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JENSEN, Uintah County — Add Dinosaur National Monument to the list of National Parks Service land in Utah where the electronic bikes will be allowed.
Monument officials announced Monday that electronic bikes will be allowed on all of its paved and unpaved roads, where bicycles already are allowed to be. E-bikes or bicycles are not allowed on any trails on monument land. Park officials added there are no charging stations at the monument.
Dinosaur National Monument, which is split between Colorado and Utah, joins four other NPS parks in Utah where e-bikes will be allowed beginning Tuesday. The Associated Press reported Arches and Canyonland national parks, as well as Hovenweep and Natural Bridges national monuments, will also begin allowing e-bikes.
E-bikes are already allowed at Zion and Bryce Canyon national parks.
U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt signed an order on Aug. 30 that allowed electronic bikes to be used on National Park Service land. The agency lauded the changes as a way to expand recreational opportunities.
“They make bicycle travel easier and more efficient, and they provide an option for people who want to ride a bicycle but might not otherwise do so because of physical fitness, age, disability, or convenience, especially at high altitudes or in hilly or strenuous terrain,” National Park Service Deputy Director P. Daniel Smith said in a statement after the order was signed.
The policy change was also met with some criticism after going into effect. For example, the Denver Post reported back on Aug. 30 that several dozen outdoor recreation and conservation associations in the U.S. objected to the proposal in July before Bernhardt signed the order.
“There’s a reason for there being non-motorized trails,” Michael Carroll, senior director of the Wilderness Society’s Colorado office the newspaper at the time. “People like being able to enjoy the backcountry free from motorization.”
