Route 66 sees neon-fueled resurgence in Tulsa ahead of centennial

TULSA, OK – As Route 66 prepares to celebrate 100 years since its creation, the Route 66 Commission in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is already looking ahead to the next century.

When the sun goes down in Tulsa, bright neon signs light up the historic highway along the city’s 28-mile stretch of Route 66.

Michael Wallis, founder of the Route 66 Alliance and known as the voice of the Sheriff in the Disney-Pixar movie “Cars,” has spent years driving, studying and exploring Route 66.

“We think of it as this winding museum,” he tells FOX from his Tulsa home, just a block from the Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza. “This is the home of Cyrus Stevens Avery, the Father of Route 66.” 

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Route 66 is known around the world as the “Main Street of America,” highlighting an integral part of westward expansion in U.S. history.

“It’s a way of really going deep into America, and getting to know the heart of it,” Spanish traveler Ignacio Casares said while driving the route with a group of friends in a rented RV.

In the second half of the 20th century, the interstate system expanded across the US. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials later voted to remove Route 66 from the national highway system.

Wallis said he wanted to help inspire a new future for Tulsa’s section of Route 66.

“I knew the road was still there, more than 85% of it, you can still drive. So I was wary of hearing that in the past tense,” Wallis said. 

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But several businesses along Tulsa’s stretch of the historic route struggled after the highway was decommissioned.

“When I was born, this was an area in Tulsa that most Tulsans weren’t proud of,” said Julia Figueroa, store manager at Buck Atom’s Cosmic Curios.

Figueroa’s shop is one of the most eclectic and vibrant stops along Route 66 in Tulsa, located in the Meadow Gold District. The owner brought in giant fiberglass statues to help attract visitors to the area.

To draw more visitors, the Tulsa Route 66 Commission launched a matching grant program for businesses.

“We formed a neon sign grant,” said Ken Busby, chair of the Tulsa Route 66 Commission.

The grant helped businesses buy new neon signs or restore old ones for advertising.

“Neon was the first — was the first advertising on the road,” Busby said. “And that’s how drivers going across this little two-lane road across America found a vacancy, a restaurant or whatever.”

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Busby said there are now 84 neon signs along Tulsa’s 28 miles of Route 66.

“You just see all these neon signs popping up, and you’re just like in a big city of neon,” he said.

Many locals told FOX they love the neon signs, while businesses are looking toward a brighter future.

“I’ll drive there at night just to watch people taking pictures at night and enjoying the neon,” Figueroa said.

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Busby said the next step is proposing a matching grant for businesses to restore building facades.