Freeways were never meant to bisect cities.

Interestingly, during construction, President Eisenhower was said to be surprised when he discovered that the interstates were penetrating the central cities; supposedly, he thought they were simply linking up cities for long-distance travel but not being used to solve the traffic woes of urban areas.*

This really illustrates the disconnect President Eisenhower had. The president operated around basic principals, ideologies, and goals, but tended to delegate a great deal of authority and decision making when it came to many details. Today, we know that this kind of leadership structure leaves the political system vulnerable to corruption and counterproductive lobbying efforts.

*The Interstates and the Cities:Highways, Housing, and the Freeway Revolt, a research report by Raymond A. Mohl of the Department of History at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Page 21, last paragraph.