The Autostrada A8 or Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway") is an Italian motorway which connects Milan to Varese (on the Lake of Varese) and connects Milan to Gallarate and Sesto Calende on the Lake Maggiore (now part of the Gallarate - Gattico connection). This highway, while divided, contained only one lane in each direction and no interchanges. It is commonly defined, together with the Autostrada A9, as the Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway"). Built in 1924, Autostrada dei Laghi was the first motorway built in the world.[1][2]
The term "autostrada" was used for the first time in an official document from 1922 in which the engineer Piero Puricelli presented the project for the Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway"); with that term, it indicated those roads characterized by a straight path (as far as possible), without obstacles, characterized by a high achievable speed, passable only by motor vehicles (Italian: autoveicoli, hence the name) aimed at the rapid transport of goods and people.[3]
Italy was the first country in the world to build motorways reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only.[1][2] The Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway"), the first built in the world, connecting Milan to Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, and now parts of the Autostrada A8 and Autostrada A9, was devised by Piero Puricelli and was inaugurated in 1924.[2] Piero Puricelli, a civil engineer and entrepreneur, received the first authorization to build a public-utility fast road in 1921, and completed the construction (one lane in each direction) between 1924 and 1926. Piero Puricelli decided to cover the expenses by introducing a toll.[4]
The Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway"; now parts of the Autostrada A8 and the Autostrada A9), the first motorway built in the world.[1][2]
It was a futuristic project because there were few cars in circulation in Italy at that time. In 1923 there were a total of 53,000 cars circulating on Italian roads (between 1928 and 1929 there was a significant increase, as they went from 142,000 cars in circulation to 173,000 respectively).[5] In 1927 there were 135,900 cars circulating in Italy, corresponding to one vehicle for every 230 inhabitants, while today the ratio is 1 car for every 1.6 inhabitants.[5] The most motorized Italian regions were those of northern Italy and central Italy, with Lombardy at the top of the list with over 38,700 cars in 1923, while at the bottom of the list was Basilicata with 502 cars.[5]Milan was the Italian city in which the most car licenses were issued annually (12,000 in 1928), while the Italian region where the fewest licenses were issued was Sardinia, with only 632 new licenses.[5]
A4 in Milan
A50 in Milan
A52 in Milan
A9 in Lainate
A26 in Gallarate
A60 in Varese
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