Interstates Fuel Rural Economy, Reverse Depopulation

But this is a cruel and impatient economy, too, draining life from communities that are too small, too slow, too uninspired or too far from an off-ramp to compete....[The Interstate] has...matured to become an economic powerhouse. A 1,000- mile trip along I-40 from Memphis to Little Rock, Oklahoma City and Amarillo to little San Jon, N.M., suggests that in rural areas where a fifth of the population still works and lives, the Interstate has acquired a life of its own, connected to the big cities but apart from them, too."

Thanks to Abhijeet Chavan