Perhaps one of the most spectacular examples of retrofuturism is the animated documentary Magic Highway, U.S.A. (Ward Kimball, 1958). Originally commissioned by Disney, it attempts to explain the importance of highways to the development of society, and to do that they showed all sorts of advancements that “will be seen in the highways of a near future.” They were right about some, but others… not so much.
Among other things, it discussed the fact that, due to the high speeds at which the cars of the future would travel, larger, more visible traffic signs (something akin to current LED screens) would be needed, and they would include traffic information and informational bulletins – something that already exists, in addition to what we find on billboards and smartphones, or the screen in the car itself. In the documentary’s prediction, highways would be lit up by “smart lights,” something that is already being experimented with in Norway: streetlights that only turn on when cars are traveling along their paths.
The movie talks about highway surfaces including a heating system for winter to melt ice, something that has also already become a reality. And not even Disney or Kimball would have dreamed about materials such as self-repairing asphalt that, thanks to its steel wool fibers, can prolong its life by being heated by induction (without contact).