VegasTriker

I live within easy driving distance of 7 of the parks on this list and can think of a couple more not on the list. It is already true that buying a season pass saves money even if you only use the pass a couple times. It is also good at National Monuments. The park system has already doubled the cost of annual and senior passes but it just isn't enough to maintain the parks. More of a problem is the potential requirement to get advanced reservations to gain entrance into a park like Zion NP or Yosemite during peak use times. That idea has been floated too.

I've have been to Zion NP and Death Valley during the times it looked like Times Square at the visitors center. The park system really does need the money for fixing and operating the parks. If you are a cyclist, the introduction of natural gas powered buses at Zion has been a real blessing. You can now ride the length of the park and not be dodging hundreds of cars. When you get to one of the many stopping off points you don't find cars lining the road for a mile as it once was. That system is free to the passengers but certainly costly to the park. Sure wish they could do the same at Yosemite where the traffic and parking are also terrible during peak times. Some of the parks have had major problems like floods and fires making it even more expensive to maintain the park.
Death Valley NP had major floods that took roads and damaged facilities at least twice in the past decade.

BTW, if you spring for a senior pass you get a reduced fee for camping spots.

Sullalto

Yes, RideTheHurricane - Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce, WA it's a fantastic event.

I have no issue with the fee increases. But I work in Olympic and see firsthand how much maintenance and upkeep is necessary but hasn't been done, or doesn't get done in a timely manner(not getting trail crews out until late June? Come the **** on.).

Also, just get an annual pass.

Sullalto

Yes that's correct.

indyfabz

No.


"The fees, the NPS said, '…will generate badly needed revenue for improvements to the aging infrastructure of national parks.'”


“'All of the funds would be used to improve facilities, infrastructure, and visitor services, with an emphasis on deferred maintenance projects,' the NPS said."


I would rather see our parks properly funded with the substantial tax dollars I already pay (as opposed to them going to certain other things), but that doesn't seem to be the trend. If anyone has a better idea than raising fees to pay for badly needed maintenance, I would love to hear it.

f4rrest

Wait.

They're not paying me $30 to ride through?

#clickbait

BarryVee

National Park Service is cash strapped for things like hundreds & hundreds of helicopter trips hauling rock up Mt. Lassen for trail maintenance.

Google Mt. Lassen Reach the Peak Project.

Seattle Forrest

This fee increase is projected to raise 0.5 % of the money required for maintenance in a year's time. It's immaterial.

scott967

You need to reservation now to go up Haleakalā before sunrise, but this shouldn't affect cyclists doing the climb, just those on commercial "coast down" bike tours.

scott s.
.

Steve B.

I know Edward Abbey would agree with this suggestion.

Tear out all the friggin hotels and concession run crap. Make people camp, rent tents, pads and sleeping bags. Don’t pave or fix the roads, bikes are OK on crappy pavement. Build some big parking garages on the perimeter and make folks take a bus, ride a bike or walk.

Abbey had it correct with his explanation of “Industrial Tourism”.

I’d bet they wouldn’t then need to spend 11 billion for maintanence

TakingMyTime

Senior LIFETIME pass $80. It just went up about 8 months ago from $10. Still, $80 for a lifetime is a pretty good deal.

You can also get a FREE annual pass... Available for: Current U.S. military members and dependents in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard as well as Reserve and National Guard members.

TimothyH

Everyone wants pristine parks and world class services but then they complain when they actually have to pay for it.

People like Iohan Gueorguiev openly state that they sneak into parks without paying and fans think it is a virtue.

My father used to say, "You wanna play, you gotta pay."


-Tim-

tagaproject6

Define "poor people"? Do they spend vacations on the national parks now?

If we narrow down the poor people to those that draw from tax payers to go on with their daily lives...do they travel to the national parks?

Oh, and IBTM.

Seattle Forrest

I really don't want to send this to P&R. I mean, it should be discussed there, but the reason I posted this here in road is because NPS is going to start charging cyclists $30 to ride their bikes on park roads in 17 parks.

In this thread I'm not concerned about concessions, I'm concerned about driving to the foot of Mount Rainier with my bike in my car, parking in the last little town somewhere, then riding up to Paradise and then back down to my car. I think $10 is already too much for that.

Doge

Is $80/year too much?

bikemig 

Why not pay $30 to subsidize cars?

dksix

This is an obvious attempt to reduce the use of public parks, they do it around here by simply locking the gates. The published fee increases are $25 to $70, $20 to $50 and $10 to $30, each about a 300% increase but the expected revenue is only $268 million up from $200 million, hardly a 300% increase.

wipekitty

I wonder if it would be reasonable to have a reduced fee for "locals" - those who live in the counties surrounding the listed National Parks - to walk or ride into the park. (I have no actual opinion on this, as I do not live near any of the parks.)

Disneyland has something similar.

Colnago Mixte

There kinda is already. If you live near a National Park, you likely know about some of the dirt roads that will let you enter the park without paying.

I do think any fee is ridiculous though. I remember when the rangers would just wave you right past the toll gate if you were on a bike, as recently as the early 90's.

Velo Vol 

For simplicity they're not going to interview each visitor and determine how much to charge for a particular usage. Hence, flat fees.

It depends how you view national parks. Plenty of cities have free parks. They're viewed as a pubic good for residents.

dksix

Those are the people who would buy the annual pass, which only had a price increase from $70-$80.

Nachoman

I pedal into this national park about two times a week for free
because I enter before they staff the toll booth.

Velo Vol 

Reported.

700

That $80 will cover a whole family in one car. I bet it would only cover one of them if they were on 4 bicycles.

autonomy

I was going to say... out of all places, I know EXACTLY where that is - fantastic spot. But then you're giving away the location in your 'location' tag

There was a thread in the Touring forum not long ago complaining about the costs of camping rising dramatically. People were saying that parks are getting rid of tent sites because why would you charge a tenter $10/night when you can charge a camper $30 or even better, an RVer $50 a night?

prathmann

In most cases a single $80 annual pass (or Senior/Military/Access Pass) would cover a group of up to 4 cyclists. From the NPS FAQ:
"Yes, generally the pass holder and up to 3 other bicyclists can enter for free. Be sure to check with the recreation site you plan to visit before leaving because there can be differences in the way a pass is honored at different sites."