In recent years, Beach Road, the main road on Saipan, was paved to a maximum width of 52 feet over several sections. It has been extended to a total length of about 9 miles. The airport access road has also been paved by overlaying the older pavement built by the Navy during the late 1950's. The remaining primary paved roads are those built by the Navy, which total about 25 miles in length. During the last several years, the Commonwealth has reconstructed and paved about 33 miles of major roadways and about 36 miles of local streets.
Additional construction is scheduled throughout the islands.
The major thoroughfares of Saipan, particularly the primary highways of Beach Road from Garapan south to Chalan Kanoa, and Middle Road are becoming increasingly congested. Average daily traffic on Beach Road in the vicinity of Susupe exceeds 27,000 vehicle trips. To assist in handling the congestion, five traffic lights, the first in the CNMI, were installed on Beach Road and Middle Road in 1993-94 and are now operational. Additional traffic lights are expected to be added over the next two years. Saipan International Airport is the air gateway to the CNMI and serves as the primary airport.