Highway

The Angeles Crest Highway, California.

A highway is a road made for travel by the public between important places, such as cities, towns and landmarks. The word "highway" can be different between countries and can also mean a road, freeway, superhighway, autoroute, autobahn, parkway, expressway, autostrasse, autostrada, byway or motorway.

Highways come in many different designs. They can include many lanes of traffic, a median (strip of lane or barrier) between lanes of opposing traffic, and access control (ramps and bridges). Highways can also be as simple as a two-lane road.

In many countries, these roads are numbered to easily tell them apart. These numbered highways are usually called routes. The United States includes a system called the Interstate Highway system, controlled by AASHTO, where major north/south routes are odd numbered and east/west are even numbered. In Canada, routes that are in the 400s are freeways. In China, types of routes are separated by the first letter of the route; "G" for national road, "S" for provincial road and "Y" for rural roads. Highways are sometimes criticised because of the pollution cars make when driving highways. When too many cars travel along a highway, traffic slows down; this is known as a traffic jam. Public transportation (such as buses) and special lanes for those who have a given number of people in a car are used to help stop these problems.

Highway Media

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  A highway in Istanbul, Turkey

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  An aerial view of the Lakalaiva interchange in the Tampere Ring Road between the Highway 3 (E12) and Highway 9 (E63) near city of Tampere

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  Raccordo autostradale RA3 In Italy, which connects the Tuscan cities of Florence and Siena

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  The I-75/I-85 Downtown Connector in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States

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  The Italian Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Highway" in the 1950s; now parts of the Autostrada A8 and the Autostrada A9), the first controlled-access highway ever built in the world

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  The construction of Harbor Freeway, and its subsequent displacement of homes in Los Angeles, California.

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  The use of "Redlining" often would dictate where in cities highways would go through.

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  A taxiway crossing the Autobahn, near Leipzig

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  Noise, light and air pollution are negative environmental effects highways can have on their surroundings.

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  International sign used widely in Europe denoting the start of special restrictions for a section of highway classed as a motorway