After the government failed to come to an agreement on Monday night, many people with travel plans woke up on Tuesday with questions about how that shutdown will affect their plans.
"Previous experience tells us that a shutdown unnecessarily disrupts economic activity in communities large and small that depend upon travel spending for employment and tax revenue," Roger Dow, the president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association told the International Business Time.
The government furlough is expected to have a minimal effect on air and land travel, but many other travel processes may face closures and delays.
Among the many places that will face closures include the National Park Services (NPS), which include Yosemite National Park, Yellowstone National Park and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, all of which will also be requiring any current campers to vacate the area within two days. Additional parks and museums that fall under NPS purview include the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the Statue of Liberty.
Closed monuments and memorials will include all 19 museums under the Smithsonian Institution. Among museum overseen by the Smithsonian are the Lincoln Memorial and the National Zoo.
Airports may face delays resulting from furloughed employees and the same problem is possible at passport offices, both of which will remain open during the government shutdown.
"The closure of national parks and federal historic sites to millions of travelers - coupled with the general perception of an uncertain travel process - would do serious and immediate harm to the economy," Dow said of the impending shutdown and its far reaching effects on the population. "While we recognize that basic travel functions will continue, we are concerned that federal agencies will quickly be forced to implement shutdown policies that will damage the travel experience and derail long-term, bipartisan investments in our travel infrastructure."
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
