With support from their State Scenic Byways Coordinator, local citizens nominate roads for possible designation by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation as a National Scenic Byway or All-American Road. Careful thought and a significant amount of effort goes into each nomination. Stakeholders in the effort need to know what benefits could result from the designation and what their responsibilities are when they become part of the collection of America's Byways®.
Benefits of designation have been characterized as the 4 P's: promotion, preservation, partnerships and pride. Along with those benefits are responsibilities taken on by byway groups and by the program that combine to build a strong byway community.
Promotion
America's Byways® serves as the umbrella for recognizing and promoting National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Scenic Byways Program (NSBP) promotes the collection with the America's Byways map, on FHWA's traveler Web site at www.byways.org, and through public and private cooperative projects. The promotion of the America's Byways® brand and logo increases visitor recognition of the program and encourages travelers to include byways in their trip plans.
Preservation
Preserving the Intrinsic Quality(s) of a byway is essential to its integrity and sustainability. Byways create legacies and offer opportunities to preserve special places. It is those qualities and places that residents love and that draw visitors. In this way, preservation has a strong connection with promotion.
A byway may have a building or structure associated with an historic event or unique to a particular group of people and their way of life. It might have a natural resource or scenic vista integral to the byway's Intrinsic Quality(s). There may be opportunities for special outdoor recreation within view of the road.
Whatever it may be, preserving the Intrinsic Quality(s) is preserving the very essence of the byway. It sustains the resource for generations to come.
Partnerships
Even before nomination or designation, citizens and key stakeholders are engaged to create and foster a byway vision. Partnerships, both formal and informal, are needed to begin and sustain a byway.
Many partners bring new resources to the table through their knowledge of the area, expertise, personal commitment and access to public or private funding sources. National designation offers the opportunity to expand partnerships well beyond local or state boundaries.
FHWA's National Scenic Byways Program staff members manage the nomination process and federal grant applications, including those for Seed Grants. Staff members maintain close contact with State Byway Coordinators and FHWA Division Representatives. They also produce and distribute marketing messages and publications.
The America's Byways Resource Center (ABRC) provides technical assistance and education directly to designated National Scenic Byways. The ABRC produces technical publications, the Vistas newsletter and the Byway Leader Tele-Workshops. Staff members respond to requests for on-site assistance and problem solving.
The National Scenic Byways Online (NSBO) team maintains both the byway traveler (byways.org) and the byway community (bywaysonline.org) Web sites. These Web sites are primary communication tools with travelers, media and the byway community.
Together, the ABRC and FHWA sponsor the National Scenic Byway Conference where the byway community meets to network, build partnerships, learn and share information.
Pride
A National Scenic Byway or All-American Road designation can instill a greater sense of awareness and pride among citizens. Neighbors learn and share with one another. People work with each other to identify the resources that the community believes form the basis of the story of the byway.
Byways attract volunteers who may help clear a trail, repair or restore a building, participate in planning, or advance the overall interest of the byway in the community. The byway itself may become the connecting force between communities along a route.
Seeking and receiving national designation often heightens local pride. The byway is noted on the America's Byways map and logo signs along the route build a shared identity. The byway becomes part of the national collection. It is one of America's Byways.
Responsibility
Being part of the national collection of America's Byways brings each byway into a common effort with each other and with the National Scenic Byways Program.
The responsibilities of the program lie in its mission "to provide resources to the byway community in creating a unique travel experience and enhanced local quality of life through efforts to preserve, protect, interpret and promote the intrinsic qualities of designated byways." Staff members are attentive to the changing needs of byways and are proactive in their efforts to provide technical resources and assistance. Communication and networking is intentional and promotion is strategic. The program is accountable to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, the byways community and byway travelers.
Byway responsibilities lie both in their individual missions and in the efforts of the national program. Byway leaders are responsive to their local communities and the travelers they welcome. As members of the America's Byways collection, they are also accountable to each other and to the FHWA and the ABRC to maintain the integrity of the program. Communication and sharing knowledge are keys to sustained success.
A distinctive collection of American roads, their stories and treasured places
It sounds like a big deal, and it is. It takes significant consideration and effort to submit a nomination and receive designation. Once a byway is part of the collection, people will notice. Efforts to promote and preserve Intrinsic Qualities will build local and national pride. Partnerships will be built and strengthened. The responsibility taken on will be worth the effort and pave the way to the National Scenic Byways Program vision to create a distinctive collection of American roads, their stories and treasured places.
