YOSEMITE VALLEY, Calif. – Anyone who has traveled to Yosemite National Park during the peak summer season has experience with long lines and full parking lots. Yosemite National Park is seeking input from the public about plans to permanently enforce the seasonal vehicle registration system and improve visitor access.
Data gathered from public comment periods help inform a range of alternatives to alleviate the chronic congestion that has affected Yosemite for more than 50 years and to provide quality visitor access in the future.
The park has been implementing strategies to mitigate traffic and congestion in the park since 2014, when they first piloted restricted access to East Yosemite Valley when parking lots reached capacity. From 2020 to 2022 and again in 2024, the park piloted day-use reservation systems for the entire park.
Yosemite’s visitor access management plan and environmental assessment (EA) includes three alternatives for proactively managing visitor access. The park’s preferred alternative is to implement a parkwide daily reservation system during peak hours, according to a park release.
“This is an opportunity to help shape Yosemite’s future,” said Park Superintendent Cicely Muldoon. “We know that the best time for many visitors to come to the park is during the summer season when the weather is optimal for outdoor adventures. We want to make sure that everyone gets a chance to enjoy the park and stay safe, and not suffer through endless traffic jams and long waits.”
The public comment period is open until Sept. 30. Anyone is welcome to provide input on the alternatives. This is the third, and final opportunity for members of the public to submit their opinions.
During the first two rounds of public engagement for this plan, the park received around 6,000 letters. The comments helped inform the development of management concepts, refine issue statements, strategies, and concepts under consideration.
The draft plan and environmental assessment, as well as other plan information, are available on the NPS Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) website. Visitors can click “Open for Comment” to submit a response.
NPS staff are answering questions on the proposal in a virtual meeting on Thursday, August 22 at 4 p.m. PDT and additional, in-person meetings will be held in gateway communities the week of September 9. You can find current information about the public comment period for the visitor access management plan at the Yosemite Park Planning website.
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