What is vertical clearance and why did the Department of Defense (DOD) object to the minimum vertical clearance for the Interstate System in the 1950s?
“Vertical clearance” is the distance from the top of the pavement to the bottom of structures crossing over the highway. It is typically at least 1 foot higher than the legal vehicle height, plus an allowance for future resurfacing that could raise the top of the pavement. Although the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 added the words “and defense” to the name of the Interstate System (now the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways), the primary justification for the network was its civilian benefits, such as economic opportunity, safety, relief of congestion, and evacuation of cities. At the height of the Cold War and with an atomic or hydrogen bomb attack a conceivable possibility, Congress added “and Defense” to the name in recognition of the fact that the Interstate System would benefit the military, too. However, the emphasis on civilian needs was consistent with the position of the Department of War (now Defense, of course) dating to the early 1920s
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