[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 142 (Wednesday, July 23, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42893-42894]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-16886]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


America's Byways Public Awareness Initiative

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice; Request for Statement of Interest.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), cooperatively with 
the America's Byways Resource Center (ABRC) in Duluth, Minnesota, 
invites statements of interest about participating in a domestic, 
multi-year America's Byways[reg] Partnership Marketing Campaign. As 
part of this marketing campaign, the ABRC would like to partner with 
interested parties to establish a national Public Awareness Initiative 
to elevate the awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the 
America's Byways collection. This initiative offers an ideal 
environment for national partners with brand profiles consistent with 
the National Scenic Byways Program to spotlight their products while 
raising the awareness of America's Byways. This notice seeks Statements 
of Interest from parties, such as corporations, associations, nonprofit 
organizations, and public authorities, who are interested in working 
with ABRC and FHWA in the Partnership Marketing Campaign.

DATES: Statements of interest should be received on or before September 
22, 2008. However, statements received after this date may still be 
considered depending on available resources.

ADDRESSES: Mail or hand deliver statements of interest to the America's 
Byways Resource Center, 394 Lake Avenue South, Suite 600, Duluth, MN 
55802, or submit via e-mail to [email protected] or fax to (218) 
625-3333.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Henry Hanka, (218) 625-3306, Special 
Projects Manager, America's Byways Resource Center, 394 Lake Avenue 
South, Suite 600, Duluth, MN 55802, or Gary Jensen, (202) 366-2048, 
Office of Planning, Environment & Realty, HEP-2, Federal Highway 
Administration, Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, 
SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Electronic Access: An electronic copy of this document may be 
downloaded by accessing the Office of the Federal Register's home page 
at http://www.archives.gov and from the Government Printing Office's 
Web page at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara.
    Background: The National Scenic Byways Program was established 
under the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, and 
was reauthorized and amended most recently in 2005 under the Safe, 
Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy 
for Users (SAFETEA-LU). It is codified at Title 23, United States Code, 
section 162. Under the program, the Secretary of Transportation 
recognizes certain roads as National Scenic Byways or All-American 
Roads based on their intrinsic qualities--archaeological, cultural, 
historic, natural, recreational, and scenic qualities. There are 126 
such designated byways in 44 States which the FHWA promotes 
collectively as America's Byways[reg]. It is a program that recognizes 
and supports outstanding roads while providing resources to help manage 
the intrinsic qualities within the broader byway corridor. The vision 
of the FHWA's National Scenic Byways Program is to create a distinctive 
collection of American roads, their stories and treasured places. The 
program's mission is 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.
    Partnership Marketing Campaign: In 2005, Congress authorized ABRC 
to carry out public awareness activities for America's Byways. As a 
result, the ABRC developed a Partnership Marketing Campaign. Under this 
Campaign, the ABRC intends to partner

[[Page 42894]]

with interested parties to establish the strategic and creative 
framework for a national communications effort. The core objectives of 
this campaign are as follows:
     Increase awareness for America's Byways at the community, 
regional and national level among the general public and special 
interest groups.
     Build a greater understanding and appreciation for the 
America's Byways experience.
     Increase visitation and usage across the America's Byways 
Collection.
     Generate economic impact for the individual byway 
communities.
    The Campaign is designed to combine the shared commitment of the 
FHWA and ABRC with the expertise and resources of a broader range of 
public and private partners to integrate resources, execute a more 
extensive communications effort, and enter more markets with greater 
exposure. As part of this partnership, private and public sector 
partners may have opportunities to position their brands and products 
with the America's Byways[reg] brand in a joint marketing and 
communication environment. Such partners could include, but are not 
limited to, entities in the following areas: Automotive; hospitality/
hotels/rental cars; food service; retail; and outdoor recreation.
    Partner benefits may also include exposure through strategic 
partnerships that may reach a broader audience, while promoting 
protection and sustainability of the environment; and being seen as a 
leader in a national domestic tourism campaign.
    The FHWA and ABRC are considering various options for this 
initiative, but consistent with the direction from Longwoods Travel 
USA[reg] research, would look to start with national partners whose 
businesses especially link with the tourism categories of Touring/
Special Events and Outdoor Adventure. See: http://www.bywaysresourcecenter.org/resources/specialprojects/partnershipmarketing. Longwoods Travel USA[reg] concludes that these 
segments represent over 51 percent of trips by car, RV or motorcycle 
overnight travelers. The research also showed that the potential for 
new byway customers is great, with the number one item of importance in 
attracting new visitors is that more information and publicity is 
needed.
    Statements of Interest: This notice seeks interest from parties, 
such as corporations, associations, nonprofit organizations, and public 
authorities, who can, together with FHWA and ABRC, promote America's 
Byways. Statements of interest should include a basic business profile 
of the interested party, products offered, and a brief summary of 
current national communications and marketing scope. Based on responses 
to this notice and other information, the FHWA and the ABRC will work 
with selected interested parties to integrate their ideas into the 
national marketing strategy. The statements of interest will be used by 
FHWA and ABRC to evaluate which potential partners can assist us in 
attracting new visitors and gain more publicity consistent with our 
research. There is a level of uncertainty associated with planning 
against an unknown investment of funding and resources from potential 
partners. The FHWA and the ABRC are considering various options for 
this initiative, but would look to start with national partners whose 
businesses especially complement the America's Byways tourism 
categories of Touring/Special Events and Outdoor Adventure.
    Upon receipt of a statement of interest, the ABRC, in cooperation 
with FHWA, will confirm receipt of the statements of interest. Those 
parties determined by the ABRC, in cooperation with FHWA, to have the 
greatest potential to assist us in attracting new visitors and gain 
more publicity for America's Byways will then be contacted to discuss 
further their level of interest, available resources, existing and 
future communications efforts, and to discuss next steps.

    Issued on: July 15, 2008.
James D. Ray,
Acting Federal Highway Administrator.
 [FR Doc. E8-16886 Filed 7-22-08; 8:45 am]
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