CLEVELAND — The Cuyahoga Valley National Park is joining other national parks across the country in welcoming e-bikes as part of a national effort by the National Park Service to increase educational opportunities on public lands.
The National Park Service announced the new e-bike on Aug. 30, and since then, has called for national parks across the country to adopt their own legislation. On Thursday, Rob Wallace, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, will announce the policy at Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Visitors can try out at the e-bikes at 12:15 p.m. at Peninsula Depot.
The Cuyahoga Valley National Park has about a month to enact its own policy for the e-bikes, and when they do, the park staff wants to make sure it's inclusive for all.
“National parks are for all people. There are 419 of them across the nation and the Cuyahoga Valley National is one of them, so we want to make sure recreation activities are accessible for all people. It doesn’t matter on your ability or not ability or age. Well now you can ride a bike with some extra help,” said Pam Barnes, Public Information Officer for the park.
When considering a policy, the Cuyahoga Valley National Park wants to make sure the park’s natural resources are protected.
“We are also about access to recreation. So we are looking at what that looks like for us here locally," Barnes said.
The National Park Service says similar to traditional bikes, e-bikes are not allowed in designated wilderness areas. The new policy will allow visitors to use e-bikes on park roads, paved or hardened trails.
Find more info on the National Park Service's e-bike policy here.
