Decertification
After 59 years of serving motorists in the United States, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials decertified Route 66. The vote included the removal of all highway signs along the pathway.
It was the interstate highway system, which was stated back in the 1950s, that spelled doom for Route 66. Drivers preferred the more direct routes, with more lanes and higher speed limits. Virtually all sections of Route 66 were completely cut out by the interstates.
Interestingly enough, no other national highway from the original 1926 grid has been decertified.
Tourist Attraction
In more recent years, Route 66 has become a serious tourist attraction. About 85 percent of the original road is still drivable, and quite a few people come from all over the world to travel on it. Many of the old stops along the way have been revitalized, providing the tourists with food, places to stay and plenty of memorabilia to commemorate the journey.
Shirts, signs, drink coasters, etc. are sold all over the world with the Route 66 road sign on them, making it an incredibly popular icon of American freedom and the automobile in the 20th Century.
