Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA
COLLEGE OF FORESTRY AND CONSERVATION
MISSOULA,MT 59812
Performing Department
College of Forestry and Conservation
Non Technical Summary
The Beartooth Highway (US hwy 212) is a 68 mile travel corridor that stretches from Red Lodge, Montana to the Northeast entrance of Yellowstone National Park through Cooke City, Montana. A 54-mile segment of this road was designated as The Beartooth All-American Road beginning eight miles south of Red Lodge, Montana and ending slightly east of Cooke City, Montana. The communities of Red Lodge and Cooke City are the anchor communities on each end of the Beartooth Highway. Cody, Wyoming is the third gateway/anchor community accessing the Beartooth Highway via Wyoming Hwy 296, better known as the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (Wayfinding on the Beartooth All-American Road, 2010). All American Roads and scenic by-ways have provided enjoyment to visitors as well as economic opportunities to communities along the highways. Travelers will be intercepted at three locations as they exit the Beartooth All-American highway, and given a postage-paid mailback survey which will assess expenditures made along the highway and their image and satisfaction with this scenic highway. This research will assess the economic impact of the Beartooth Highway, including the gateway communities of Cody, Wyoming, and Red Lodge and Cooke City, Montana. This study will provide the needed information about the economic impact of the Beartooth Highway to assist the States of Montana and Wyoming, as well as Yellowstone National Park in understanding the relevance of the highway to their respective jurisdictions.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The purpose of this study is to analyze the economic impact of the Beartooth Highway including the gateway communities of Red Lodge and Cooke City, MT and Cody, WY. Currently there has not been an accurate representation of the impact the highway has on the region. The economic impact study will provide the communities with reliable information to make informed decisions pertaining to the Beartooth Highway. This information can provide tools for highway funding, gateway community marketing, and business development. Economic Impact of the Beartooth Highway Objectives: To assess the economic impact of the Beartooth Highway on the gateway communities of Red Lodge and Cooke City, MT and Cody, WY; To provide an accurate estimation of gross number of travelers using the highway through the summer and winter seasons; To analyze the direct, indirect, and induced impacts and employment causation for the regional economy through the IMPLAN I/O model software; To assess traveler characteristics on the Beartooth highway including demographics, residency, activities, and travel patterns in the region.
Project Methods
The 68-mile Beartooth Highway from the Northeast entrance/exit of Yellowstone National Park to the Custer National Forest boundary on Highway 212 south of Red Lodge, MT is the highway study area. Travelers will be intercepted and asked a few questions as they leave the Beartooth highway at all of the above named locations. At the Yellowstone National Park Northeast entrance visitors will be stopped immediately after paying their entrance fee. All vehicles (other than government or commercial vehicles) will be flagged over to the side of the road and asked a few up-front questions and given a questionnaire to complete and mail back to ITRR at their convenience. The ITRR surveyor will be instructed to wave through all vehicles behind the one that is stopped to avoid any traffic congestion. This intercept site will occur throughout the study period (summer and winter). Three miles south of the junction of the Beartooth highway and Wyoming highway 296, all vehicles on hwy 296 (other than government or commercial vehicles) will be flagged over into a one-lane historic site roadway, asked a few up-front questions, then given a questionnaire to complete and mail back to ITRR at their convenience. If more than three vehicles have been flagged to stop, all others will be waved through to avoid any traffic back up and for safety concerns for the flagger and surveyor. This intercept site will occur throughout the study period (summer and winter). At the Red Lodge exit of the Beartooth Highway, visitors will be flagged into the Vista Point parking area, asked a few up-front questions, then given a questionnaire to the traveler to complete and mail back to ITRR at their convenience. If more than one vehicle is being intercepted, all others will be waved through to avoid any traffic back up and for safety concerns for the flagger and surveyor. This intercept site will occur only during the summer study period.