Visitor opinions about safety in the park
During this visit to Joshua Tree NP, most visitor groups (63%) felt that their personal property was “very safe” from crime in the park (see Figure 119). Thirty-two percent of visitor groups felt their personal property was “somewhat safe” and less than 3% felt it was “somewhat unsafe” or “very unsafe.” Visitor groups were then asked how safe they felt from crime against their persons during this visit. As shown in Figure 120, most visitor groups (75%) felt “very safe” and 20% felt “somewhat safe.” Less than 2% of visitor groups felt “somewhat unsafe” or “very unsafe.” in regard to personal safety from accidents in the park, 51% of visitor groups reported feeling “very safe” (see Figure 121). Another 37% felt “somewhat safe” and less than 5% felt “somewhat unsafe” or “very unsafe” from accidents against their persons during this visit to Joshua Tree NP.
Visitor groups who reported feeling “somewhat unsafe” or “very unsafe” were asked to explain why. The reasons that visitors felt unsafe in Joshua Tree NP included cars driving at high speeds, lack of marked bicycle lane, narrow and poor visibility on Lost Horse Mine dirt road, pull-off stops too small, drunk camping neighbors, being nervous of the rock boulders, and generally cautious feeling when sharing the campsites with strangers.
Visitor groups were also asked, “In preparing for this trip, what safety measures did you and your group take?” Most visitor groups (59%, N=308 groups) responded to this question. The safety measures reported by visitor groups are listed in Table 11.
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