Senate Highway Bill Would Boost National Park Road Infrastructure Funding

Legislation making its way through the U.S. Congress would significantly increase funding for roads in national parks.

The national parks maintenance backlog is approaching $12 billion. According to the National Park Conservation Association more than half of that backlog is made up of transportation needs.

Emily Douce, director of operations and park funding for the Association, pointed to the Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Park as an example of how additional funding would help. She said it was originally built for carriages .

"They've done it in bits and pieces, but there's about $1 billion more needed to continue the construction of the Grand Loop Road," she said.

Douce said the bill still has to be reviewed by a couple of other committee's before it is voted on by the full Senate.

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUER in Salt Lake City, KUNR in Nevada and KRCC and KUNC in Colorado.

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