A national road builders’ association announced Tuesday it has completed its $1 million pledge to the Smithsonian’s new exhibit, “America on the Move,” which opens Nov. 22.
The state-of-the art exhibition will encompass 26,000 square feet of showcases that focus on how transportation has changed America’s culture and landscape. Displays will be arranged chronologically to portray how transportation moved from the expansion of railroads to the role of the streetcar to the effects of the automobile in creating suburbs. One of the main attractions will be a display on the development of the interstate highway system.
The American Road & Transportation Builders Association pledged in 2001 to contribute $1 million over five years to support the “America on the Move” exhibit, but was able to complete its contribution in two years. ARTBA members contributed to the museum through the association’s Transportation Development Foundation. Some of the corporations that donated to ARTBA’s foundation include Caterpillar, 3M and Ingersoll-Rand. Other major supporters of the project include General Motors, AAA and The History Channel. Contributors who donated $25,000 or more will have their names displayed in the exhibition area.
Creation of the exhibit and its initial support came through a $3 million congressional appropriation in 1997 and the funds came to the museum through the U.S. Department of Transportation.
For more information on the exhibit, click the link to the right.
