Visitors to the Cleveland Towpath and the CVNP spent nearly $70 million in the region last year, a new National Park Service report says.

More than 2.4 million people visited the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, creating an overall impact of $87 million to the local economy according to the report “2016 National Park Visitor Spending Effects.”

“National park tourism is a significant driver in the national economy, returning $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service. And it’s a big factor in our local economy as well,” Deputy Superintendent Paul Stoehr said in a prepared statement.

The report showed $18.4 billion of direct spending by 331 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. The spending supported 318,000 jobs nationally and the benefit to the U.S. economy was $34.9 billion, it says.

The Cuyahoga Valley National Park spans 33,000 acres along the Cuyahoga River and is the 12th most-visited of the 59 national parks in the United States last year. It supported 1,085 jobs, according to the report.

Most of the national spending was for lodging (31.2 percent) followed by food and beverages (27.2 percent), gas and oil (11.7 percent), admissions and fees (10.2 percent) and souvenirs and other expenses (9.7 percent).