AbstractThis paper explores some of the similarities between the approaches that civil engineers take to design highways and that systems engineers take to solve complex system development problems. The process of developing a highway design can be directly correlated to the system development life cycle used in systems engineering. The progression of highway design is demonstrated to be an evolution of technologies, inventions, organizational creations, and legislative acts supporting the development of a national interstate transportation system. Until now, highway design has been the domain of civil engineers concerned with highway structures, materials loading, traffic patterns, and supporting facilities. However, the growing need for intelligent vehicle‐highway systems (IVHSs) requires that traditional civil engineering disciplines be integrated with computers, communications, and eventually fully automated vehicles. This paper's thesis suggests that the complex highway transportation of the late 20th century and the 21st century can benefit from the collaboration of systems engineers and civil engineer