Glacier officials nix ticketed entry system

Glacier National Park officials on Wednesday decided against a temporary ticketed vehicle entry system that recently had been proposed for the crowded park.

Park officials learned in late June that access across the Blackfeet Reservation would remain closed for the summer due to concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak. That closure prompted park staff to begin exploring the possibility a ticketed entry system — something similar to the system Yosemite National Park implemented this year.

Over the past three weeks Glacier National Park Superintendent Jeff Mow engaged with over 100 businesses around the park to hear their questions and comments about the proposed ticketed entry system, according to a press release. Mow also met with officials at other parks that have reservation-type services and discussed at-length their experiences with such operations.

But “after considering input from many sources and the uncertainty of upcoming conditions, park officials decided that the timing isn’t right to implement a ticketed entry system this summer,” the press release said.

“We heard support for a reservation system from community constituents because they know the park is at maximum capacity,” Mow said in a prepared statement. “But there were serious concerns about implementing such a system with such short notice and midway through the visitor season.”

The press release also noted that since the park reopened to the public on June 8, Glacier has seen high levels of congestion on the west side of the park due to other areas being closed, fewer recreational opportunities being offered and limited services. In addition, park officials may still have to implement visitor use restrictions in order to protect public health and safety and to provide for social distancing. Restrictions and temporary closures can be found on the park’s Twitter account and guests are encouraged to monitor the park’s online webcams to gauge foot and vehicular congestion.

“This continues to be a summer like no other. It is uncertain if visitation will continue to increase or how COVID-19 may require us to change how the park is managed for visitors,” Mow said. “As we have for the last several weeks, our goal is to provide the best visitor experience under these challenging and uncertain conditions.”