Green Mountain Byway

A Vision for the Green Mountain Byway

The establishment of a Vermont Byway represents a significant resource management, cultural heritage, and economic development initiative for this area of Vermont. According to State and National Byway Programs, the road must exhibit at least one of six intrinsic categories in order to be considered a byway. These categories include historic, archaeological, cultural, natural, scenic, and recreational. Each of these intrinsic qualities is represented along the Byway corridor. Please visit our website at Green Mountain Byway/VT.com for more information, pictures, an interactive web map, and abundant information about this corridor!

The vision for the Green Mountain Byway is centered on a balance between the conservation of valued scenic and cultural resources with the community’s social and economic well-being. This corridor represents quintessential Vermont due to its combination of landscape, legacy, and sense of community in six historic towns where people live, learn, work, recreate, and enjoy a high quality of life. This quality is not necessarily defined in material wealth, but in the wealth that is represented in the families, neighbors, villages, and natural beauty that are so distinctly appreciated and so directly incorporated into the local identity. This sense of place is shared by both residents and visitors.

The Green Mountain Byway stretches from Route 100 in southernmost Waterbury to Morristown in the north and continues along Routes 100C and 15 to include the Lamoille County towns of Cambridge, Hyde Park, and Johnson

For the latest update on the Green Mountain Byway Plan click HERE.

What is a "Byway"?

Inspired by the American penchant for history, travel, and recreation, the U.S. Congress created the National Scenic Byways Program in 1991, to help identify, designate, and promote scenic byways and to protect and enhance the recreational, scenic, historic, and cultural qualities of the areas through which these byways pass. Since 1992, the National Scenic Byways Program has designated over 150 roads and funded thousands of projects for state and nationally designated byway routes in 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia.

The National Byways program gives states freedom to define their own ways of participating in the national effort, and Vermont has tailored a byways program that meets the needs and circumstances unique to its character. The Vermont Byways Program emphasizes the state’s need to make transportation investments to strengthen the economy while also managing and protecting community character. The State program establishes a process to integrate growth management, economic development, and transportation investments, and creates a framework for different interest groups to reach corridor-wide strategies that balance their diverse issues.

Roads in Vermont play an integral role in the state’s economy, its heritage, its character, and in the everyday lives of citizens, but they represent a challenging public asset to manage, given that roads must serve the needs of a broad and diverse set of users. Thus, the Vermont Byways Program seeks to meet the needs of all users that exist along a roadway, while still maintaining the valuable resources that make Vermont such a vibrant and unique place to live.

It is important to note that the development of a Byway is not intended to affect or influence regulatory review processes. The byway is part of a non-regulatory program that creates no new permit processes. A byway may not impinge on or impact private properties or activities. It provides the constituents of the community and the region with an opportunity to create partnerships and initiatives, which facilitate the long-term management and development of the corridor in a manner that is consistent with their vision and goals.