bernardino, CA I-10 at I-15
11 CA Los Angeles, CA SR 60 at SR 57
12 TX Dallas, TX I-45 at I-30
13 TN Nashville, TN I-24/I-40 at I-440 (East)
14 NY Brooklyn, NY I-278 at Belt Parkway
15 TX Austin, TX I-35
16 GA Atlanta, GA I-75 at I-285 (North)
17 TX Houston, TX I-45 at I-610 (North)
18 LA Baton Rouge, LA I-10 at I-110
19 IL Chicago, IL I-90 at I-94 (South)
20 CO Denver, CO I-70 at I-25

INTERSTATE FUNDING CHALLENGES

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has determined that the nation faces a significant
backlog in needed Interstate highway repairs and improvements.
• The current backlog of needed improvements on the nation’s Interstate Highway System is
estimated by the USDOT to be $123 billion.

• The backlog on the nation’s Interstate Highway System includes $54 billion needed to improve
pavement conditions, $37 billion to improve bridges and $33 billion for needed system
expansion and enhancement.

• The July 2021 legislative approval of SB 262, which was subsequently signed into law by
Governor Parson, provides a critical first step towards addressing the underfunding of
Missouri’s Interstate Highway System and is expected to provide an additional $450 million
annually once fully implemented.

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The primary source of revenue for the Interstate Highway System is the federal surface
transportation program, which was set to expire on September 30, 2020 and extended by one year
by Congress to September 30, 2021. The program does not have a long-term and sustainable revenue
source.
• Signed into law in December 2015, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST Act),
provides modest increases in federal highway and transit spending. The bill also provides states
with greater funding certainty and streamlines the federal project approval process. But, the
FAST Act does not provide adequate funding to meet the nation’s need for highway and transit
improvements and does not include a long-term and sustainable funding source.

• Revenue collected from the 18.4 cents-per-gallon federal motor fuel tax and the 24.4 cents-per-
gallon federal diesel fuel tax are the primary sources of funding for the federal Highway Trust
Fund, which distributes funds to state and local governments for highway and bridge repairs
and other surface transportation improvements, including public transit, pedestrian and
bicycling facilities.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESTORING THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM

Restoring and upgrading the Interstate Highway System to meet 21st Century transportation needs
will require strong federal leadership and a robust federal-state partnership to reestablish the
Interstate Highway System as the nation’s premier transportation network. The TRB Interstate
report notes that “the scale and scope of the Interstate reinvestment imperative is daunting.”
• The following recommendations, based on the findings and recommendations of the TRB
Interstate report, provide a roadmap for the restoration of the Interstate Highway System:
o Reconstruct the nation’s Interstate Highway System, including pavements, bridges and
interchanges
o Improve safety features on Interstate highways
o Right-size the Interstate Highway System by:
 upgrading some existing roadways to Interstate standard
 adding needed additional highway capacity on existing routes to maintain and improve
mobility
 adding additional corridors to accommodate demographic and economic growth
 modifying some urban segments to maintain connectivity while remediating economic
and social disruption

All data used in this report is the most current available. Sources of information for this report include: The Federal
Highway Administration (FHWA), the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Transportation Research Board (TRB), and the U.S. Census Bureau. Cover photo
credit: Bill Burmaster.

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 Introduction
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, built at a cost
of $114 billion ($209 billion in current dollars), has been called the most ambitious public works project
built since the age of the Roman Empire, and is the backbone of America’s economy and the most
critical element of the nation’s transportation system. Today, Missouri’s Interstate Highway System -
which includes seven Interstate highways, not including three-digit urban portions - continues to
provide economic growth, improved traffic safety and convenient access.
Following President Eisenhower’s signing of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 on June 29,
1956, the nation moved quickly to orient its highway program toward the enormous task of planning
and constructing the nation’s eventual 48,482-mile Interstate system.
The first construction contracts awarded under the provisions of the 1956 Interstate legislation
were in Missouri in August of 1956, for portions of Interstate 44 in Laclede County and a portion of
Interstate 70 in St. Charles County. 1

The majority of the nation’s Interstate system was completed by 1986, when 92 percent of the
Interstate system’s current length and 86 percent of lane miles were complete. By 1996, 98 percent of
the Interstate system’s current length and 96 percent of lane miles were complete. 2
Concerned that the condition, reliability and safety of the nation’s preeminent transportation
system is declining, Congress, in 2015, as part of the legislation authorizing the five-year Fixing

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America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-Act), required that a comprehensive report be prepared on
the Interstate Highway System. The U.S. Congress asked the Transportation Research Board (TRB), a
division of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, to develop the report, which
was to include an examination of the condition of the Interstate Highway System and provide
recommendations on actions necessary to restore and upgrade the system to meet the transportation
needs of the 21st Century. The findings of TRB’s report, “Renewing the National Commitment to the
Interstate Highway System: A Foundation for the Future,” confirmed Congress’ fears for the nation’s
Interstate highways.
“The Interstate Highway System’s physical condition and operating performance continue to
exhibit deficiencies, and much of the Interstate System is already past due for major reconstruction
and modernization as a result of heavy use and the effects of age, exacerbated by escalating use and
deferred reinvestment,” notes the report.3 “ These aging and intensely used segments, whose
numbers are expected to grow over the next 20 years, are poorly positioned to accommodate even
modest projections of future traffic growth, much less the levels of growth actually experienced over
the past 50 years.” 4
This report looks at Missouri’s, and the nation’s, Interstate Highway System, its current use and
condition, and the future needs of Missouri’s most critical transportation network. It concludes with a
set of recommendations based on the findings of the TRB report to restore, renew and upgrade the
nation’s Interstate Highway System.

Trends in Missouri Interstate Travel and Capacity

Since the beginning of the Interstate era 65 years ago, Missouri and the nation have seen
enormous increases in population, motor vehicles and vehicle travel. From 1956 to 2020, the nation’s
population increased by 96 percent, from 168 million to 329 million. 5 From 1956 to 2019, the number
of motor vehicles increased by 324 percent, from 65 million to 276 million 6, and vehicle travel
increased by 427 percent, from 626 billion miles driven annually to approximately 3.3 trillion.7
Since funding of the Interstate system was approved in 1956 to 2019, the number of vehicles in
Missouri increased more than three and a half times, from approximately 1.5 million vehicles to 5.5
million vehicles. 8 Missouri’s population increased by 47 percent, from 4.2 million to 6.1 million during
this time.9

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 Missouri’s Interstate Highway System remains the most critical component of the state’s
surface transportation network. Missouri’s Interstate highways account for two percent of all lane
miles of roads in the state and carry 27 percent of the state’s vehicle travel – a total of 21.5 million
vehicle miles of travel annually. 10
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, vehicle travel on Missouri’s roads dropped by as much as 38
percent in April 2020 (as compared to vehicle travel during the same month the previous year) but
rebounded to three percent above May 2019 (the previous pre-COVID-19 May) levels by May 2021. 11

Missouri Interstate Bridge Conditions

Of the 1,381 bridges on Missouri’s Interstate system, five percent are rated in poor/structurally
deficient condition – the tenth highest rate in the nation. 12 Seventy-one percent are rated in fair
condition and the remaining 25 percent are in good condition.13 The chart below shows the top 20
states with the greatest share of their Interstate bridges in poor/structurally deficient condition.
Chart 1. Top 20 states with highest share of poor/structurally deficient Interstate bridges.

Source: Federal Highway Administration National Bridge Inventory, 2020.

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 Bridges that are rated poor/structurally deficient show significant signs of deterioration as a
result of use and exposure. The FHWA defines a poor/structurally deficient bridge as one that requires
immediate rehabilitation to remain open, is restricted to carrying lighter- weight vehicles, or is closed.
The intended lifespan of many of the nation’s Interstate bridges at the time of their
construction is 50 years, though newer bridges are often built with longer-lasting materials and
techniques that allow for a longer intended lifespan. Older bridges often need significant repairs or
rehabilitation or may need to be replaced to continue to provide adequate service. The average age of
Missouri’s Interstate bridges is 46 years. 14 Fifty-six percent of the state’s Interstate bridges are at least
50 years old.15

Pavement Conditions on Missouri’s Interstate System

The lifecycle of highway pavements is greatly affected by a transportation agency’s ability to
perform timely maintenance and upgrades to ensure that surfaces remain smooth as long as possible.
The pavement condition of major roads is evaluated and classified as being in poor, mediocre, fair or
good condition. In 2019, pavement on one percent of Missouri’s Interstate highways were rated in
poor condition, lower than the national average of three percent. 16
Four percent of Missouri’s Interstate pavement was rated mediocre, five percent fair, and the
remaining 89 percent was rated in good condition in 2019. 17 Roads rated poor often have pavements
that are cracked or broken. In some cases, poor roads can be resurfaced, but often are too
deteriorated and must be reconstructed. Roads rated in mediocre condition show signs of significant
wear and may also have some visible pavement distress. Most pavements in mediocre condition can
be repaired by resurfacing, but some may need more extensive reconstruction to return them to good
condition.
Pavement deterioration is caused by a combination of traffic, moisture and climate. Moisture
often works its way into road surfaces and the materials that form the road’s foundation. Road
surfaces at intersections are even more prone to deterioration because the slow-moving or standing
loads occurring at these sites subject the pavement to higher levels of stress. It is critical that roads are
fixed before they require major repairs because reconstructing roads costs approximately four times
more than resurfacing them. 18

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 The 2019 TRB Interstate report found that more than half a century of intensive use has taken a
toll on the nation’s Interstate system, and that most segments of the system need to be rebuilt from
the subbase up. The report found that most of the nation’s Interstate miles have been subject to age
and wear with only periodic resurfacing, resulting in a significant backlog of needed reconstruction of
the roadway’s original underlying structure. 19 The TRB report found that the repeated resurfacing of
Interstate highways is not addressing the deterioration of subbases of the roadways and results in
diminishing returns. This leads to shorter periods of serviceability between successive overlays and can
produce higher life-cycle costs relative to full-depth periodic pavement reconstruction. 20

Traffic Congestion and Travel Volume on Missouri’s Interstates

The nation’s Interstate Highway System was initially designed to provide transportation
between urban areas and to support national defense. But, as Interstate highways were ultimately
built around and through many cities, they became the nation’s most critical transportation corridors
between and often within urban areas.
Across the nation, the continued increase in Interstate highway travel, without a corresponding
increase in capacity, has resulted in a surge in traffic congestion levels. Forty-seven percent of
Missouri’s urban Interstates are considered congested because they carry traffic levels that result in
delays during peak travel hours. 21
The vast majority of the most congested sections of freeways and expressways in Missouri are
on the state’s Interstate network. Missouri’s urban Interstates carry 12,607 vehicles per urban lane
mile daily.22

Traffic Safety on Missouri’s Interstate Highways

Perhaps the most significant benefit of the Interstate system is that it has greatly improved
traffic safety throughout the nation by providing travelers with a network of highways with a variety of
safety designs that significantly reduce the likelihood of serious accidents.
The safety features that are required on Interstates include a separation from other roads,
streets and rail lines; access limited to on and off ramps; a minimum of four-lanes to prevent the need
to enter oncoming lanes for passing; and, gentler curves. Most Interstate highways also have paved
shoulders, and many have median barriers to avoid cross-over crashes and rumble strips to warn

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drivers if they are leaving the roadway. The result of the high level of safety design standards on the
Interstate is that travel on the nation’s Interstate highways is more than twice as safe as travel on all
other roads and highways.
Missouri’s Interstate Highway System, which carried 27 percent of the state’s travel in 2019,
accounted for only 17 percent of the state’s traffic fatalities as a result of superior safety features. 23
The traffic fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles of travel on Missouri’s Interstate highways was
0.69 in 2019, 24 significantly lower than the 1.27 fatality rate on non-Interstate routes in the state. 25
Chart 2. Missouri Fatality Rate on Interstate and Non-Interstate Roads, 2019.

Source: TRIP analysis of FHWA data.

Lives Saved by Interstate Highway System

Because it carries significant volumes of traffic on roadways with higher safety standards and
lower traffic fatality rates, the Interstate Highway System saves thousands of lives annually. TRIP
estimates that Missouri’s Interstate Highway System saved 137 lives in 2019. 26 This estimate is based
on a comparison of the annual fatality rate on the nation’s Interstate highways compared to the
fatality rate each year on other major roads in the state. Interstate safety benefits were estimated by
calculating the additional fatalities that would have occurred each year if the travel that occurred on
Interstate highways had instead been carried by other major roads, many of which often lack some of
the safety features found on Interstate highways and have a significantly higher traffic fatality rate.

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 Freight Shipment by Large Trucks on the Interstates
Every year, $481 billion in goods are shipped to and from sites in Missouri. 27 Sixty-seven
percent of the goods shipped annually to and from sites in Missouri are carried by trucks and another
five percent are carried by courier services, which use trucks for part of their deliveries. 28
Travel by combination trucks, which are the large trucks that carry the majority of freight
shipped in the U.S., accounted for 17 percent of all vehicle miles of travel on Missouri’s Interstate
Highway System in 2019, the ninth highest rate in the nation. 29 The chart below shows the top 20
states with the highest rate of vehicle travel by large trucks on their Interstate system.
Chart 3. Top 20 states with highest rate of vehicle travel by large trucks on their Interstate system.

Source: TRIP analysis of Federal Highway Administration Data, 2019.

Missouri is home to the eighth worst truck bottleneck in the US, as identified by the American
Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) in its 2021 annual list of the nation’s top 100 truck
bottlenecks. The 54th worst bottleneck identified by the report is also in Kanas City: I-70 at I-670 and
US 71. The top 20 truck bottlenecks are listed below.

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Chart 4. Top 20 truck bottlenecks in the United States.

RANK STATE Top Bottlenecks

1 NJ Fort Lee, NJ I-95 at SR 4

2 OH Cincinnati, OH I-71 at I-75
3 GA Atlanta, GA I-285 at I-85 (North)
4 GA Atlanta, GA I-20 at I-285 (West)
5 TX Houston, TX I-45 at I-69/US 59
6 IL Chicago, IL I-290 at I-90/I-94
7 TN Chattanooga, TN I-75 at I-24
8 MO St. Louis, MO I-64/I-55 at I-44
9 NY Rye, NY I-95 at I-287
10 CA San Bernardino, CA I-10 at I-15
11 CA Los Angeles, CA SR 60 at SR 57
12 TX Dallas, TX I-45 at I-30
13 TN Nashville, TN I-24/I-40 at I-440 (East)
14 NY Brooklyn, NY I-278 at Belt Parkway
15 TX Austin, TX I-35
16 GA Atlanta, GA I-75 at I-285 (North)
17 TX Houston, TX I-45 at I-610 (North)
18 LA Baton Rouge, LA I-10 at I-110
19 IL Chicago, IL I-90 at I-94 (South)
20 CO Denver, CO I-70 at I-25
Source: American Transportation Research Institute, 2021.

Economic Benefits of the Interstate System

The construction of the Interstate Highway System has had a profound impact on the nation’s
development, affecting the quality of life of Americans in numerous ways including increased safety,
expanded lifestyle choices and an enhanced standard of living. By greatly increasing the number of
areas that are within a reasonable driving distance, the Interstate system has significantly increased
access to jobs, housing, recreation, healthcare, shopping and other amenities.
Similarly, the construction of the Interstate Highway System has benefited the nation’s
economy by reducing the costs of and increasing the speed of goods movement. The ability to cheaply
and quickly ship products to or from domestic and international sites has resulted in lower costs and
greater selection to consumers, while opening up new markets to U.S. businesses. The completion of
the vast majority of the Interstate system by the 1980s, and the deregulation of the U.S. trucking
industry, resulted in a significant improvement in the competitiveness of U.S. business. The cost of

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moving freight, as measured by U.S. business logistics costs, dropped from 16 percent of U.S. Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) in 1980 to eight percent in 2018.30
Interstate access has a significant impact on the competitiveness of a region’s economy
Increasingly, companies are looking at the quality of a region’s transportation system when deciding
where to re-locate or expand. Regions with congested or poorly maintained roads may see businesses
relocate to areas with a smoother, more efficient and more modern transportation system. Highway
access has a significant impact on the competitiveness of a region’s economy. Not surprisingly,
highway accessibility was ranked the number two site selection factor in the 2021 survey of corporate
executives by Area Development Magazine, behind only skilled labor.31
The TRB report found that U.S. counties either on an Interstate highway or within 20 miles of
an Interstate are anticipated to grow in population through 2060 at a rate approximately seven times
greater than counties that are at least 20 miles from an Interstate highway (36 percent versus five
percent). 32
The tremendous increase in freight deliveries over recent years has been partly fueled by
improved communications and the need for greater economic competitiveness. Improved
communications provided by the Internet are integrating producers, wholesalers, retailers and
consumers. Businesses have responded to improved communications and the necessity to cut costs
with a variety of innovations, including just-in-time delivery, increased small package delivery,
demand-side inventory management and e-commerce.
The result of these changes has been a significant improvement in logistics efficiency as
businesses move away from a push-style distribution system, which relies on large-scale warehousing
of materials, to a pull-style distribution system, which relies on smaller, more strategic movement of
goods. These improvements have made mobile inventories the norm, resulting in the nation’s trucks
literally becoming rolling warehouses.

Funding of the Interstate System

The primary source of revenue for the Interstate Highway System is the Fixing America’s
Surface Transportation (FAST Act), the nation’s current federal surface transportation program, which
was authorized in 2015 and was set to expire on September 30, 2020. Congress extended the

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legislation for one year to September 30, 2021. The FAST Act provides modest increases in federal
highway and transit spending. The bill also provides states with greater funding certainty and
streamlines the federal project approval process. But, the FAST Act does not provide adequate funding
to meet the nation’s need for highway and transit improvements and does not include a long-term and
sustainable funding source.
Revenue collected from the 18.4 cents-per-gallon federal motor fuel tax and the 24.4 cents-per-
gallon federal diesel fuel tax are the primary sources of funding for the federal Highway Trust Fund,
which distributes funds to state and local governments for highway and bridge repairs and other
surface transportation improvements, including public transit, pedestrian and bicycling facilities.
The July 2021 legislative approval of SB 262, which was subsequently signed into law by
Governor Parson, provides a critical first step towards addressing the underfunding of Missouri’s
Interstate Highway System and is expected to provide an additional $450 million annually once fully
implemented.

Meeting Future Interstate Travel Needs

The U.S. faces a significant challenge in maintaining and rebuilding its aging Interstate Highway
System and providing additional lane capacity to meet growing travel demand.
The most recent U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) analysis of the condition of the
nation’s surface transportation system found that the nation faces a significant backlog in needed
improvements to the Interstate Highway System.
The U.S. Department of
Transportation, in its report, Status of
the Nation’s Highways, Bridges, and
Transit, 23rd Edition, submitted to
Congress in 2019, determined that the
current backlog in needed improvements
on the nation’s Interstate Highway
System is estimated to be $123 billion. 33
The backlog on the nation’s Interstate
Highway System includes $54 billion

18
needed to improve pavement conditions, $37 billion to improve bridges and $33 billion for needed
system expansion and enhancement.34
The TRB report evaluated future Interstate Highway System investment that will be necessary
to: address the need to rebuild the majority of the system’s pavements and bridges; address current
and future deterioration; improve traffic safety features and expand the capacity of the system to
handle future traffic levels, particularly in urban areas; and, to connect growing urban areas that are
not well connected to the Interstate system.
The TRB report estimated
that approximately $57 billion
should be spent on Interstate
Highway System renewal and
modernization annually over the
next 20 years, a 146 percent
increase from the approximately $23
billion spent on Interstate highways
in 2018.35
Because of the lack of analytical tools and adequate databases, the TRB needed funding
estimate does not include the funding needed to reconfigure and reconstruct many of the Interstate
system’s approximately 15,000 interchanges.36

Recommendations for Restoring and Renewing the Interstate Highway System

Restoring and upgrading the Interstate Highway System to meet the nation’s 21st Century
transportation needs will take significant resolve to reestablish the Interstate Highway System as the
nation’s premier transportation network. The TRB Interstate report notes that “the scale and scope of
the Interstate reinvestment imperative is daunting.” 37 The TRB report also noted that the renewal and
restoration of the Interstate Highway System will require strong federal leadership and a robust
partnership between the states and the federal government.38
The following recommendations, based on the findings and recommendations of the TRB
Interstate report, provide a roadmap for the restoration of the Interstate Highway System:

19
 o Reconstruct the nation’s Interstate Highway System, including pavements, bridges and
interchanges
o Improve safety features on Interstate highways
o Right-size Interstate system by:
 upgrading some existing roadways to Interstate standard
 adding needed additional highway capacity on existing routes to maintain and improve
mobility
 adding additional corridors to accommodate demographic and economic growth
 modifying some urban segments to maintain connectivity while remediating economic
and social disruption

Conclusion
Sixty-five years after President Eisenhower articulated a vision for the nation’s 20th Century
transportation system, a Congressionally-mandated report has found that the U.S. faces a “daunting”
task in restoring and renewing its most important transportation system.
Missouri’s Interstate Highway System is beset with growing traffic congestion, increasing car
and truck travel, and aging pavements, bridges and interchanges that need to be reconstructed and
modernized.
Today, Missouri’s Interstate Highway System continues to save time, lives and money while
playing a critical role in supporting economic growth and enhancing the lifestyle choices of the nation’s
residents and visitors.
If Americans are to continue to enjoy the benefit of the unparalleled level of access and
mobility provided by the Interstate Highway System, which has enabled the nation’s unprecedented
development and growth, the U.S. will need to commit to a well-funded program of Interstate
restoration, modernization and renewal.
Ensuring that the Interstate Highway System plays the same role in supporting the nation’s
development in the 21st Century will require a significant boost in investment in an Interstate
restoration program based on strong federal leadership of a robust federal-state partnership.
###

20
 ENDNOTES

1
Public Roads, 1996. “Three States Claim First Interstate Highway.” Federal Highway Administration.
2
TRIP analysis of Highway Statistics 1986, 1996 and 2014, Federal Highway Administration.
3
Transportation Research Board (2019). Renewing the National Commitment to the Interstate Highway System: A
Foundation for the Future. P. 199. http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/178485.aspx
4
Ibid. P. 200
5
TRIP analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.
6
U.S. Census Bureau data, Federal Highway Administration data. See chart MV-1. Additional historical data from Highway
Statistics Summary to 1995.
7
U.S. Census Bureau data, Federal Highway Administration data. See chart VM-2. Additional historical data from Highway
Statistics Summary to 1995.
8
U.S. Census Bureau data, Federal Highway Administration data. See chart VM-2. Additional historical data from Highway
Statistics Summary to 1995.
9
Ibid.
10
TRIP analysis of Highway Statistics, 2019, Federal Highway Administration. Data is from charts VM-2 and HM-60.
11
U.S. Department of Transportation (2021). Travel Monitoring Traffic Volume Trends
https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/travel_monitoring/tvt.cfm
12
Federal Highway Administration, 2020. National Bridge Inventory data.
13
Ibid
14
Ibid.
15
Ibid.
16
TRIP analysis of 2019 Federal Highway Administration data. See chart HM-64 in Highway Statistics.
17
Ibid
18
Selecting a Preventative Maintenance Treatment for Flexible Pavements. R. Hicks, J. Moulthrop. Transportation
Research Board. 1999. Figure 1.
19
Transportation Research Board (2019). Renewing the National Commitment to the Interstate Highway System: A
Foundation for the Future. P. 51. http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/178485.aspx
20
Ibid. P. 54
21
Highway Statistic 2019. Federal Highway Administration.
22
Federal Highway Administration. TRIP analysis of Highway Statistics 2019, charts VM-2, HM-60.
23
TRIP analysis of 2019 FHWA data. See charts FI-20, VM-2 in 2019 Highway Statistics.
24
Ibid.
25
Ibid.
26
TRIP analysis of 2019 FHWA data. See charts FI-20, VM-2 in 2019 Highway Statistics.
26
Ibid.
27
TRIP analysis of Federal Highway Administration’s Freight Analysis Framework data (2019). Data is for 2017.
https://faf.ornl.gov/fafweb/
28
Ibid.
29
TRIP analysis of 2019 FHWA data. See chart VM-4 in 2019 Highway Statistics.
30
Select USA. (2019). Logistics and Transportation Spotlight. https://www.selectusa.gov/logistics-and-transportation-
industry-united-states
31
Area Development Magazine (2021). 35th Annual Corporate Survey: Effects of Global Pandemic Reflected in Executives
Site and Facility Plans https://www.areadevelopment.com/corporate-consultants-survey-results/q1-2021/35th-annual-
corporate-survey.shtml
32
Transportation Research Board (2019). Renewing the National Commitment to the Interstate Highway System: A
Foundation for the Future. P. 89. http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/178485.aspx
Additional analysis provided by TRIP.
33
United States Department of Transportation (2015). 2015 Status of the Nation’s Highways, Bridges, and Transit:
Conditions and Performance. Chapter 7. Exhibit 7-9. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/2015cpr/es.cfm#8h
34
Ibid.

21
35
Transportation Research Board (2019). Renewing the National Commitment to the Interstate Highway System: A
Foundation for the Future. P. 4. http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/178485.aspx The recommended funding is based on the
funding needs estimated by TRB assuming an annual 1.5 percent annual average increase in travel. From 2013 to 2019, the
average annual increase in vehicle miles of travel was 2.1 percent.
36
Ibid. P. 5
37
Ibid. P. 266.
38
Ibid. P. 5.

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