By Stuart Forster
When it comes to epic road trips, America’s Route 66 is arguably the world’s most famous.
Roadside attractions, museums and signage have been receiving upgrades ahead of the historic highway’s centenary in 2026. That means there’s no time like the present to plan a journey on ‘the Mother Road’.
That term became popular after John Steinbeck used it in The Grapes of Wrath. Telling the story of the Joad family’s westward journey along Route 66 during the Great Depression, his novel conveys a sense of the hope it offered.
Billy Troup’s much-covered song, written in 1946, encouraged people to “get their kicks” on Route 66. The hit further popularised the appeal of driving the 2,448- mile highway between Chicago and Santa Monica.
Unlike today’s multi-lane highways, Route 66 had just one lane in each direction when it opened in 1926. An example of that can be seen at Carpenter Park in Springfield, Illinois. Running through towns and cities, the road helped connect communities and supported livelihoods. It was dubbed ‘The Main Street of America’.
Over time, the famous highway’s route fluctuated as new sections of road were laid and older alignments bypassed. Cutting journey times for long-distance journeys, multi-lane interstates grew in popularity and Route 66 was decommissioned as a highway in 1985.
Nonetheless, the iconic status of the historic route means that the idea of driving on Route 66 remains aspirational for many travellers. Three weeks is typically the recommended duration for a driving holiday along the entire route. Yet as someone who enjoys pausing frequently to take photographs, I’d prefer far longer, so decided to experience only the 301 miles within Illinois over a week.
Less really can mean more while travelling. A well-planned itinerary – with numerous highlights along the way – allowed plenty of time to chomp on regional delicacies, including a battered cozy dog, a tenderloin sandwich at the Ariston Café in Litchfield and an ice cream cookie sandwich from Uptown Scoops in Collinsville.
With my flight home booked from Chicago, it made sense to hop southwest to St Louis and then drive back towards my departure point – but at nothing near the speeds of well over 300 miles per hour that the drag racers record at the World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison.
Not all of the highlights along the way were automotive-related or opportunities to embrace 20th-century Americana. Remarkably, the city that occupied what is today Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, in Collinsville, was more populous than London during its heyday – around the year 1100. It is the site of the biggest preColumbian earthwork in the Americas. The vast pyramid stands more than 30 metres high and is known as Monks Mound.
West End Service Station in Edwardsville dates from the 1920s and is one of the few remaining stations from that era where drivers refuelled and had opportunities to consult with mechanics. With restored, gleaming red Texaco pumps and period signage, the station hosts a compact museum that tells the story of the historic highway’s significance for the local community.
Fibreglass figures standing 20-ft tall were designed to attract motorists’ attention, typically indicating the services of businesses through items they held. Known as ‘Muffler Men’, various examples can be seen along Route 66, including outside of the Pink Elephant Mall in Livingston, whose mid-century ice cream parlour leads into a store packed with pre-loved Americana.
My final stop before Chicago was Old Joliet Prison – out of choice, not necessity – for a guided tour of the correctional facility that featured in the opening scenes of The Blues Brothers film.
Easy to follow and enjoy, Route 66 is a welltravelled way that offers insights into the Americas of both yesterday and today.
