Route 66 （June 28：美国历史上的今天）

内容提要：美国著名公路，66号公路的过去与现在。

For more than 30 years, Route 66 was a famous U.S. highway. People could drive from Chicago (芝加等）to Los Angeles (洛杉矶）on that one road. They just followed the Route 66 signs across eight states. It was 2,448 miles long. Today it is no longer shown on maps. 

Before 1900, states built their own roads. Many roads in open areas were unpaved没有铺柏油的 and in poor condition. 

In 1925, the U.S. Congress granted money for a national highway system. Route 66 would connect major cities in all the states along its path. It would also connect small cities and towns to the big cities. Work on the highway began in 1926. By 1938, it was paved end-to-end. 

In the middle 1930s, a long drought干旱（时期）struck袭击 the Midwest (美国中西邻）.Crops failed. People lost jobs. Farmers left their land. More than 200,000 followed Route 66 to California(加利福尼亚州）to find new jobs. 

World War II came in the 1940s. Route 66 was an important link between the many military bases built in the western states. 

After the war, the highway became a favorite route for tourists visiting places in the West. Motels, gas stations, and restaurants sprung up快速兴起 all along the way. It was so popular and well-known that a song was written about it. A TV series连续节目 called "Route 66" was a favorite program, 

Starting in the 1 970s, the two-lane双车道的 highway was gradually replaced取代 by wide, divided freeways高速公路. Route 66 was decommissioned使退役 on June 28, 1985. That means it is no longer a national highway. Only small parts of it remain. The familiar Route 66 signs are gone.

本文选自上海外语教育出版社引进出版的

《听读美国小故事》第6册（六月）

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