Glacier National Park drops reservation requirement, plans to double down on shuttle network

For the first time since 2021, visitors to Glacier National Park will be able to pass through all of the park's entrances without making a reservation, reports Tristan Scott in the Flathead Beacon. "But they’ll confront other changes in 2026, including parking restrictions at Logan Pass and a new reservation-only shuttle system." The vehicle reservation system was put in place as pandemic-era crowds overwhelmed the park. 

The new proposal would expand the park's shuttle system, add hundreds of new parking spaces at key sites such as popular trailheads and park-and-ride locations and create a bicycle-only season. But there is no dedicated federal funding for new shuttles or operators, Scott notes. "NPCA Glacier Program Manager Sarah Lundstrum attended this week’s community engagement meeting and expressed concerns about the proposal, in part because it hinges on a pair of assumptions: that funding will be available to revitalize the park’s floundering shuttle system and expand parking, and that this summer’s untested visitor-access system will work."