House advances bill to restart National Scenic Byways Program

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The U.S. House of Representatives advanced legislation Wednesday that would revive the National Scenic Byways program and, according to sponsor U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), boost Rhode Island’s economy.

The National Scenic Byways program began in 1991 under the Department of Transportation, designating 150 roads under the National Scenic Byway title. However, four states never received any of the economic benefits of these designations, having never received a scenic byway title of their own: Hawaii, Nebraska, Texas and Rhode Island. The new bill would give those states new opportunities to compete for such designations.

“As Rhode Islanders know, our state is home to some of the most beautiful scenic byways in the country,” Cicilline said. “This bipartisan bill will allow us to capitalize on our state’s natural beauty and generate millions of dollars in new economic activity. I’m pleased that this bill passed the House today and I look forward to seeing it signed into law.”

To compete for designations, roadways must possess one of six qualities: scenic quality, natural quality, historic quality, cultural quality, archaeological quality, or recreational quality. A plan must be submitted to conserve and enhance those qualities as well. Unfortunately, the program has been without funding since 2012.

The bill was introduced jointly by Cicilline and U.S. Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA). It has already been taken up by the Senate, where it was introduced by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).