$6 Million Grant Awarded To Oklahoma For Improvements Along Route 66

The state just awarded $6 million in grant money to communities looking to create projects long Route 66.

When people travel along Route 66, they want places to see and things to do. This recent state funding will help bolster what the Sooner State and the Mother Road have to offer.

A stretch of 11th Street in Tulsa is pretty famous. That's why it's not surprising to find tourists here all the way from Portugal.

"It's quite unique the fact that you got the center of universe that again we watched that on Tulsa King the series," said Jorge, one tourist.

Ken Busby with the Route 66 Alliance is always excited to see new faces come through Tulsa.

Busby said there will soon be more to experience. Grant money worth $6.3 million from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce is giving places like Tulsa and other towns in the state a chance to improve their stretch of the historic highway.

"It's really allowing communities to showcase their best assets, to improve something they wanted to improve, add a neon sign here, a roadside attraction there," Busby explained.

The Alliance is using just under $50,000 to develop a new map for travelers as they come in to the state.

"It's a design inspired map so that you get to see some of the cool places that you're going to visit, learn some history about them," Busby said.

He said the map will be ready for the centennial in two years, for travelers like Jorge.

If you or your community have a project along Route 66 that you'd like to see funded, there is a second round of grant money coming up. The deadline to apply for that is July 19.