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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

Is an image that depicts a highway with some 20 lanes in each direction a photo of the Katy Freeway in Texas?

By Christiana Dillard
NO

The image of such a massive highway drew comments including, "That image sums up the toxic effect of human presence on the planet very nicely," which might have been the reaction the person posting was going after.

Whatever, the image is not, as a social media post claims, the Katy Freeway in Texas.

The Katy Freeway is in Houston and is part of Interstate 10, which runs across the southern and western U.S. According to the Federal Highway Administration, the largest section of Houston's portion of Interstate 10 spans 12 lanes, far fewer than the highway in the post.

Another post that used the same image claimed it showed the G4 Beijing-Hong Kong-Macau Expressway in China.

Although Lead Stories could not locate the origin of the image, the color correction, season and other elements are visually similar to images of Russian highways.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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