Skip to content
ORWELL INDEX
Active Updated

Yosemite National Park | License plate readers

Yosemite uses license plate reader cameras for traffic counts and travel times. The park reports seven active sites, while its partner reported more than 50 cameras at more than 14 locations in 2025. The public records do not yet resolve which company supplied the system.

At a glance

Sites active
7 [5]
2025 deployment
more than 50 cameras at more than 14 locations [2]
Image retention
30 days, except during system development [5]
Plate-derived text retention
anonymized and kept indefinitely [5]
Vendor
NPS says Yosemite uses no Flock product. A 2026 news report says NPS bought Flock cameras installed in Yosemite, but its Yosemite source chain relies on crowdsourced mapping. No procurement record available in the sources reviewed resolves the conflict. [5] [6]
Program cost
not stated on the NPS and Yosemite Conservancy program pages reviewed [2] [3] [5]

How it happened

  1. Context

    The visitor-access plan considers license plate reader technology

    The draft plan says entrance-station technologies, including license plate readers and improved scanners, would be evaluated to reduce processing time and vehicle queues. [4]

  2. Debate

    NPS holds a visitor-access open house in Mariposa

    The meeting concerned the draft visitor-access plan, which included evaluation of license plate readers. The notice does not establish that attendees discussed the cameras. [7] [4]

  3. Deployment

    A partner reports 40 cameras installed that summer

    A Yosemite Conservancy board packet reports that 40 live-streaming license plate reader cameras were installed throughout the park. It also describes dashboards for wait times, vehicle return rates, dwell time, turnover, and visitor patterns. [1]

  4. Expansion

    The third-year project describes about 50 cameras

    The Conservancy describes approximately 50 cameras at up to 15 locations and plans involving entry automation, fee collection, data management, and visualization. [3]

  5. Expansion

    The 2025 recap reports more than 50 cameras

    Yosemite Conservancy reports that more than 50 license plate reader cameras operated at more than 14 locations during 2025. The recap also says the system matched vehicles to reservations at entrance gates. [2]

  6. Context

    NPS publishes the current locations and data rules

    NPS reports seven active sites and says other 2025 sites are inactive but could return. It states that images are kept for 30 days outside system development and that anonymized text is kept indefinitely. It also states that Yosemite uses no Flock hardware or software. [5]

  7. Coverage

    New reporting disputes the park's vendor statement

    404 Media reports that NPS purchased Flock cameras installed in Yosemite and that an unpublished internal document describes planned Verkada cameras. The article's Yosemite attribution relies on earlier crowdsourced mapping rather than a public procurement record. [6]

What the department asked for

Yosemite’s 2024 draft visitor-access plan said the National Park Service would evaluate license plate readers and improved scanners at entrance stations. The stated purpose was to reduce processing time and vehicle queues. The plan also considered removing temporary reservation checkpoints if passive scanning or license plate readers were implemented.[4]

The Conservancy’s 2026 project page describes a wider vehicle-management program. It connects the cameras with entry automation, fee collection, reservation monitoring, traffic analysis, and data visualization.[3]

When it started operating

A Yosemite Conservancy board packet dated October 18, 2024 reports that 40 live-streaming license plate reader cameras had been installed throughout the park that summer. It says NPS was developing dashboards for entrance waits, vehicle return rates, dwell time, turnover, and visitor patterns.[1]

The Conservancy’s recap for 2025 reports more than 50 cameras at more than 14 locations. It also says the system matched vehicles to reservations at entrance gates.[2] The 2026 project page describes approximately 50 cameras at up to 15 locations.[3]

What the agency says

NPS now describes seven active sites. Four measure entrance waits. One counts traffic on Glacier Point Road. Two count vehicles entering and leaving the eastern part of Yosemite Valley. The page also names five sites used in 2025 that are inactive but may return.[5]

NPS says the system is for traffic monitoring and is not connected to a law enforcement or motor vehicle database. The same page allows release of records for defined investigations, vehicle-location and missing-person purposes, and valid requests or legal requirements from other agencies.[5]

The vendor is disputed. NPS states that Yosemite does not use Flock cameras, readers, or software. 404 Media reported on August 18, 2026 that NPS purchased Flock cameras installed in Yosemite. Its Yosemite source chain relies on earlier crowdsourced mapping, and the internal document it cites for planned Verkada cameras was not published.[5][6]

What governs it

The current NPS page says images are kept for 30 days except during system development. It says the associated text is anonymized and kept indefinitely. Access to footage and underlying data is limited to staff who manage the program, while broader statistics and wait times are shared with park staff and the public.[5]

The public program pages reviewed do not identify the procurement, total cost, configured anonymization method, records schedule, or audit procedure.[2][3][5]

Questions

Why does Yosemite use license plate readers?
NPS says the system measures entrance wait times, counts vehicles in defined corridors, and calculates travel times by matching a vehicle seen at two points. [5]
How many Yosemite license plate reader cameras are active?
NPS reports seven active sites as of August 12, 2026. Yosemite Conservancy reported more than 50 cameras at more than 14 locations during 2025. Cameras and sites are different units, and NPS says several 2025 sites are now inactive but could return. [2] [5]
How long does Yosemite keep license plate reader data?
NPS says images are kept for 30 days except during system development. It says associated text is anonymized and kept indefinitely. [5]
Can law enforcement get Yosemite license plate reader records?
Yes, under conditions listed by NPS. The park says it may release records for a qualifying existing investigation, a valid vehicle-location or missing-person purpose, or a valid request or legal requirement from another agency. [5]
Does Yosemite use Flock Safety?
The public record is disputed. NPS says Yosemite uses no Flock cameras, readers, or software. 404 Media reported that NPS bought Flock cameras installed in Yosemite, but the article does not cite a Yosemite procurement record. The contract and equipment inventory remain open. [5] [6]

On the map

The community has mapped 19 devices of this type in the county on OpenStreetMap. These are community reports: the vendor and operator of each point are unverified, and none is confirmed to belong to this system. See them on the map →

Street names from reverse geocoding — © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

What we do not know

What you can do

Show up

Systems like this one are approved by boards, councils and committees that meet in public. We have not yet confirmed where each of them meets in Mariposa County.

What we have documented in Mariposa County →

Protect yourself

Practical steps to shrink your personal data trail. Our guides publish at launch; until then, EFF's Surveillance Self-Defense is the best starting point.

Surveillance Self-Defense →

Sources

  1. 1.
    Yosemite Conservancy Board and Council packet, October 18, 2024 (page 43) · Primary document · · accessed · archived copy
  2. 2.
    Yosemite Conservancy, "Yosemite in 2025: Impact and Progress" · Primary document · · accessed · archived copy
  3. 3.
    Yosemite Conservancy, "Exploring Vehicle Management Systems" (2026 project) · Primary document · accessed · archived copy
  4. 4.
    National Park Service, Yosemite Visitor Access Management Plan Draft and Environmental Assessment · Primary document · accessed · archived copy
  5. 5.
    National Park Service, "Yosemite License Plate Reader Cameras" · Primary document · · accessed · archived copy
  6. 6.
    404 Media, "The National Park Service Is Using Flock. Rangers Are Pissed" · News · · accessed · archived copy
  7. 7.
    National Park Service, Yosemite Visitor Access Management Plan public meeting notices · Primary document · accessed · archived copy

Get the digest

A regular digest of what changed in the world of surveillance: the counties we published, the devices that appeared on the map, and the public meetings where these decisions get made. We send it when there is enough to report.

Subscribe to the newsletter

One click to unsubscribe. What we do with your address is on the newsletter page.