Make National Park visits affordable for residents

Now, in Montana we’re pretty lucky that we have thousands and thousands of public lands to enjoy. Even if you don’t drive to Glacier, you can see some spectacular sights throughout Sanders County. But it’s also pretty amazing to have Glacier National Park just a couple hours away.

The National Park Service is recommending increased fees to visit national parks, including Glacier and Yellowstone. To see these national parks now, it’s $30 for a seven-day pass per car or $50 for an annual pass.

The proposed changes would more than double the fee to Glacier and Yellowstone, to $70 for non-commercial vehicles, $50 per motorcycle, and $30 per person during the peak season. The annual pass would increase to $75. Not as steep of a climb.

So far this year, more than 3.2 million people have visited Glacier National Park, according to the National Park Service (NPS). That’s up almost 13 percent over the same period in 2016.

A large percentage of Glacier National Park visitors are from out-of-state or other countries. The NPS should make it easier for residents to enjoy the park. Paying $70 for a park visit is pretty steep for many locals.

In order for more Montanans to enjoy this national treasure, the NPS should provide a reduced rate for Montana residents. They should encourage not only tourists to come and boost the local economy, but residents to take advantage of having a national park so close.