Cross-country skiers could soon pay to use winter trails in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park in order to help combat Alberta’s deficit.
Alberta Parks brought the issue to the notice of the Kananaskis Trails Advisory Group, noting discussion on new fees would be included in budget discussions.
“This discussion is part of the budget process. It’s something they’re looking at on a year-by-year basis,” said Alberta Parks spokesperson Katrina Bluetchen. “The issue has been raised in the past and right now is just part of internal discussions.”
The last deficit projection came in at $43 billion after the first-quarter update.
The province spends between $150,000 and $200,000 per winter grooming 75 kilometres of trails in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, which includes the popular Poccaterra ski area, Chester Lake and Burstall Pass.
Gillian Daffern is a member of the Kananaskis Trails Advisory Group. She’s on the fence when it comes to user fees.
“On one point, you pay a lot of tax money and it would help if that money went to parks. But perhaps we should be willing to pay a small amount to use the trails,” Daffern said. “I would not like to see a park fee. That was not the intention of Kananaskis Country.”
Daffern has spurred debate on her website, kananaskisblog.com, with those on both sides of the debate coming forward. She says there are many issues to consider when it comes to user fees. If fees do come, she’d like to see improvements to facilities. Some trailheads, such as Mount Shark, have very few services.
“We know there’s a deficit there, but why does (Alberta) Parks get dinged all the time?” she asked.
Avid Kananaskis Country user and founder of the University of Calgary’s Outdoor Centre, Alf Strastins, said he’d like to see a general park fee charged, similar to the Banff National Park model. That way, cross-country skiers wouldn’t be the only ones to bear the brunt of K-Country improvements.
“To approach it on a per person basis is an expensive way to go. Parking passes are easy to monitor and easy to get without a large expense for monitoring. The side benefit is it encourages car pooling,” Strastins said.
Maurice Gaucher of the Alberta Hiking Association is opposed to user fees on the trails, stating it would start a slippery slope of increased costs.
“This is just another tax on a particular slice of the community,” Gaucher said. “That’s no end to this. Once you open the door, you have a situation where you have a fee that will go up every year and the service will go down.”
He believes increased fees will not result in increased service and that the cost of running trails should come out of the health care budget. A small increase in the parks budget – the cost of a government Stampede breakfast – would pay for trails improvement, he said.
“There’s a misconception user fees equate perfect service. That’s garbage. You’re lucky if those fees don’t go to building a bridge somewhere else with nothing to do with cross-country skiing.”
Alberta Parks encourages those interested to contact their MLA or the ministry to voice their opinion.
