Trails&Rails 2023 National Conference

NPS Director Sams speaks with conference attendees at the Main Interior Building about his personal connections with the railroad and how the Trails&Rails volunteer program can help support his priorities.

NPS

Representatives from Amtrak, Texas A&M University, American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association, Yale University, and other partners met for three days with National Park Service staff in Washington D.C. to plan future developments for the Amtrak - National Park Service Trails & Rails Program. Over 40 attendees heard from Chuck Sams (Director of the National Park Service), Stephen Gardner (Amtrak CEO), and Bob Stanton (Former NPS Director), each express their vision of how the partnership continues to reach out to diverse audiences and enhance the passenger experience.

Several other senior managers from both Amtrak and the National Park Service, added their ideas for future collaborations efforts. Attendees had opportunities to participate in several workshops dealing with a variety of subject matters. Such as the interpretation of contested history, empowering volunteers to serve as program leaders, tips on developing promotional materials for social media, and developing academic and internship partnerships with institutions of higher learning. Overall the three-day conference was a major success, with volunteers, NPS and Amtrak staff, partner representatives and senior management officials all coming together to invest their time into planning for the future of Trails&Rails.

Since the inception of the program in 2000, over 10,200 National Park Service volunteers have boarded Amtrak trains; serving on as many as 20 Amtrak routes across the country to share information on our nation’s national parks and public lands. Over 8,000,000 passengers have participated in more than 40,000 programs provided by T&R volunteers. These dedicated volunteers have contributed a value of over $13,000,000 over the course of the past 23 years. Park and national events are also promoted by T&R including the NPS Centennial, National Park Week, National Train Days, Rail Heritage events, and National Public Lands Day.

The Trails & Rails program is a partnership between the National Park Service, Amtrak®, and the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences at Texas A&M University. The program provides rail passengers with educational opportunities that foster an appreciation of a selected region’s natural and cultural heritage; promotes National Park Service sites, protected areas and public lands; provides a value-added service to encourage train ridership; and encourages volunteerism across the country. All while simultaneously renewing the long tradition of associating railroads with National Parks. As Trails & Rails approaches its 25th anniversary in 2025, the program continues to provide an opportunity for the NPS to engage with new audiences and promote our national parks.

If you or someone you know are interested in volunteering with Trails&Rails, or with other NPS volunteer opportunities, please go to www.nps.gov/volunteer or www.volunteer.gov