Funding sustainable paddle trail development: paddler perspectives, willingness to pay and management implications

Abstract

Paddle sports (kayaking, canoeing) are a growing tourism niche and an activity that can bring sustainable rural tourism development and economic regeneration. Managing sustainable paddle trail growth is complex, involving coordination among government bodies, consensus from landowners and funding acquisition for safe access sites, signage, maps and other amenities. This paper explores the paddle-trail-related literature and the many different funding options to manage the creation and maintenance of paddle trails. An Internet survey of 1851 respondents determined support for a variety of user funding mechanisms for trail development as well as paddler perceptions about trail development as a viable form of economic development. The results indicate that women and recreational paddlers are more likely to support funding mechanisms, in addition to paddlers who consider paddle trail development a form of economic development. Paddlers who did not support any user funding mechanism were male, employed in the private sector, avid paddlers, and those who owned boats. It is observed that awareness of paddle trails’ value as an economic regeneration tool increases the willingness to pay. A range of management implications from this research are discussed, including information and educational programs, marketing partnerships and targeted incentive offers to those groups that are unwilling to pay.

资助可持续的划浆运动路线的发展：划浆者的看法，消费的意愿，和管理上的含义

划浆类运动（如皮划艇和独木舟）是一个正在成长的专项旅游，并且是能带来可持续性乡村旅游发展和经济复兴。管理可持续的划浆运动路线发展是复杂的，它包括了政府部门之间的协调，土地拥有者的一致意见，和为安全设施，指示牌，地图和其他设施设立的资金集资。该文章探讨了划浆运动路线的相关文献，和为管理创造和维持路线而需要的不同的资金获取途径作研究。该研究通过网上调查收集了1851份回执。这些反馈着重于对划浆运动路线发展的集资方法和划浆者对该活动的经济效益的看法。结论显示女性和休闲为目的的划浆者，还有同意划浆运动路线发展是一种经济发展的划浆者，都更容易支持集资的途径。那些不支持任何集资途径的划浆者都是男性，在私有企业里工作，热衷于划浆运动的划浆者和那些自己拥有船的划浆者。研究认识到能有将划浆路线的价值看成经济复兴的工具的意识能提升消费的意愿。在该研究中一系列的管理方法都有讨论到，包括信息和教育项目，市场营销合作关系和对那些不愿意消费的人群做有目标的刺激消费活动。

Keywords:

• paddle trail
• funding
• fees
• resource management
• economic development
• tourism

关键词:

• 划浆运动路线
• 集资
• 费用
• 资源管理
• 经济发展

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Marlise Moody from the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development, Raleigh, North Carolina, for visitation statistics on North Carolina visitation, and Ken Cordell of the Southern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Athens, Georgia, for access to NSRE fee data. Additionally, Darrell McBane and Bayard Alcorn from the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources provided the data from the 2008 Paddling Tourism Study as well as fee information from North Carolina State Parks. Thank you to Brian Bulla for developing the map of NC paddle trails.