$500,000 to improve access to Michigan’s national parks

There’s nothing like a pure Michigan summer day at Sleeping Bear Dunes. (August 17, 2019) (Michael Buck/WOOD TV8)

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Three projects aimed at making Michigan’s national parks more accessible and environmentally friendly received major funding of $500,000 on Monday.

ADASTEC received $250,000 for an automated electric bus to transport passengers on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. ADASTEC is the same company that previously deployed automated buses at Michigan State University.

The Michigan Department of National Resources received $10,000 to provide wheelchairs for off-road courses Muskallonge Lake State Parkthat provides people with disabilities with greater access to outdoor recreational services. This is part of an ongoing effort to make Michigan’s outdoor parks more accessible to wheelchair users.

Superior Watershed Partnership and Land Conservancy received $240,000 to install electric vehicle charging stations in communities near the Keweenaw National Historical Park and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. This will increase electric vehicle access to the area.

This is the first round of funding for the National Park Service Mobility Challenge Program, a challenge to the global mobility industry to deploy advanced mobility and electrification technologies to improve accessibility, visitor experience and environmental conservation in Michigan’s state and national parks.