Park Service Reverses Decision to Open Utah Parks to Off-Road Vehicles

Thanks to an outcry from national park advocates, community leaders, local businesses and allies, a longstanding prohibition on off-road vehicles in Utah’s national parks and monuments will remain in place.

Press Release

Park Advocates Applaud Decision to Keep Off-Road Vehicles Out of Utah National Parks and Monuments

Decision maintains commonsense park resource protections and promotes visitor safety  

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In September, the acting National Park Service Intermountain Regional Director issued a directive to park superintendents in Utah that would have allowed all street-legal off-road vehicles on dirt and paved roads in national park sites starting November 1. The directive would have affected all of Utah’s “Mighty Five” national parks — Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Zion — as well as several national monuments — Cedar Breaks, Dinosaur, Hovenweep and Natural Bridges.

More than 5,000 NPCA supporters spoke out against the plan, which would have threatened the parks’ unique and fragile landscapes and cultural artifacts, and more than 30 local businesses submitted a letter to the Department of the Interior opposing the proposed change. In addition, the Grand County Council, city of Moab and town of Castle Valley passed a joint resolution opposing the move, and the towns of Springdale and Rockville passed their own resolutions.

In a major victory for park advocates, the Park Service issued a statement on October 25 rescinding the previous order and maintaining the off-road vehicle prohibition.

This decision simply makes sense. National park superintendents have detailed the threats that off-road vehicles pose to parks and visitors while on the roads, and the likelihood that users will drive them off-road, harming the environment and creating dust, noise and pollution.

Fortunately, off-road vehicle users have tens of thousands of miles of roads and dirt trails available throughout Utah. Opening park roads to these vehicles would have resulted in damage to the very things that make these places so remarkable and that draw visitors from around the world to the state.