releases: https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-disappointed-national-zoo-refuses-to-extend-zoo-loop-trail-hours
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| url | title | date | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
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| https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-disappointed-national-zoo-refuses-to-extend-zoo-loop-trail-hours | Norton Disappointed National Zoo Refuses to Extend Zoo Loop Trail Hours, Will Explore Legislative Options to Extend Hours | 2022-11-03 | 2022 | 2022-11 | Democrat | House | DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | N000147 | norton.house.gov | norton | https://norton.house.gov/media/press-releases | scraper | WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), who yesterday met with the National Zoo, the National Park Service (NPS), and the District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) to discuss the Zoo Loop Trail's limited hours, today said she was disappointed the zoo rejected her request to extend the hours. Norton said she will explore legislative options to extend the hours and continue to have discussions with the zoo, NPS, DDOT, and the community on options for extending the hours. The trail, which runs through the zoo's grounds in Rock Creek Park and recently reopened to the public, is only open from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The zoo says that the trail hours are tied to the zoo's hours of operations to maintain accreditation with the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, since the trail runs through the zoo's secondary containment perimeter. Norton presented the zoo with several ways to extend the hours, including moving the secondary fencing, hiring a security guard or installing cameras to monitor the gate after the zoo closes, extending the zoo's hours, and reconfiguring the gate to close automatically after each person passes through, but the zoo rejected all of them. According to the zoo, it must have a critical mass of staff, including animal keepers, on site when the gate is open in case an animal escapes from its enclosure. The zoo also said moving the fence to separate the trail from the zoo grounds was neither feasible nor cost-effective in the near term. "As chair of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, I am a strong supporter of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure," said Norton. "I will explore legislative options to extend the Zoo Loop Trail hours and continue to have discussions with the agencies and the community on options to extend the hours." ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T01:40:41Z | 2026-04-08T03:24:37Z |