A woman had a bit of a surprise after she drove over a short stretch of the original Route 66 through Springfield, Missouri, which now plays a song through your tires if you drive at exactly 30 mph. A clip of the new road was shared on Facebook by Cave Guide Corey.
Route 66 is probably America’s most famous highway, and although it’s long since been bypassed and broken up, you can still drive on small sections of it. This road in Springfield is part of the original Route 66, and a portion of it has now been turned into a musical road.
A musical road might sound like the stuff of fantasy, but there are a few of them around. They have sections of pavement patterned with strips with varying spacing. This allows for tires to vibrate at specific speeds, and in turn this produces musical notes.
The tricky part is calibrating the gaps between the rumble strips, ensuring that when a tire crosses at the required speed, the right pitch is played out. This portion of Route 66 is the latest road that allows you to play music as you drive along.
A Closer Look at Route 66’s New Musical Road
The musical road in Springfield is a brand-new addition to the scene. Route 66 Musical Roads LLC and the City of Springfield Public Works Department unveiled the road on East St. Louis Street in April 2026, and it is located near the Queen’s Gate 66 sculpture. The song chosen to play as you drive along is America the Beautiful.
“The selection of ‘America the Beautiful’ is intentional,” said the two parties. “The song reflects the spirit of the open road, the legacy of Route 66, and the anticipation surrounding America’s upcoming 250th anniversary,” they added. The section of road is 855ft long and uses 2,309 thermoplastic strips. In total, you get 19.45 seconds of the song when you hit the strip at the required speed.
“All sound is vibration at different frequencies,” said co-founder Chris Hill. “We use that principle and transform rumble strips into music. In this case, the road literally sings,” he added. The road opened officially on May 1st, 2026, and it is Centennial Certified by the Route 66 Centennial Commission. Route 66 is 100 years old this year, and it still remains one of the most famous roads in the world.
A Short History of the Iconic Route 66
Route 66 officially opened in November 1926, and it remained in use until 1985. It ran from Chicago and went through Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and terminated 2,448 miles later in California. It was a major route for westward migration, and one of the first highways in the United States Numbered Highway System.
As time went on, various parts of the route were being bypassed by quicker and more modern roads. Interstate highways displaced any need for Route 66, and it was removed from the Highway System in June 1985. Some parts have fallen into disrepair; others are still part of roads used on a daily basis. Other sections of the road have been preserved in near-original condition, and these are known as ‘sidewalk highways’.