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In the mid-1800s, when bicycles were the preferred vehicle for local transportation, the League of American Wheelmen (now League of American Bicyclists) pushed for paved roads so that cyclists and other road users could travel from town to town and from farm to market without mud and muck hindering their progress. This Good Roads Movement, founded by the League, later gave birth to the road transportation network that serves our economy and way of life today. While the automobile began replacing horse-and-buggies and bicycles as the preferred mode of transport, bicycles continued to see some use and have always had a place on the roads.
BIKE TRAVEL IS REBORN
The idea of building a network of routes for bike travel was introduced in a 1968 article that appeared in American Cycling magazine (“200,000 Miles of Bikeways to Become a Reality within Decade” (PDF, 2m). In the early 1970s, about the time that Bikecentennial (now known as Adventure Cycling Association) was born, people were traveling beyond their local neighborhoods to places across the country to “discover the real America.” (Learn more about Bikecentennial’s history.)
THE U.S. BICYCLE ROUTE SYSTEM VISION
Many countries across the world have been working for decades on creating connected bikeways. Networks already in existence in many European countries provide examples of what a finished U.S. Bicycle Route System might look like.
U.S. Bicycle Routes have existing since the 1980s when the American Association of State and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) became involved in designating U.S. Bicycle Routes. This influential organization has long been the go-to organization for road and highway designations and provides transportation agencies with guidelines that protect the safety and well-being of road users. In 1978, AASHTO formally recognized U.S. Bicycle Routes, and in 1982 two national routes were established: U.S. Bicycle Route 1 in Virginia and North Carolina, and U.S. Bicycle Route 76 in Virginia, Kentucky, and Illinois. (“Biking by Route Number” (PDF, 568k) AASHTO Quarterly, October 1982).
Despite the significant interest in long-distance bicycle travel and the establishment of the 40,974 mile Adventure Cycling Route Network, the U.S. Bicycle Routes System lay dormant, and no other routes were established.
AASHTO revived the vision, and a Task Force for U.S. Bicycle Routes was established in 2003. Adventure Cycling Association offered staff support in 2005, and from there, things really took off. The initial vision was to establish a corridor-level map for states to use as a reference for planning interstate bicycle routes.
The first step was to inventory existing and potential bike routes and trails (PDF, 784k) at the state level (read the inventory report, PDF 4.3m). This provided the first layer of information. From there, corridors were developed with input from numerous agencies and organizations. (Check out how the plan developed, PDF, 2.3m.)
CURRENT EFFORTS
The National Corridor Plan was approved by AASHTO’s board of directors in October 2008. Using the plan as a starting point, Adventure Cycling is now working state by state to build awareness, help prioritize corridors and define potential routes. Check out the Corridor Plan to see what's happening in your state.
You can learn more about progress by visiting the USBRS Discussion Forums. To learn how you might be involved visit our Get Involved page or email Ginny Sullivan, Adventure Cycling's special projects director, at
SUPPORT THE U.S. BICYCLE ROUTE SYSTEM
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