Letter, Sinclair Weeks to President Dwight D. Eisenhower Regarding Improvement of the Interstate Highway System

OF Filed 13 MAR 16 1957 THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE STATES of WASHINGTON 25 was 1950 The President The White House Washington 25, D. C. Dear Mr. President: You asked me to keep you advised of the progress being made in carrying out the provisions of the Federal-Ai Highway Act of 1956, with particular reference to the program for improvement of the Interstate Highway System. Authorizations totaling $3.7 billion have been apportioned to the States. As required by the Act, $1. 125 billion for the fiscal year 1957 were apportioned immediately upon approval of the Act. In order to advance the program as rapidly as possible, particularly in those States having plans ready for the large amount of work, the authorization of $2.550 billion for the fiscal year 1958 was apportioned to the States on August 1. These apportionments include a total of $2.7 billion for the Interstate System. I am pleased to report that standards for improvement of the Interstate System were adopted by the State highway departments on July 12, only thirteen days after approval of the 1956 Act. These high standards for improvement of the Interstate System have been approved 2-L by the Bureau of Public Roads of the Department of Commerce for application to all Interstate System improvements. The State highway departments have submitted general programs for the improvement of the Interstate System totaling over $800 million in cost, on most of which their detailed plans and specifications and right-of-way acquisitions are yet to come. Meanwhile, during the period since the Act was approved on June 29, 1956, the States have been actually authorized to advertise for bids for construction of 122 miles of the Interstate System at an estimated cost of over $36 million. Contracts