As part of a collaborative effort to advance and learn about emerging mobility technologies, National Park Service (NPS) and the state of Michigan launched the National Parks Michigan Mobility Challenge (NPMMC) in August 2023. NPMMC was an industry challenge aimed at identifying and deploying emerging mobility and electrification pilots in a recreational environment in and around NPS units in Michigan. In July 2024, Michigan announced three grants under this federal partnership to enhance access and visitor experience at National Parks across the state of Michigan. 

The U.S. DOT Volpe Center assisted NPS and Michigan with project management and the development of the challenge and review process. The initial goal of the NPMMC was to use emerging mobility and electrification pilots to provide new mobility options for NPS visitors through technology demonstrations and evaluations.  

The challenge invited mobility companies, local governments, and partners to propose solutions to one or more of the three “Areas of Innovation” identified by NPS and the state of Michigan through engagement with the parks and partners, including:  

1. Multimodal electric community charging hubs to create electric vehicle charging hubs at community locations that will be among the first to provide multimodal charging for recreational visitors to NPS sites; 
2. Micromobility concepts to identify innovative micromobility technologies and business models that can be deployed in and around NPS units in Michigan; and  
3. Small-scale electric shuttles and automated driving systems (ADS) to learn how the next generation of these technologies may perform in a park setting―connecting visitors to park destinations and surrounding communities, reducing the environmental impact of visitation, alleviating parking and roadway congestion in busy areas, and improving access for persons with disabilities.  

The U.S. DOT Volpe Center’s work builds upon the November 2021 Memorandum of Understanding between U.S. DOT and the Department of the Interior on Transportation Innovation in the National Park System, by providing expertise to NPS and the state of Michigan to develop a strategy that will help national parks adapt to and proactively address emerging mobility trends.  

Over the course of the project, the U.S. DOT Volpe Center team has:  

• Supported project discussions with NPS park units, the state of Michigan, and other NPMMC project partners; 
• Developed challenge statements for each of the three areas of innovation;  
• Developed the NPMMC submittal and review processes; and  
• Reviewed and provided preliminary evaluations of challenge submissions.  

The challenge invited ideas for four of Michigan’s five National Park units―Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Keweenaw National Historical Park, and River Raisin National Battlefield Park. This project is now leading to the implementation of emerging mobility and electrification projects in an outdoor recreation environment, and will inform the development of similar projects in the state of Michigan and throughout the U.S. 

The first of the projects began in August 2024 at Sleeping Bear Dunes with a plan to run the automated bus service through early October 2024. The U.S. DOT Volpe Center will provide ongoing support to NPS and the state of Michigan by evaluating proposals and implementing successful submissions.  

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