All-American Roads

To receive an All-American Road designation, a road must possess multiple Intrinsic Qualities that are nationally significant and contain one-of-a-kind features that do not exist elsewhere. The road or highway must also be considered a “destination unto itself.” In other words, the road must provide an exceptional traveling experience that travelers would make a drive along the highway a primary reason for their trip. Requirements for national scenic byways designation are summarized below:

State Designation
Any highway or road submitted for designation under the National Scenic Byways Program by state or federal agencies should be designated as a State scenic byway. However, roads that meet all criteria and requirements for National designation but not state or federal agencies’ designation criteria may be considered for national designation on a case-by-case basis. Any road nominated for the All-American Road designation will be considered to be a designated State scenic byway.

Vehicle Accommodation
A road or highway must safely and conveniently accommodate two-wheel-drive automobiles with standard clearances to be considered
for designation as an All-American Road.

Bikes & Pedestrians
Roads or highways considered for All-American Roads designations should accommodate, wherever feasible, bicycle and pedestrian travel.

Tour Bus Accommodation
To be considered for the All-American Roads designation, roads or highways should safely accommodate conventional tour buses.

Corridor Management Plan Submittal
A scenic byways Corridor Management Plan, prepared in accordance with Paragraph 9 of the Interim Policy for National Scenic Byways (published in the Federal Register on May 18, 1995), must be submitted in order for any road or highway to be considered for the All-American Road designation.

Corridor Management Plan Implementation
For All-American Roads, there must be a demonstration of the extent to which enforcement mechanisms are being implemented by communities along the highway in accordance with the Corridor Management Plan.

User Facilities
Before a road or highway is nominated for designation as an All-American Road, user facilities (e.g. overlooks, food services, etc.) should be available for travelers.

Continuity
An important criteria for All-American Roads is continuity. They should not have too many gaps but rather should be as continuous as possible and should minimize intrusions on the visitor’s experience.

All-American Road Criteria*
In order to be designated as an All-American Road, the road or highway must meet the criteria for at least two of the intrinsic qualities. The road or highway must also be considered a destination unto itself. To be recognized as such, it must provide an exceptional traveling experience that is so recognized by travelers that they would make a drive along the highway a primary reason for their trip. The characteristics associated with the intrinsic qualities are those which best represent the nation and which may contain one-of-a-kind features that do not exist elsewhere. The significance of the features contributing to the distinctive characteristics of the corridor’s intrinsic quality are recognized nationally.

* Source: Interim Policy for National Scenic Byways (published in the Federal Register on May 18, 1995)