Route 66 turns 100, and the roadside buildings and signs that line it are being saved

Route 66 turns 100 on 11 November 2026, and efforts are under way across the United States to save what is left of its roadside past.

The road officially started on 11 November 1926, as part of the country's first federal highway system. It runs almost 2,500 miles (about 4,000 kilometres) through eight states, from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California. It was decommissioned, meaning formally removed from the federal highway network, in 1985, after newer interstate highways had taken much of its traffic.

The road lives on in its buildings. Preservation work now focuses on what experts call vernacular architecture, the everyday structures put up by local builders rather than famous architects. Think motels, diners, gas stations and hand-painted signs. These are the places that drew travellers in the first place, and many are at risk of being torn down or left to fall apart.

Rhys Martin manages the Preserve Route 66 Initiative at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a US charity that works to protect historic sites. The campaign is one of several efforts across the country to keep the road's character intact.

Some of the places being protected are odd, and very easy to picture. In Cuba, Missouri, the Fanning 66 Outpost has a rocking chair that stands 42 feet (about 13 metres) high. It was the largest in the world until 2015, when it was overtaken, according to The Art Newspaper, which first reported the centennial preservation push.

Other sites are less visible. The Ribbon Road in Ottawa County, Oklahoma, holds the last stretch of pavement that was built 9 feet wide, a width designed for Ford Model T cars. Part of that stretch was protected from resurfacing in 2026, so the old surface stays in place.

Protection may also come from Washington. A bipartisan bill introduced in 2025 in Congress would designate Route 66 as a National Historic Trail, a federal label for routes of historic importance. Its passage would be the next major step, and it has not yet become law.

For anyone planning a drive, the message is simple. Many of the stops that make the route memorable are still standing, and the people working to keep them that way are asking travellers to look closely, take photos and visit.