Why has the Santa Monica Pier always been the traditional end of Route 66? It makes sense. Since it was built in 1916, the pier has been a place of celebration with a sensational backdrop of the Pacific Ocean sprawling endlessly over the horizon. After traveling 2,448 miles to complete the Mother Road, this definitely seems like ‘the end of the trail’. For sure, it’s a more dramatic and fitting end to the Mother Road than a rather nondescript city street intersection.