Nature Trails and Mixed Routes - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 83

late 1800s and early 1900s, the increase in national roads in the 1930s-1940s,
and the rise of the interstate highway system in the mid-1950s were the
main impetuses of car-based travel in the US (Ioannides & Timothy, 2011;
Timothy, 2011b; Zierer, 1952). By the 1960s, road trips were already a central
part of domestic US tourism and favored particularly by the growing middle
class. This historic trend was accented by the initiation of the National
Scenic Byways Programme (NSBP).
The NSBP was established in 1991 under the Intermodal Surface
Transportation Efficiency Act and reauthorized in 1998 with the Trans-
portation Equity Act for the 21st Century (Draper & Petty, 2001). Under this
program, which is administered by the Federal Highway Administration, the
US Secretary of Transportation identifies selected roads and highways as
National Scenic Byways or All-American Roads, based on their archaeologi-
cal, cultural, historic, natural, scenic and recreational characteristics (Draper
& Petty, 2001; Kent, 1993; Lew, 1991). National Scenic Byways must exem-
plify one of these characteristics, but to be designated an All-American Road,
a corridor must demonstrate at least two of these criteria that underscore a
region's archaeological evidence, expressions of customs and traditions, lega-
cies of the past connected to physical landscapes, relatively undisturbed
visual environments, available outdoor recreational activities, or landscapes
that provide heightened visual experiences (Eby & Molnar, 2002: 96).
Currently there are 151 appointed Scenic Byways and All-American
Roads in 46 states within the NSBP (US Department of Transportation,
2013) (Figure 3.8). Other agencies have established scenic byways programs
parallel to that of the NSBP. Some states do not participate in the national
system, but instead have their own byways programs (e.g. Hawaii and
Texas). As well, the US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the
Figure 3.8 A scenic byway marker in the US Southwest