Gov. Evers, WisDOT Release 2025 Rustic Roads Guide, Celebrate 50th Year of First Rustic Road

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT), today announced the publication of the new 2025 Rustic Roads Guide. The latest edition features backroad trips on 126 Rustic Roads and highlights the 50th anniversary of the first Rustic Road designation in Taylor County.

“Starting with our first Rustic Road in Taylor County, for the past 50 years, this unique program has provided Wisconsinites and visitors alike opportunities to explore beautiful places across the state and support local businesses as they travel,” said Gov. Evers. “We will continue to invest in local road improvements to help ensure folks can travel from point A to point B safely and bolster our state’s thriving travel and tourism economy, as well as the small businesses and rural communities that visitors and Wisconsinites know and love. I am proud to celebrate the 50th anniversary, and I look forward to the next 50 years of this program.”

Rustic Roads is one of WisDOT’s oldest programs. For half a century, the Rustic Roads program has helped grow Wisconsin’s economy by encouraging Wisconsinites to visit communities across the state. The program began in Taylor County in 1975 and now features approximately 760 miles of scenic, lightly traveled country roads through 61 counties. Unique brown and yellow signs mark the routes of all officially designated rustic roads, which range from two miles to 37 miles in length and have a maximum speed limit of 45 miles per hour.

“It’s amazing to see how this program has grown and evolved since the first Rustic Road was designated 50 years ago,” said WisDOT Secretary Kristina Boardman. “This unique local-state partnership provides an enjoyable experience for people of all abilities, and WisDOT is thankful for the ongoing efforts to make this program so strong.”

Since Day One, Gov. Evers and his administration have made it a priority to invest in improvements to local roads, bridges, and infrastructure and bolster the travel and tourism industry, which both are major economic drivers for the state. Since 2019, the Evers Administration and WisDOT have improved more than 8,600 miles of roads and more than 2,000 bridges, making travel safer and more efficient across Wisconsin.

The 2025 Rustic Roads Guide also features the Scenic Byways Program, which highlights non-interstate highways primarily along Wisconsin waterways, allowing travelers to explore more of the state’s beauty, recreation, and cultural or historic attributes.

“Rustic Roads in Wisconsin continue to be popular destinations in all seasons,” said Wisconsin Department of Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers. “This guide is the perfect starting point for making memories exploring the friendly communities and natural beauty Wisconsin is known for today and for the next 50 years to come.”

Rustic Roads help contribute to Wisconsin’s thriving travel and tourism industry, particularly in the state’s rural communities. While 2024 economic impact data will be released in the coming days, in 2023, Wisconsin’s tourism industry saw a $25 billion total economic impact, an increase of 5.4 percent from the previous year, welcomed 113 million visits—nearly two million more than the previous year, and saw the highest-ever overnight visits, with nearly 46 million overnight visits in 2023. This is the second consecutive year of record-breaking overnight visitation. In total, in 2023, all 72 Wisconsin counties saw economic impact growth, and the industry supported more than 178,000 part-time and full-time jobs across various sectors, which is an increase of two percent, and generated $1.6 billion in state and local tax revenue, up 5.8 percent from 2022.

For a free copy of the 2025 edition of Wisconsin Rustic Roads, visit https://www.travelwisconsin.com/order-guides or call 1-800-432-8747.

Additional information about the Rustic Roads Program and the nomination process is available here.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.