Miscellaneous guide signs that indicate river names, county lines and time zone boundaries may be used if they do not interfere with other more important signing. City limits, mountain elevations or other boundaries (e.g., the limits of forests, refuges, jurisdictions, etc.) will not be signed.

Authority: T.C.A. § 54-5-108(b). Administrative History: Original rule filed January 10, 1992; effective February 24, 1992. Repeal and new rule renumbered from 1680-3-44-.07 filed April 12, 2002; effective August 28, 2002. 1680-03-02-08 TABLE A-1. CRITERIA FOR SIGNING TRAFFIC GENERATORS ON FREEWAYS AND EXPRESSWAYS. Type of Traffic Generator Specific Eligibility Criteria Urban Area1 Rural Area1 RULES FOR GUIDE SIGNS ON FREEWAYS, EXPRESSWAYS AND CONVENTIONAL HIGHWAYS Airports10 Minimum Number of Commercial Passengers Daily 5,000/day 3,000/day (Prime Criterion) Maximum Distance from Interchange Nearest Nearest (By Road) interchange interchange Distance from Interchange Up to 10 mi. Up to 10 mi. For Optional Trailblazer Signs (By Road) Universities, Colleges, Minimum Total Enrollment- Junior Full & Part-time Students 1,0002 1,0002 Colleges/Community (Prime Criterion) Colleges, State Technology Centers, Must be listed as an institution of State higher learning on Tennessee Higher Vocational/Technical Education Commission website, or Schools, and state- must be a state-operated special operated special schools2 school 10 miles2 10 miles2 Maximum Distance from Interchange (By Road) 600 400 No. of dedicated parking spaces Military Bases Minimum Number of Employees & Military Personnel 5,000 5,000 (Prime Criterion) Maximum Distance from Interchange 7 miles3 7 miles3 (By Road) Arenas/Stadiums Minimum Annual Attendance Auditoriums (Prime Criterion) 300,000 200,000 Convention Halls Dams Major Recreation Sites: Maximum Distance from Interchange 5 miles4 5 miles4 Fairgrounds, Zoos, (By Road) Amusement Parks National Parks, Must be listed on U.S. Dept. of Monuments, Memorials, Interior, National Park Service Historical Parks, website Recreation Areas, Nearest Nearest Parkways, Maximum Distance from Interchange interchange interchange Battlefields/Military (By Road) Parks5 RULES FOR GUIDE SIGNS ON FREEWAYS, EXPRESSWAYS AND CONVENTIONAL HIGHWAYS State Veterans’ Must be listed as a State Veterans’ Cemeteries Cemetery on Tenn. Dept. of Veterans and National Cemeteries5 Affairs website or as a National Cemetery on the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs website or the U.S. Dept. of Interior, National Park Nearest Nearest Service website interchange Interchange Maximum Distance from Interchange (By Road) State and National Must be listed as a State-owned Historic Sites historic site on Tenn. Dept. of Environment and Conservation, Tennessee Historic Commission website or as a National Historic Site owned by the Federal government and listed on U.S. Dept. of Interior, National Park Service website 10 miles 10 miles Maximum Distance from Interchange (By Road) State Wildlife Must be open year-round Management Areas, Wildlife Refuges & State Minimum Annual Attendance 6,000 6,000 Lakes6 (Prime Criterion) Maximum Distance from Interchange 10 miles 10 miles (By Road) Cultural Interest Areas: Minimum Annual Attendance 300,0007 200,0007 Museums, Art Galleries, (Prime Criterion) Historic Sites Must be open to the general public, and the primary purpose of the facility must be as a cultural interest area (museum, art gallery or historic site) Historic sites must be listed on the U.S. Dept. of Interior, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places website 5 miles8 5 miles8 Maximum Distance from Interchange (By Road) RULES FOR GUIDE SIGNS ON FREEWAYS, EXPRESSWAYS AND CONVENTIONAL HIGHWAYS Comprehensive Regional Administrator of facility must verify in Pediatric Centers9 writing that the facility is designated as a Comprehensive Regional Pediatric Center under Tenn. Dept. of Health regulations 5 miles 5 miles Maximum Distance from Interchange (By Road) Veterans Administration Must be listed as a VA Medical Medical Centers9 Center on the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs website Nearest Nearest Maximum Distance from Interchange interchange interchange (By Road) Table 1-A Footnotes 1 Urban Area: Population of 100,000 or greater in most recent federal decennial census. Rural Area: Population of less than 100,000 in most recent federal decennial census. 2 Pursuant to T.C.A. § 54-5-708, the Department is given a discretionary duty to implement a directional signing program for institutions of higher learning, state technology centers and state-operated special schools throughout the State. To be considered for such signing, an institution must be identified by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (listed on THEC webpage) as a public university, a public community college, a Tennessee Technology Center, or an independent college or university within the State of Tennessee, or the institution must be a state-operated special school, and the institution must have a minimum enrollment of 1,000 full-time and part-time students; provided, that a state- operated/public community college may be signed if it is within 19 miles (by road) of an interchange, and the minimum enrollment requirement does not apply to Tennessee Technology Centers or state- operated special schools. For institutions having multiple campuses, the minimum enrollment requirement must be met by each specific campus for which signing is requested. 3 The maximum distance from the interchange (by road) may be increased by one mile for each 10% over the minimum number of employees and military personnel required. 4 The maximum distance from the interchange (by road) may be increased by one mile for each additional 20,000 persons attending annually over the minimum annual attendance required. 5 A National Battlefield/Military Park and National Cemetery at the same location may be signed together on one supplemental guide sign. 6 Pursuant to T.C.A. § 54-5-709(b), the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency shall reimburse the Department of Transportation for the cost of installing such supplemental guide signs. 7 The minimum annual attendance may be reduced to 60,000 for urban areas and 40,000 for rural areas if the following conditions are met:  The local government of the municipality or county where the facility is located has endorsed the facility in writing to the Department as being culturally significant to the community; and  The Department must determine, in its engineering judgment, that signing is essential for RULES FOR GUIDE SIGNS ON FREEWAYS, EXPRESSWAYS AND CONVENTIONAL HIGHWAYS proper motorist guidance. 8 The maximum distance from the interchange (by road) may be increased by one mile for each additional 20,000 persons attending annually over the minimum annual attendance required. 9 The facility will be signed, if possible, at the nearest freeway or expressway interchange as measured in travel time to the facility under average daytime traffic conditions. The local government having jurisdiction over the local streets or roads between the interchange and the facility shall be responsible for installing and maintaining trailblazer signs on those local streets or roads as may be necessary to provide directions to the facility. These local trailblazer signs must be in place prior to the installation of a supplemental guide sign at the interchange of a freeway or expressway. 10 Pursuant to T.C.A. § 54-5-710, general aviation airports located not more than 10 miles from a freeway may be signed; provided that the facility has at least a six-thousand foot (6,000’) runway with at least two thousand three hundred feet (2,300’) of approach lead in strobe lights; has at least fifty-eight (58) hangars; complies with all federal design/safety standards; has an instrument landing system with distance measuring equipment (ILS/DME); serves as the prime staging area for regional disaster preparedness and relief; and provides full-time trauma hospital flight access service. Authority: T.C.A. §§ 54-5-108(b); 54-5-704 through 54-5-710. Administrative History: Original rule filed January 10, 1992; effective February 24, 1992. Repeal and new rule renumbered from 1680-3-44- .08 filed April 12, 2002; effective August 28, 2002. Repeal and new rule filed March 11, 2005; effective July 29, 2005. Repeal and new rule filed June 20, 2012; effective November 28, 2012.