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FACT BRIEF

Were interstate highways designed with one in every five miles straight for use as emergency airstrips?

By Christiana Dillard
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NO

The Federal Highway Administration confirms that such a claim, which has circulated on social media since at least 2000, is not true.

The highway administration says on its webpage titled "Interstate Highway System - The Myths":

"This myth is widespread on the Internet and in reference sources, but has no basis in law, regulation, design manual -- or fact. Airplanes occasionally land on Interstates when no alternative is available in an emergency, not because the Interstates are designed for that purpose."

A 2000 article by an information specialist with the highway administration said Congress considered including a flight strip program in a 1944 law that authorized a "National System of Interstate Highways" -- but the 1944 act as finalized did not include the flight-strip program.

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Federal Highway Administration History of the Interstate Highway System
Federal Highway Administration Federal Highway Administration
Federal Highway Administration One Mile in Five: Debunking The Myth , May/June 2000 -
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
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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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.