A system of roadways, about 25,744 km (16,000 mi) long, extending from Alaska to Chile and linking the nations of the Western Hemisphere. the Pan-American Highway a road that goes all the way from Canada to Argentina, connecting North, Central, and South America. It is about 25,000 kilometres/16,000 miles long. International highway system connecting North and South America. Conceived in 1923 as a single route, the road grew to include a number of designated highways in participating countries, including the Inter-American Highway from Nuevo Laredo, Mex., to Panama City, Pan. The whole system, extending from Alaska and Canada to Chile, Argentina, and Brazil, totals nearly 30,000 mi (48,000 km). Only some 240 miles (400 km) in the Panama-Colombia border area remain uncompleted