Need for conservation parking pass kicks off in Kananaskis Country
Visitors headed to Kananaskis Country are now required to purchase a conservation pass when entering the recreation area west of Calgary.
The daily entrance fee is $15 while an annual pass is priced at $90 for personal vehicles. Michael Roycroft is the regional director of Kananaskis Country for Alberta Parks. He says the province is trying to provide the resources it needs for the high level of service Albertans have come to expect in K-Country.
The passes are available online and at visitor information centres and as of 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, 4,240 had been sold
"We are able to offer in-person purchases through self-serve kiosks here at the visitor centre at Barrier," said Roycroft. "At the Elbow visitor centre as well as Peter Lougheed Discovery Centre and the fourth location is at the Nordic Centre Provincial Park."
People in the park on Tuesday said they don't mind paying for a user fee, as long as that money stays in the park.
"We should be paying through the general revenues of the province," said Cochrane resident Bruce Pettigrew.
"Through a progressive income tax or something like that to maintain and enhance the parks, not charging people who may not be able to afford it.
"If the province says the money that's collected from these passes is going to be used to upgrade and maintain facilities here, then lets make damn sure they do that," said Don Gregorwich from Calgary.
Roycroft says the revenue generated will be reinvested into Kananaskis Country.
"It will be going to keeping visitor centres open," said Roycroft. "It will provide the resources we need to ensure our public safety team is resourced appropriately, last year alone we had a 51 per cent increase in mountain rescues."
When purchasing a pass, visitors are required to provide their license plate numbers. A physical pass isn't provided like visitors get when entering national parks.
"We will be utilizing that license plate information and then cross-referencing that with license plate reader technology and photo monitoring throughout Kananaskis Country moving forward," said Roycroft.
"Similar to the way city parking authorities work, we will be taking a similar approach to enforcement here in Kananaskis Country."
Right now the province is focusing on education and awareness about the conservation pass. Fines for not purchasing a pass are $150 for personal vehicles and $350 for commercial vehicles.
More information on the conservation pass is available online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'