§ 136-89.56.  Commercial enterprises.

(a) No commercial enterprises or activities shall be authorized or conducted by the Department of Transportation, or the governing body of any city or town, within or on the property acquired for or designated as a controlled-access facility, as defined in this Article, except for:

(1) Materials displayed at welcome centers which shall be directly related to travel, accommodations, tourist-related activities, tourist-related services, and attractions. The Department of Transportation shall issue rules regulating the display of these materials. These materials may contain advertisements for real estate; and

(2) Vending machines permitted by the Department of Transportation and placed by the Division of Services for the Blind, Department of Health and Human Services, as the State licensing agency designated pursuant to Section 2(a)(5) of the Randolph-Sheppard Act (20 USC 107a(a)(5)). The Department of Transportation shall regulate the placing of the vending machines in highway rest areas and shall regulate the articles to be dispensed. In order to permit the establishment of adequate fuel and other service facilities by private owners or their lessees for the users of a controlled-access facility, the Department of Transportation shall permit access to service or frontage roads within the publicly owned right-of-way of any controlled-access facility established or designated as provided in this Article, at points which, in the opinion of the Department of Transportation, will best serve the public interest. The location of such fuel and other service facilities may be indicated to the users of the controlled-access facilities by appropriate signs, the size, style, and specifications of which shall be determined by the Department of Transportation.

(b) The location of fuel, gas, food, lodging, camping, and attraction facilities may be indicated to the users of the controlled-access facilities by appropriate logos placed on signs owned, controlled, and erected within the right-of-way of fully and partially controlled-access highways by, or pursuant to contract with, the Department of Transportation. The Department shall contract with a private entity to administer the erection of signs and placement of logos, as authorized by this subsection. The responsibilities of the private entity shall include the following: acquisition and erection of signs; design, manufacture, and placement of logos on signs; maintenance of signs and logos; receipt and response to information requests concerning the program; and management of the financial transactions related to the program. The owners, operators or lessees of fuel, gas, food, lodging, camping, and attraction facilities who wish to place a logo identifying their business or service on a sign shall furnish a logo meeting the size, style and specifications determined by the Department of Transportation and shall pay a fee set by the vendor and approved by the Board of Transportation. The fee set by the vendor shall be determined based on market rates for the number of vehicles that pass by the sign, reflecting the value of the visibility and access provided to the participating businesses and to cover the initial costs of signs, sign installation, and maintenance, and the costs of administering the logo sign program. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize any Department contractor to conduct any commercial activity upon signs erected and maintained within the right-of-way of fully and partially controlled-access highways pursuant to this subsection.  (1957, c. 993, s. 9; 1973, c. 507, s. 5; 1977, c. 464, s. 7.1; 1981, c. 481, s. 1; 1983, c. 604, s. 1; 1985, c. 456; c. 718, ss. 2, 3, 6; 1987, c. 417, s. 2; 1996, 2nd Ex. Sess., c. 18, s. 19.10(b); 1997-443, s. 11A.118(a); 2003-184, s. 2; 2014-100, s. 34.14(a); 2015-239, s. 1; 2024-30, s. 31(a).)