Fees to increase at Pinnacles National Park in 2019

PAICINES – The National Park Service (NPS) announced on Saturday, April 14 that Pinnacles National Park will modify its entrance fees to provide additional funding for infrastructure and maintenance needs to enhance the visitor experience. Effective January 1, 2019 the entrance fees to the park will be $30.00 per vehicle or $25.00 per motorcycle. An annual park pass will cost $55. All of the money received from entrance fees remains with the National Park Service with at least 80

percent of the revenue going to Pinnacles National Park. Revenue from entrance fees remains in the National Park Service and helps ensure a quality experience for all who visit. Currently at Pinnacles National Park, 100 percent of entrance fees

stay in the park and are devoted to spending that supports the visitor. In response to public comments on a fee proposal released in October 2017, there will be a

modest increase for all entrance fee-charging parks, rather than the higher peak-season fees initially proposed only for 17 highly-visited national parks.

Superintendent Karen Dorn stated “The additional fees will enhance all aspects of the visitor experience at Pinnacles. Visitors will directly see improvements at the East Side Entrance, in restroom and parking facilities, on trails, in the campground, and at the Nature Center. We are committed to providing a safe and rewarding experience for all visitors.” National parks have experienced record breaking visitation, with more than 1.5 billion visitors in the last five years. Throughout the country, the combination of an aging infrastructure and increased visitation has put a strain on park roads, bridges, campgrounds, waterlines, bathrooms, and other visitor services and led to a $11.6 billion deferred maintenance backlog nationwide.

The additional revenue from entrance fees at Pinnacles National Park will be used to support projects such as restoration of the Historic Bear Valley School, and the construction of a new entrance station. Entrance fees collected by the National Park Service totaled $199.9 million in Fiscal Year 2016. The NPS estimates that once fully implemented, the new fee structure will increase annual entrance fee revenue by about $60 million.

The current rate of $25 per vehicle or $20 per motorcycle has been in effect since January 1, 2018. The park is one of 117 National Park Service sites that charges an entrance fee, the other 300 national parks will remain free to enter. The price of the annual America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Annual Pass and Lifetime Senior Pass will remain $80. The National Park Service has a standardized entrance fee structure, composed of four groups based on park size and type. Pinnacles National Park is one of the sites in group 3. Some parks not yet aligned with the other parks in their category will raise their fees incrementally and fully incorporate the new entrance fee schedule by January 1, 2020.