An increase in foot traffic in recent years has led Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which doesn’t have an entrance fee, to charge visitors to park.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which straddles North Carolina and Tennessee, is America’s most visited national park. In 2021, 14.1 million people visited it, more than Yosemite, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon combined.

Those visiting for more than 15 minutes must buy a parking tag.

Daily tags cost $5 and weekly tags $15 online and at machines inside the park. Annual tags go for $40.

Three special use permits waive the parking tag requirement: burials, cemetery visits and First Amendment activities, meaning political demonstrations and the like.

Over the past decade, visitation at Great Smoky Mountains National Park has increased by 57%, but the budget for the park, set by Congress, is not pegged to the amount of people that visit. With the amount appropriated to the park flat, inflation has left the park with less purchasing power, making fees necessary.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.