It’s been called the “Mother Road” and the “Main Street of America.” While Route 66 was officially decommissioned in 1985, the highway is still a vibrant part of American culture and history. But it didn’t cross the Central Valley. But today on KVPR’s Central Valley Roots, we look at history of Route 66’s long-gone cousin that did pass through our region: U.S. Route 466.
Route 466 was established in 1933. In began in Kingman, Arizona but only branched off from Route 66 at Barstow. While the “Mother Road” headed off to San Bernardino, Route 466 headed to Tehachapi, then Bakersfield, through the Central Valley and over the Coast Range, all the way to Morro Bay. It’s a mashup of today’s Highways 58, 99, 46 and 41.
The Joad Family of John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath traveled Route 66 on their way to California. But they also presumably traversed Route 466 as they made their way to Kern County. It’s the path that thousands of real-life Dust Bowl migrants took as they sought a better life.
The California section of Route 466 was decommissioned in the 1960s, and Route 66 was eventually replaced by Interstate 40. However, there have been periodic calls to resurrect Highway 466, at least in spirit. Some have called for an expansion by extending Interstate 40 west from Barstow to Bakersfield, to Interstate 5, and eventually Highway 101.
