Guest Column: Who is traveling on the Mother Road?

During my morning Internet readings recently, an article detailing the demographics of tourists traveling Route 66 popped up. The study was funded by Rutgers University, New Jersey State University, National Park Service and the American Express Foundation. The information in the study could be useful to everyone associated with Route 66, which extends from Chicago, Ill. to Santa Monica, Calif. Even though the Hopi and Navajo Lands are not traversed by the Mother Road, they are very close and many "66" travelers will peel off into romantic Native Lands in search of insight and souvenirs from a culture largely unknown to them. Route 66 has evolved over time from connected state roads to an Interstate Route today.

In our area "66" was preceded by the establishment of a government funded wagon road along the 35 Parallel in 1857. The road was surveyed by Lt. Beale of the Army Corps who also tested the feasibility of using camels as pack animals in this arid climate. It became known as the Beale Wagon Road and is still marked in places near Winslow today. Before states numbered their roads, private organizations created maps of named Auto Trails. Some of the sections were: Lone Star Route, National Old Trails Road, Ozark Trails and The Postal Highway. As one of the original highways in the U.S. Highway System, Route 66 was established on Nov. 11, 1926. The road originally known as Will Rodgers Highway, Main Street of America and Mother Road, stretches for 2,448 miles and was a major pathway for people traveling west during the Dust Bowl Days of the 1930s.

Today many parts of "66" are bypassed by interstate highways but much of it remains, and is being reestablished as a historic travel route. In Arizona today, much of the old route can be accessed and is a travel destination known throughout the world. The continuing development of the entire Route 66 as a National Historic Route as well as Historic State Routes is ongoing and has made significant progress in obtaining Federal recognitions. Of people traveling Route 66 today, 97 percent are of Western European decent.

More of the survey results - 71 percent of Route 66 travelers are married, 10 percent never married and 14 percent are divorced, widowed or separated. Most "66" travelers are middle-aged with 46 percent being 60 or older. Sixty-one percent come from a two-member household, 14 percent came from one-member households and 3 percent were from large households. About 30 percent of "Mother Road" travelers are college educated to some degree, another 30 percent having been involved in college graduate work. About 40 percent of "Mother Road" travelers are retired. As far as employment goes, 36 percent are in "management" or "professional" categories and 20 percent are in sales, transportation or maintenance. Route 66 travelers have a median yearly income of $62,000 with 25 percent earning $100,000 or more and 8 percent earning less than $25,000 per year. Based on the 2000 Census, the average traveler on the Mother Road is more likely to be retired and have a higher income than the average person living on the "66" corridor. (Which is good news for corridor residents who provide information, tours, jewelry, food and lodging for tourists exploring historic Route 66 and environs.)

For $25 a year you can be a member of Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Membership allows you to participate promotion of Route 66 in your area and provides you with grant options and assistance with your development goals. For more information, visit

www.azrt66.com.

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