ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

National Highway System (United States)

Imagine a huge network of roads that connect every single part of the United States like a giant spider web. This is what we call the National Highway System! It's a collection of over 160,000 miles of highways and roads that are owned, built and maintained by the U.S. government.

The National Highway System (NHS) is made up of several different types of roads, including Interstates, U.S. routes, highways, and many other major roads. These roads are used by lots of different vehicles, like cars, buses, trucks, and motorcycles.

The system was created in 1956 by the U.S. government as a way to make it easier and faster for people and goods to travel across the country. Before the NHS, traveling long distances was very difficult and took a very long time. But now, because of the highways, people can drive for hundreds, even thousands of miles in just a few days!

The highways in the NHS are numbered and named, and they have specific rules for driving on them. For example, there are speed limits, and you must follow certain road signs to stay safe.

The National Highway System isn't just designed for people to travel on, though - it's also used to move goods around the country. Big trucks carrying goods like food, clothes, and electronics travel on these roads all the time. This is important because it helps businesses make and sell products and keeps the economy moving.

Overall, the National Highway System is like a giant, interconnected web of roads that helps people and goods move all across the United States. It's an important part of the country's infrastructure and makes life easier for everyone.