Transportation in the Parks Photograph Library of Congress Illustration 1997 J. Craig Thorpe. Altered with permission from the artist. Over 260 million Americans and foreign travelers visit the National Park System annually to visit the most unique natural, historical, cultural and recreational resources in the nation. These resources are dedicated and set aside by law to be preserved for the benefit and enjoyment of people in such a manner as will leave them unimpaired for future generations.
Transportation is, in many ways, the connection between resource protection and visitor enjoyment.
Grand Canyon National Park, one of the earliest national parks, exemplifies the importance and difficulty of preserving the natural resource while providing for visitor access and desirable experience. Annual visitation has increased from about 106,000 in 1915 to almost 5 million in 1998. The photos above both depict visitors to Grand Canyon National Park. The other is an artist's concept of a light rail visitor transportation system which could be implemented early in the next century.