Forest Highway


Forest Highways or Forest Routes are a category of roads within United States National Forests. They are built to connect the national forests to the existing state highway systems, and to provide improved access to recreational and logging areas.

Description

The federal statues define the term Forest Highway as "a forest road under the jurisdiction of, and maintained by, a public authority and open to public travel."
Forest highways are designated by the United States Forest Service and funded by the federal government, but are generally owned and maintained by the states or counties in which they are located. The forest highway system comprises approximately of roads. Forest highways are usually marked with markers of the style shown at right. To qualify for inclusion in the system, a roadway must "be wholly or partially within, or adjacent to, and serving the National Forest System" among other criteria.

History

In the 1920s, forest highway was a class of federal aid, and could be used outside forests, as long as the projects improved access to the forests.

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