The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921, the Phipps Act, was the first coherent plan for the nation’s future roads. It defined the Federal Aid Road program to develop an immense national highway system.
President Warren Harding signed the act, sponsored by Sen. Lawrence C. Phipps, R-Colorado, into law on November 9, 1921.
Thomas Harris MacDonald, the head of the National Highway Commission, crafted the plan.
