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Kiosks, like these two pictured at Oconaluftee Visitor's Center, are one of the ways visitors to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park can purchase parking passes, which are now required for anyone parking for more than 15 minutes.
Larry Griffin
lgriffin@thesmokymountaintimes.com
Those who arrived at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Wednesday, March 1 were greeted by bulky green kiosks from which they could now buy parking passes to visit the park.
Visitors to the Park will now have to pay to park there for longer than 15 minutes, per the new Park It Forward program, which is in effect as of this month.
Emily Davis, public affairs specialist with the National Park Service, said most of the reactions to the new parking pass system had been fairly positive.
“Most everyone has been positive, and they understand why we’re doing this,” she said.
Davis said the addition of the paid parking passes was “not something [they] take lightly” and that they thought it would “support and enhance” the visitor experience by funding improvements to the park, such as road repairs and upkeep.
The idea of paid parking passes has caused ire among some Swain County residents, who have said they oppose having to pay to park in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park when they live in the area.
The new passes will be for anyone wanting to park in the park for 15 minutes or more – those who are simply stopping through for a moment won’t have to have them. There will be three options – a $5 daily pass, a $15 weekly pass or a $40 yearly pass.
Visitors have the option of buying them from the kiosks outside the visitor centers or inside from attendants. They can also be bought online.
There will be exceptions granted, including for Native American people using the park for traditional reasons, and anyone coming for cemeteries, burials, or other such events. And park employees will get free passes while they’re working.
Most of the park visitors were amicable to the changes, such as Lauren and Luke Miller.
“They said it was because of the damage the cars have done to the park,” Lauren said. “This is a good way to fund improvements to the park.”
And Luke added that he was fine with paying the fees “as long as it’s going toward repairing the park.”
Costa Rica-based tourist Alban Cascante said it was a good idea, too. “We like the park,” he said. “We need to support the park.”
Visitor Tracy Tate said his only problem was trying to get the pass to stay in place in his car.
“The problem is with the quality,” he said. “They don’t stick to the dashboard. They roll off. I’m purchasing my second one because the first one flew out the window.”
Tate said his solution thus far was taping the pass to an index card and leaving it wedged in the window of the car.
Others were slightly more critical, such as Georgia resident Danny Machado, who said the price for the pass was more than usual for a national park.
“Usually it’s $2 or so,” he said.
And visitor Gigi Cox said she wasn’t opposed to paying for parking in general, but said it should be included if one already has a National Park Pass.
“It’s an additional fee,” she said.
Davis said the idea behind the passes was to help preserve the parks for a long time.
“It’s our obligation to preserve and protect the park for future generations,” she said. “Park It Forward is a tool to help us do that.”