Rainier, Olympic National Park Fees Could More Than Double

SEATTLE, WA - The National Park Service announced Tuesday that peak season prices could more than double at 17 national parks located throughout the county. Fee increases would be implemented at Olympic National Park May 1 and at Rainier National Park June 1, according to a statement from the National Park Service. The new fee schedule would be $70 per private, non-commercial vehicle, $50 per motorcycle, and $30 per person on bike or foot.

The "peak season" price schedule would be defined as the busiest five-month period for each park. The National Park Service intends to raise $70 million to fund updating and maintaining parks.

"The infrastructure of our national parks is aging and in need of renovation and restoration," U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke said in a statement. "Targeted fee increases at some of our most-visited parks will help ensure that they are protected and preserved in perpetuity and that visitors enjoy a world-class experience that mirrors the amazing destinations they are visiting. We need to have the vision to look at the future of our parks and take action in order to ensure that our grandkids' grandkids will have the same if not better experience than we have today. Shoring up our parks' aging infrastructure will do that."

Other national parks included in the fee hike proposal include Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Denali, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Zion Acadia, Mount Rainier, Rocky Mountain, Shenandoah, and Joshua Tree.

The public is invited to comment on the proposal on the National Park Service's Planning, Environment and Public Comment website. (For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Seattle Patch, click here to find your local Washington Patch. Also, follow us on Facebook, and if you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Image via National Park Service