Visitors to Longdale Campground on Canton Lake will have an easier time finding and reserving campsites at the park via the ‘New Way to Pay” pilot program at Canton Lake beginning, May 1.
Each of the park’s 34 sites are outfitted with a QR code that visitors can scan using their smart phones to make a reservation. The QR code links directly to the reservation page for that campsite on the National Recreation Reservation System website, Recreation.gov. Users can search availability and make a reservation on their phone before leaving the campground.
“'New way to pay' will provide an additional option to ease the process of finding the site you want,” said Jason Knight, a Recreation Management Specialist at the Tulsa District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “If visitors see a site they want to reserve they can go over to the site and scan the QR code with their phone to make a reservation.”
The park will continues to allow cash payment and online reservations through desktop or laptop computers but Knight said he hopes visitors will find benefit in the program.
“This is something we hope the public will take hold of and like it,” said Knight. “It’s all about giving visitors the power to search for the sites they want to reserve and easing the reservation process.”
A master code has been placed on the Gate House at the park entrance so visitors can search for available camping spots throughout the campground.
The ‘New Way to Pay’ pilot program is a Tulsa District Innovation Team initiative in the works since October 2017. The team began researching the option as a way to improve customer service for campers.
Canton Lake Park Ranger, Shawna Polen, believes customers will appreciate the ease of access.
“The beauty of this way of ‘New Way to Pay’is that when they scan the QR code it takes them directly to that campsite’s availability and reservation.
The sites details are right in front of them, which gives that customer immediate access to information about that site, and the ability to reserve the campsite without searching through several pages on NRRS.”
Customers can still pay by cash or check at the payment vault in the park, call the NRRS number for reservation inquiries, or make reservations online from their home.
If ‘New Way to Pay’ pilot is successful at Longdale, other Tulsa District parks will likely incorporate it at their campgrounds.