Providing Alternative Transportation at Joshua Tree National Park | P17AS00606

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00606

The grant opportunity titled "Providing Alternative Transportation at Joshua Tree National Park" (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00606) is a National Park Service (Department of the Interior) funding action intended to advance planning and implementation steps for a visitor shuttle or similar alternative transit system serving Joshua Tree National Park (JOTR) and surrounding gateway communities. The work is framed as a cooperative effort between the National Park Service and the Morongo Basin Transit Authority (MBTA), a joint powers authority that provides transit service to ten communities in the Morongo Basin and shares overlapping transportation planning and management interests with NPS in and around the park.

The core problem this project responds to is the sharp growth in park visitation over several decades. According to NPS visitor statistics cited in the notice, annual visits increased from roughly 545,000 in 1980 to nearly 2,023,000 by 2015. That growth has created practical visitor-service strains, especially heavier traffic and insufficient parking, while also increasing pressure on park resources. Air quality is a related concern: because JOTR sits within the Coachella Valley and Los Angeles air basins, regions that have seen significant population and development growth since 1980, the Environmental Protection Agency has noted that air within the park exceeds acceptable ozone concentration levels. In this context, reducing vehicle trips and congestion through shared transit is presented as a strategy that can support both resource protection and a better visitor experience.

The project is modeled on approaches used elsewhere in the National Park System, where alternative transportation has been used to manage congestion and limit environmental impacts. The announcement points to examples where NPS has partnered with local and regional entities to implement transit systems, including Grand Canyon National Park, Muir Woods National Monument, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Yosemite National Park, and Zion National Park. These precedents are used to justify exploring a similar solution at Joshua Tree.

The notice also summarizes the history leading up to this action. Discussions about a shuttle partnership began in March 2012 when JOTR and MBTA met to explore the concept. By December 2012, a request was made to the NPS Business Management group for a business plan analysis, reflecting the need to evaluate feasibility and operational realities before launching service. In fall 2013, JOTR partnered with the University of California at Irvine to conduct research and produce an Alternative Transportation Analysis, which included a transportation feasibility study. Using the information from that work, MBTA and NPS agreed to jointly explore the options and the practical steps needed to identify, administer, and implement the work required to make a visitor shuttle program achievable.

Administratively, this opportunity is categorized as a discretionary award using a cooperative agreement, under a natural resources funding activity (CFDA 15.954). The listed eligible applicant type is nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education). However, the announcement is explicitly labeled a "NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD" and states it is not a request for applications. In other words, it is a public notice that NPS intends to fund a specific project under an existing cooperative agreement with MBTA rather than run an open competition. The award ceiling is listed as $229,800, and the expected number of awards is shown as zero, consistent with the fact that this is not an open solicitation but a notice tied to an existing agreement. The notice was created on August 3, 2017, with an original closing date of August 17, 2017, reflecting the administrative window for the public notice rather than a standard application deadline.

In practical terms, the opportunity is about moving from analysis and feasibility work toward concrete implementation planning for an alternative transportation system at Joshua Tree, with the overarching goals of easing congestion and parking shortages, improving the visitor experience, and reducing vehicle-related impacts such as air pollution and resource degradation.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Providing Alternative Transportation at Joshua Tree National Park" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.954.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 03, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 17, 2017 NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD. This is NOT a request for application. This funding announcement is to provide public notice that the National Park Service will fund the following project under an existing Cooperative Agreement with MBTA. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $229,800.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

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