The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has announced a $22 million grant to the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service to modernize and reconstruct a 0.7-mile segment of the Norris to Golden Gate roadway in Yellowstone National Park. The road is a critical transportation link to Yellowstone’s major destinations and the millions of people who visit the park each year as well as local residents and surrounding communities. The project will significantly improve the exceptionally difficult and challenging roadway to improve safety and pedestrian access, alleviate rockfall hazards, and upgrade vehicle pullouts and parking areas, and add new pedestrian facilities to separate people from traffic.
“The funding announced today is the latest in a multitude of collaborations undertaken as part of our partnership spanning decades with the National Park Service,” said Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt. “This partnership is helping to make visits to Yellowstone and the 428 other national parks across the country safer, more enjoyable, and convenient for years to come. We’re thrilled to be working with the National Park Service to improve access to and from this national treasure by providing a safer, more modern and reliable travel experience.”
Tourism is the critical driver of the economy in and around Yellowstone National Park. In 2021, over 4.9* million people visited the park and spent over $630 million in communities near the park, according to the National Park Service. That spending supported about 8,740 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of over $834 million. Transportation improvements to the Norris to Golden Gate roadway will contribute to increased tourism and a higher-quality visitor experience, promoting sustained economic competitiveness for the entire rural region.
The Yellowstone National Park project is one of five nationwide receiving a total of $88.2 million in Fiscal Year 2023 funding under FHWA’s Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Transportation Projects Program. FHWA also announced $20.5 million in Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund (TTPSF) grants for 80 projects today.
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