Longest Road in the world
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the longest road in the world is the Pan-American Highway. Total length of the road is 48 000 km/30 000 miles.
The Pan American Highway covers the entire US interstate highway system. The highway is made up of interconnected highways. It connects more than 20 countries in the United States, with the exception of the Dorian Gap between Panama and Colombia (100 km).
The idea for a Pan-American highway system originated in 1923 at the Fifth International Conference of American States in Santiago de Chile. The first Pan-American Highway Conference, held in Buenos Aires in 1925, immediately discovered the construction of a highway is important on the development of the region. In 1928, the Sixth International Conference of American States in Havana approved the longest communications road across the continent.
The catalyst for further development of the highway was World War II. Suddenly, adequate land connections between the continents, especially between the United States and the Panama Canal Zone, became important for military security.
The entire Mexican section was built and funded by Mexico, while sections of smaller Central American countries were built with US assistance. The first section of the highway was completed in 1950 by Mexico. Construction of the remaining sections was completed in 1963. The highway helped economic growth in Mexico and Central America.
The northern part of the road passes through Canada, the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. The southern part passes through Suriname, Guyana, Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Although it doesn't officially have a route through the U.S. and Canada, some people start in Alaska and drive/bike to Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost tip of South America. No road in the US or Canada is officially designated as a Pan-American Highway. In the United States, the entire interstate highway system is official but only the highway numbers are signed. In Canada, there are no official routes at all.
Naturally the journey takes about a year and a half to complete. The journey is a real adventure as the road runs through mountains, forests, deserts and glaciers. At the same time, there are many dangers such as wild animals, forests, swamps and dangerous criminals, high temperatures, landslides, steep waterfalls, livestock on the road, inaccessible areas during the wet season and severe winters.
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