‘Share the Parkway’ Campaign Kicks Off

TUPELO, Miss. (Press Release) — The National Park Service and its partners, the Natchez Trace Parkway Association and Adventure Cycling Association, announce the beginning of a campaign to “Share the Parkway.” The campaign will kick-off with three focus group meetings next week during which participants will discuss specific questions about enhancing user safety on the Parkway.

“You have a national park is your own backyard!” reminds Superintendent Mary Risser. “Congress established the Natchez Trace Parkway as a part of the National Park Service system in 1938. The Parkway commemorates the historic travel corridor known as the Natchez Trace, which is one of the oldest transportation routes in North America. The Parkway’s narrow lanes are integral to the designed landscape and a leisurely driving experience – for which the Parkway was created.”

In 2013, there were 6 million people who used and visited the Parkway, which makes it the 8th most visited National Park Service site in the nation. When the commuters in the Tupelo and Ridgeland area are included in the equation, more than 14.7 million people used the Parkway – all of whom are visitors to this unique National Park Service unit.

The “Share the Parkway” campaign will strive to create an atmosphere of responsibility and ownership of the Natchez Trace Parkway as a unit of the National Park Service and as a recreational treasure that should be shared safety by all Parkway users. Three focus group meetings will be held to gain an understanding of the perspectives about safety and shared use of the Parkway from various road users and the general public.

In the Ridgeland/Jackson area, the focus group meeting will be
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
Indian Cycle Bike Shop
677 S. Pear Orchard Road
Ridgeland, MS
3 pm until 7 pm

In the Tupelo area, the focus group meeting will be
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Bancorp South Conference Center
387 East Main Street
Tupelo, MS
3 pm until 7 pm

In the Nashville area, the focus group meeting will be
Friday, September 26, 2014
Warner Park Nature Center
7311 Highway 100
Nashville, TN
10 am until 2 pm

At the focus group meetings, participants will discuss specific questions, such as “What are some ways that cyclists and motorists can safely share the Parkway? What is the significance of the Natchez Trace Parkway for you? How can we increase cooperation, understanding, and respect between cyclists and motorists? What are the best ways to reach out and educate local and visiting motorists and cyclists about sharing the road safely? What are participant’s impressions of the sharrows? Signs?

Information from the focus groups will be used to help develop a comprehensive project to enhance safety on the Parkway for all of our visitors.