Yellowstone officials request feedback to improve entrance road

Yellowstone National Park was the first national park in the world, and is the fourth-most- visited in the U.S. system. Running through parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, four-and-a-half million visitors come each year to “Wow!” at its geothermal features and wildlife. But one of the park’s few year-round accessible roads has a problem, and Yellowstone officials want your help.

27 miles of Yellowstone road woes

In a media release, the National Park Service, working with the Federal Highway Administration, seeks public comment on a proposal to significantly improve 27 miles of the Northeast Entrance Road. That stretch is between Tower Junction and Yellowstone National Park’s Northeast Entrance.

The road was damaged during the 2022 flood. But it’s still open to visitor vehicle traffic year-round. It provides winter access to the communities of Cooke City/Silver Gate in Montana and to Lamar Valley, a main attraction in the park for world class wildlife viewing opportunities.

The project aims to improve visitor safety, use, and experience, while enhancing the road’s resilience to future floods and other natural disasters.

Need for the project highlights

• Aging Infrastructure: No substantial improvements have occurred since the 1980s. The existing pavement has exceeded its 20-year design life and was not designed for the current amount of traffic. The age of the road, coupled with increased visitation, has taken a toll on bridges, retaining walls and culverts. The road is also susceptible to frost heaves in areas where it intersects with seasonally wet areas.
• Outdated Standards Impact Safety: The road has a width of 20-22 feet while the modern park standard is 30 feet. The increased width and additional road shoulders, parking areas and turnouts would help minimize vehicle conflicts and improve traffic flow.
• Resource and Resiliency Concerns: The lack of shoulders and turnouts leads to vegetation degradation and the spread of invasive weeds when drivers pull off the road. The road will be realigned in areas where it either washed out during the 2022 flood or may be vulnerable to similar future events.
• Improved Visitor Experience: Due to the popularity and year-round use of the road, parking configurations in some turnouts need to be expanded or redesigned to add capacity and improve vehicle flow. More wildlife viewing turnouts would also be added.

Service wants your thoughts on these alternatives

Yellowstone invites the public to learn about and provide input on the Northeast Entrance Road project.

Public input will help the park develop an environmental assessment (EA) that includes the following two alternatives:

1. No Action Alternative: No substantial infrastructure improvements would occur; however, routine and periodic maintenance would continue as issues arise. Deterioration and maintenance needs of the road corridor would likely increase.
2. Action Alternative: The Northeast Entrance Road and associated infrastructure would be upgraded. Upgrades could include widening the road from 20-22 feet to 30 feet; repairing or replacing bridges and culverts; improving parking areas and turnouts; and providing additional turnouts where needed.

Comment on Yellowstone road woes here

The public can submit comments about the proposed project until Dec. 3, 2024, by clicking here.

Or you can mail comments to: Yellowstone National Park, Attn: Northeast Entrance Road Project, PO Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190-0168.

##RVT1181b