An illustrative view of Big Cypress wetland habitat.
The National Park Service is proposing a rule change that could allow designated off-road vehicle routes in roughly 147,000 acres of Big Cypress National Preserve known as the Addition Lands. The public can comment through 11:59 p.m. EDT on Dec. 1.
The proposal has drawn sharply different responses. Conservation advocates warn about added pressure on a sensitive landscape and question whether the Park Service has enough staff to oversee it. Off-road access supporters say the change could help end a decades-long closure and restore managed access to historic routes.
The distinction at the heart of the debate: the proposal would not permit unrestricted cross-country driving, and the Addition Lands are not open to recreational off-road vehicles now. It would give the preserve superintendent authority to designate routes there, subject to the agency’s planning and management decisions.
What the proposed rule would change
The Addition Lands were added to Big Cypress in 1988. But the preserve’s existing off-road vehicle regulations still refer to a 1975 map, created before the expansion. In its Oct. 2 proposed rule, the NPS proposes to replace those map references with one showing the preserve’s current boundary.
The practical effect would be to let the superintendent designate off-road vehicle routes in the Addition under the existing regulatory framework. Until that authority is in place, the Park Service says the Addition Lands remain closed to recreational off-road vehicle use. The agency’s current closures page also says secondary trails remain closed.
This is not a proposal for vehicles to roam freely across the 147,000 acres. The NPS’s 2024 Backcountry Access Plan Record of Decision selected a designated-route approach, and the proposed rule says the superintendent would designate routes consistent with that decision. The vehicles covered include trucks, swamp buggies, airboats and hovercraft; boats propelled through the water by a propeller are excluded, according to the Federal Register notice and WGCU’s reporting.
WGCU’s map shows areas that could be made available for designated routes under the proposal. Source: WGCU.
The route plan behind the debate
The rulemaking is tied to the NPS’s 2024 Backcountry Access Plan, a broader plan for motorized and nonmotorized access across Big Cypress. Its selected alternative calls for reopening 15 miles of primary trails and 39 miles of airboat trails, adding 56 miles of secondary trails, and bringing primary and airboat trail mileage to about 331 miles. The plan also replaces the old annual 60-day closure with targeted closures in problem areas, according to the Record of Decision.
Those are plan figures, not a claim that every route is open today. The NPS says trail implementation will be phased, subject to available resources and additional site-specific work. Its designated-trail page says secondary routes remain closed pending further environmental review.
The agency’s Oct. 1 announcement says the rule would allow the superintendent to establish a network using existing historic trails, following site-specific surveys. Superintendent Tom Forsyth said the NPS is “committed to balancing public access with conservation.”
Illustrative image; it does not depict a specific proposed route.
Panther deaths sharpen conservation concerns
Big Cypress is part of the Everglades watershed and habitat for Florida panthers. In 2026, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has recorded 15 panther deaths, all attributed to vehicle strikes, on its Panther Pulse page.
The proposed western area borders State Road 29, which WGCU describes as a panther-collision hotspot. FWC’s 2026 list includes two vehicle-strike deaths recorded along SR 29. The figures are a stark reminder of vehicle risks in the region, but they do not show that the proposed routes caused those deaths or that the proposal has already changed conditions.
Illustrative wildlife image; this is not an animal involved in a reported collision.
Elise Bennett, Florida and Caribbean director of the Center for Biological Diversity, told WGCU the proposal is “the wrong activity in the wrong place.” She also raised concerns about the Park Service being “underfunded and understaffed,” arguing that added motorized use could be difficult to oversee. Those are the group’s concerns; the NPS says its plan would concentrate use on designated routes and include conservation safeguards.
Supporters point to access and tradition
The NPS says the preserve has a history of off-road vehicle use dating to the 1930s, and the Federal Register notice cites Congress’s intent to allow such use when carefully regulated. The agency says designated routes can provide recreation, backcountry access and access to hunting areas and camps during hunting seasons.
The BlueRibbon Coalition supports the proposal, describing it as a chance to end what it calls a 30-year trail closure in the Addition Lands. That is an advocacy group’s position, not an NPS finding. The conservation debate also has organized opposition online, including a GreaterGood petition and an action page from More Than Just Parks. These campaigns are separate from the official federal comment process.
As of Saturday morning, Oct. 31, the Federal Register docket showed 181 comments. The agency will review comments before making a final decision.
How to weigh in by Dec. 1
Submit comments through the Federal Register rule page, which links to the Regulations.gov submission form. The docket is NPS-2026-0199 and the rule’s RIN is 1024-AE54. Comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. EDT on Dec. 1, 2026.
The Federal Register says comments may be posted publicly, including personal information submitted with them. For mail-in instructions and other details, consult the official rule notice.
Readers who want their views included in the rulemaking record should submit a comment directly to the federal docket. A useful comment can explain whether you support or oppose the rule and why, including concerns or support related to designated routes, wildlife, enforcement, the Everglades watershed or public access.
For more regional reporting, see South Florida Digest’s coverage of Everglades restoration and water conditions. The Big Cypress decision is still pending; the public comment deadline is the next key date.
