Prescott Alternative Transportation

Anyone who travels around our community by pedal or foot knows all too well the importance of having safe and accessible routes.   Through education and advocacy, P.A.T. has been guiding the Prescott area towards a future with safe and convenient transportation options since 1997.

We have one of the leading Safe Routes to School programs in the state.  The SRTS program seeks to reverse the trend of declining physical activity in today’s children.

Over the course of the past 10 years, Prescott has become a destination for hundreds and hundreds of mountain bike enthusiasts.  The magnet that draws these riders to our community every spring is the Whiskey Off Road Mountain Bike Event. In 2012, the Whiskey Off Road drew 1750 entrants and more than 15,000 spectators.

Prescott Alternative Transportation has kicked off a campaign called “Town to Trails” that encourages mountain bikers and pedestrians to ride or walk from our downtown to the wonderful trails that, in some cases, are just 2 miles from the Courthouse Plaza.

The Prescott Circle Trail will be completed within the next few years and the Town to Trails campaign will create the spokes of the Prescott Circle Trail wheel. 

P.A.T. has worked to assure that active means of transportation are acknowledged as an essential element in new roadway projects. Our advocacy for a more bike and pedestrian friendly community has resulted in:

• White Spar Road Improvements to construct concrete curb, gutter, sidewalk and bike lanes from Peterson Lane to Copper Basin Road
• $750,000.00 in infrastructure improvements soon to be implemented around our area schools. SRTS has worked hard to make these improvements possible.
• In the fall of 2012 PAT secured funding for the first Walking School Bus program in Yavapai County.  This program has garnered the support of the community and is on track for expansion in 2013.
• Our current initiative for the "Town to Trails" plan has been embraced by the Parks and Recreation department as an important link to the Prescott Circle Trail.
• 2 League of American Cyclists Cycling Instructors on staff available to assist the community with cycling safety classes.

 

With the help of our community leaders and our citizens we can create a safe and fun environment to explore our surrounding natural environment for ourselves and our growing number of visitors. We can improve pedestrian and bicycle safety by informing motorists that there are other users of our roads.  We will also be able to erect “Share the Road” signs, apply pavement markings and create a community education system for bicycle and pedestrian safety.