New Shuttle Contract Announced

Date: April 2, 2010
Contact: Dan Ng, 435.834.4740

McDonald Transit Associates, Inc. Selected for
Bryce Canyon National Park Service Contract

The National Park Service, Intermountain Regional Office announced that McDonald Transit Associates, Inc. was selected as the new contractor to operate the free visitor transportation system within Bryce Canyon National Park under a five-year contract that begins April, 2010.

A number of other proposals were received for the service operations at Bryce Canyon National Park and were meticulously reviewed by a team of National Park Service professionals to ensure the best experiences for park visitors and the most responsible use of taxpayers’ funds. McDonald Transit Associates, Inc., based in Fort Worth, Texas, provides management services in 31 locations and 16 states in the U.S. Their subsidiary, Parks Transportation, Inc., currently operates the shuttle system in Zion National Park.

With a peak visitation of 1.75 million visitors in 1996, Bryce Canyon National Park’s roads and 14 viewpoint parking lots, had become acutely congested and has degraded the visitor experience. Since the summer of 2000, the NPS has provided bus services in traffic-congested areas during the busy months from May to October.

McDonald Transit Associates, Inc. will provide shuttle bus services from the park’s shuttle staging area in Bryce Canyon City with stops at Ruby’s Best Western, Ruby’s Campground, Bryce Canyon Visitor Center, Sunset Point, Sunset Campground, Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, Bryce Canyon Lodge, Sunrise Point and North Campground. Additionally, two-round trips will be conducted daily to Rainbow Point, at the southern end of the park.

"McDonald Transit Associates, Inc. has an excellent reputation working with the National Park Service," said Acting Park Superintendent Jacque Lavelle . "We look forward to working with the McDonald Transit Associates, Inc. staff at Bryce Canyon to provide the best possible experiences for our visitors. Additionally, we would like to express our appreciation to the staff of All Resort Coaches, dba Lewis Stages, Inc. out of Salt Lake City, Utah for their ten years of outstanding service to Bryce Canyon National Park."