Standards of Quality for Traffic Congestion in Parks: an Empirical Study of the Blue Ridge Parkway
Valliere W, Manning R, Lawson S, Bacon J, Laven D. 2003. Standards of Quality for Traffic Congestion in Parks: an Empirical Study of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Pages 60-66. In Murdy JJ (ed): Proceedings of the 2003 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Bolton Landing, NY. April 6-8, 2003. US Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station. GTR-NE-317
Crowding and carrying capacity are perennial and increasingly important issues in parks and outdoor recreation. Contemporary park and outdoor recreation management frameworks, including Limits of Acceptable Change and Visitor Experience and Resource Protection, rely on indicators and standards of quality to help manage these issues. One of the ways in which crowding can be manifested in the developed portions of parks and outdoor recreation areas is traffic congestion. This issue is expecially relevant at parkways, a traditional type of park unit within the National Park System. Blue Ridge Parkway is the oldest and most heavily used parkway, and traffic congestion is an issue of increasing concern to park visitors and managers. This study used photographic and survey approaches to help formulate indicators and standards of quality for traffic congestion on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Study photographs illustrated a range of numbers and types of vehicles along the Parkway, and a survey of visitors at eleven sites along the Parkway asked respondents to evaluate the acceptability of study photographs. The survey was conducted in the summer of 2002. Study data can be used to help the National Park Service formulate standards of quality for the number and type of vehicles on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
- Type
- Conference Proceeding Paper
- Authors
- Valliere, William; Manning, Robert; Lawson, Steven; Bacon, James; Laven, Daniel
- Units
- BLRI
- Keywords
- acceptability standards, Management, Quality, Roads, Survey, Traffic
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Human Use | Visitor and Recreation Use | Visitor Use