Bill to create Transit-to-Trails task force advances after broad support from conservation, transit and equity groups

Senate Bill 405 would create a Transit‑to‑Trails Task Force charged with identifying priority trailheads for public transit service, coordinating stakeholders and developing funding strategies to connect urban transit systems to parks and trailheads, the bill’s sponsor said during an Assembly Natural Resources Committee hearing.

Sen. Julie Pizzino, the bill sponsor, framed SB405 as an equity and public‑safety measure intended to reduce vehicle congestion at crowded trailheads, lower emissions and expand outdoor access for people who do not own cars. The task force’s proposed membership includes representatives from the Governor’s office, law enforcement, multiple regional transportation commissions (including Southern Nevada’s RTC and Washoe’s RTC), the Division of Outdoor Recreation, the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Tahoe Transportation District, and two public members; testifiers discussed adding tribal representation in practice.

A broad coalition of conservation organizations, transit agencies, outdoor-industry groups and community advocates testified in support. Witnesses included the Sierra Club Toiyabe Chapter, Nevada Conservation League, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, Nevada Environmental Justice Coalition, The Nature Conservancy (Nevada Chapter), Nevada Outdoor Business Coalition and the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada. Young testifiers and organizers from Make the Road Nevada and Youth Power Project highlighted transportation barriers that prevent low‑income families and youth from accessing trails.

Supporters described a set of practical problems the task force would address: crowded and unsafe parking at popular trailheads (particularly in winter conditions in the Lake Tahoe Basin), high ride‑hail costs to remote trailheads that effectively exclude low‑income residents, and public‑safety burdens when motorists become stranded. The bill directs the task force to identify funding sources including federal grants and private philanthropy, and to deliver recommendations to the Growth and Infrastructure interim committee (per the bill language).

Several witnesses raised tribal‑inclusion concerns during stakeholder outreach; proponents said they had solicited tribal input and agreed to work further to secure tribal participation among the task force’s public seats. No opposition callers were recorded during the hearing; the task force drew unanimous supportive testimony from a range of urban and rural stakeholders.

The committee took testimony and closed the hearing; no formal committee vote was recorded during this session.