North Lake Tahoe marketing plan discourages cars

A long-range marketing plan for North Lake Tahoe wants to define the area's unincorporated towns into distinct destinations.

And, while visitors are welcome, their cars increasingly are not.

"We want to see more mid-week visitation," says Andy Chapman, tourism director at the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association. The reason?

Visitors who come for the week often fly from distant cities, leaving their cars at home and using public transit at the lake.

And, a shuttle from Reno Tahoe International Airport should be rolling at the start of the winter ski season that begins late this year, says Chapman.

The plan calls for 15 different bus schedules on three bus routes to different locales. A request for proposals is being circulated.

The buses will carry 15 to 25 passengers and cost about $35 one way, a price the agency has found competitive with Aspen or Banff. A cheaper locals rate will also be offered.

Traffic puts a strain on the community, says Chapman, especially weekend traffic. And, traffic emissions make environmental stewardship more difficult.

"We want to take care of the lake," says Chapman. "We don't want to damage the product."

And, he says, the plan calls for distinct promotion of the various neighborhoods straddling the state line that comprise North Lake Tahoe: Truckee, Incline, Kings Beach and Squaw Valley.

In its promotional efforts the NLTRA works with Pettit Gilwee Public Relations, Smith and Jones Advertising and EXL Media. Operations are overseen by a nine-member board of directors and from the north Lake Tahoe area and Truckee as well as a marketing committee.

The agency has been in operation for eight years, and doubles as the 400-member Chamber of Commerce.