Triangle, Va. - Prince William Forest Park will begin charging increased entrance and camping fees on June 1, 2015.
Entrance Fee Current Rate New Rate June 1, 2015
Per Person $3 valid for 7 days $5 valid for 7 days
Per Motorcycle $3 valid for 7 days $5 valid for 7 days
Per Vehicle $5 valid for 7 days $7 valid for 7 days
Annual Park Pass $20 $30
The rates for campsites in the Turkey Run Ridge Group Tent Campground will also increase as follows:
Site Capacity Current Rate New Rate June 1, 2015
Up to 25 persons per site $40 $50
26 to 40 persons per site $40 $60
"I hope the public will appreciate how much these fees directly support the protection and preservation of park resources," Superintendent Vidal Martinez said. "The funds from camping and entrance fees are used to perform historic preservation and backlog maintenance projects, and to maintain or improve facilities and trails."
Entrance fees have supported a wide range of projects that improve the park and visitor experiences, including chimney repair and rehabilitation in cabin camps, installation of new playground equipment in Pine Grove Picnic Area, rehabilitation of the A-Loop comfort station at Oak Ridge Campground, improvements to the park visitor center- which will eventually include all new exhibits, hosting the park's Heritage Festival, replacement of picnic tables and grills park-wide, and rehabilitation and re-establishment of three campsites at Turkey Run Ridge Group tent campground.
Additional revenue from this fee increase will allow park management to prune trees on fire roads, manage vegetation on 14 miles of waterline right-of-way, design and produce interpretive wayside exhibits, rehabilitate the visitor center comfort station, complete a new access point for the Chopawamsic backcountry area, and develop a trail management plan.
In the fall of 2014, the National Park Service conducted a nationwide review of entrance fees. To solicit public input, Prince William Forest Park launched a civic engagement campaign in January 2015.
During the public comment period, the park received three formal comments, and about 10 comments on its Facebook page. The overwhelming majority of those that commented supported the increase and believed that the $10.00 increase for the park annual pass was still very reasonable.
www.nps.gov
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
