Autoroutes of France in the context of Autoroute A1 (France)

A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or a translation for motorway, Autobahn, autostrada, autoroute, etc.

According to Merriam-Webster, the use of the term predates the 12th century. According to Etymonline, "high" is in the sense of "main".

A route nationale, or simply nationale, is a class of trunk road in France. They are important roads of national significance which cross broad portions of the French territory, in contrast to departmental or communal roads which serve more limited local areas.

Their use is free, except when crossing certain structures subject to a toll. They are open to all vehicles, except on certain sections having motorway (autoroute) or express road (voie express) status, both of these categories being reserved for motorized vehicles only.

The A75 is an autoroute (motorway) in France.

Known also as la Méridienne, it is a developmental project aiming to speed up, and reduce the cost of car travel from Paris to the south of France. Apart from the Millau Viaduct, it is free for the entire 335 km (208 mi) between Clermont-Ferrand and Béziers. It was not due to be finished until spring 2011, but was fully opened in December 2010. South of St. Flour there are views of the Garabit viaduct.

The Pont de Normandie (English: Normandy Bridge) is a cable-stayed road bridge that spans the river Seine linking Le Havre to Honfleur in Normandy, northern France. Its total length is 2,143.21 metres (7,032 ft) – 856 metres (2,808 ft) between the two piers. It is also the last bridge to cross the Seine before it empties into the ocean. It is a motorway toll bridge with a footpath and a narrow cycle lane in each direction allowing pedestrians and cyclists to cross the bridge free of charge, while motorcycling is also toll-free.

The A1 Autoroute, also autoroutes autoroute du Nord (the Northern Motorway), is the busiest of France's autoroutes and is part of an environmental zones.(See below) With a length of 211 km (131 mi), it connects Paris with the northern city of Lille. It is managed by the Société des Autoroutes du Nord et de l'Est de la France (SANEF). The autoroute serves the northern suburbs of Paris, including the Stade de France, Le Bourget, Paris' Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, and Parc Astérix. From there it crosses Hauts-de-France, without directly passing through any of the major cities of the région. Throughout Hauts-de-France, the A1 runs parallel to the LGV Nord.

Around 120 km (75 mi) from Paris, between the towns of Amiens and Saint-Quentin and near the Aire de service de Cœur des Hauts-de-France (the largest motorway plaza in Europe), the A1 crosses over the A29. A few dozen kilometers further north it forms the southern terminus of the A2, which branches off towards Brussels. The A1 is also crossed by the A26, the A21 and the A22, and it makes up part of European routes E15, E17, E19 and E42. in its northern terminus, the A1 turns into the A25.