Yosemite Park recently released its final proposal for the long-awaited Visitor Access Plan. Those who are concerned about traffic jams and congestion will want to thank the Park Service for proposing various options for using day-use reservations to resolve decades of too much traffic and too much congestion. When there are no day-use reservations required, unlimited numbers of vehicles and visitors often result in long traffic delays, bad visitor experiences, and frequent damage to habitat and resources. Please let the Park Service know that you support a day-use reservation system.
CHOICE OF ALTERNATIVE:
In the recently released EA and proposed plan, the Park Service has selected Alternative B as their “preferred alternative”. A key comment for environmentalists is to support Alternative B as the best strategy for long-term visitor management.
Alternative B would require day-use reservations on weekends in the spring and fall (April-May and September-October) and then every day during June-July-August (when the Park is most heavily visited).
Your support for Alternative B (the Park’s preferred alternative) is important to counter the intense lobbying from business interests and local region politicians who are pushing for Alternative A or Alternative D.
Alternative A would allow unlimited vehicles or people, so the Park would continue to be overwhelmed by too many visitors. Alternative D would also allow unlimited vehicles into the Park every day, but it would require a “difficult-to-implement” day-use reservation system just for Yosemite Valley. Alternative C would only allow visitors with reservations to enter the Park if they arrived within a 2-hour time slot, which would be a challenge for families driving long distances.
Alternative B is preferred by the Park Service because it would best protect the Park by setting moderate limits for visitors and vehicles, but by setting them low enough to protect resources and avoid traffic jams and congestion.
KEY POINTS TO SHARE IN YOUR COMMENTS:
In addition to giving strong support to Alternative B and the proposed day-use reservation system, it is important to also emphasize that the Park Service should comply with its mission. That mission is to provide for a positive visitor experience and to also protect the Park’s resources for future generations.
Yosemite Park belongs to ALL Americans, not just to local gateway business interests that already bring in hundreds of millions of dollars a year from Yosemite tourism. BALANCE IS THE KEY, WITH THE PRIORITY BEING GOOD VISITOR EXPERIENCES AND GOOD RESOURCE PROTECTION.
Please ask the Park Service to select Alternative B to protect resources and to minimize traffic gridlock. The comment period will be open through September 30, 2024. This is a once-in-decades opportunity to help shape the future of Yosemite Park.
To submit comments, go to the website link listed below and click on the “Open for Comment” link.
