Magical History Tour: The AASHTO Convoy Arrives in Washington!

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- The Celebrate the Interstate! coast- to-coast convoy, en route to Washington, D.C. from San Francisco since June 16, will roll into the nation's capital tomorrow morning from its last overnight stop in Frederick, Maryland. There will be three events worthy of your coverage:

  * The closing day of a future-of-the-Interstate policy conference
    sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and
    Transportation Officials (AASHTO, your state transportation departments)
    at the Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. in downtown
    Washington, which begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at noon;

  * The last leg of the 20-vehicle convoy's journey and arrival in
    Washington, where the 40+ participants will go to the Amphitheater at
    the Reagan Building (same address as above) at noon for a 12:30 p.m. -
    1:30 p.m. arrival ceremony.  U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y.
    Mineta is expected to speak. (Note: this part of the day's activities
    was originally slated for the Ellipse, and was moved indoors due to
    inclement weather.)

  * After the ceremony, participants will be invited to re-board the convoy
    buses for a trip to RFK Stadium where an afternoon-long Innovative
    Mobility Showcase (vehicles "talk to the road" and vice-versa) will
    begin with a news conference at 2:30 p.m.  The press and public are
    invited to see a technology 5-10 years in our future that lets drivers
    get safety warnings and real-time traffic information wirelessly.

The Reagan Center is a high-security Federal building; be sure to bring photo ID for admittance, and press entry will be facilitated if you place your name on a list to be provided to security personnel at the Pennsylvania Ave. front entrance. To be placed on the list, or for more information about the 50th Anniversary of the Interstate system, contact Jennifer Gavin of AASHTO at (301) 237-2342 (cell).

Celebrate the Interstate!