Arlington County, Virginia Cafe, a nickname originating during the Cold War when the Pentagon was targeted by Soviet nuclear missiles. During World War II, the earliest portion of the Henry G. Shirley Memorial Highway was built in Arlington in conjunction with the parking and traffic plan for the Pentagon. This early freeway, opened in 1943 and completed to Woodbridge, Virginia in 1952, is now part of Interstate 395. Arlington forms part of the region's core transportation network. The county is traversed by two interstate highways, Interstate 66 in the northern part of the county and Interstate 395 in the eastern part, both with
Streets and highways of Arlington County, Virginia therefore, most roads are unnumbered. This status originated due to the existence of county highway departments in Arlington prior to the creation of the state transportation agency which is now the VDOT in 1927, and the assumption of local roads control by that agency in 1932. The control of the roads system is considered a powerful advantage for community urban planners, who can require developers to contribute to funding needed for road needs serving their projects. Although the streets of Arlington County are not laid out on a grid plan, its local streets follow the Arlington County, Virginia, street-naming system: