Regional Secretariat for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructures implements PRIS signage and reinforces signposting of hiking trails on Pico Island - Communication

Secretaria Regional do Turismo, Mobilidade e Infraestruturas

The Regional Secretariat for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructures, through the Regional Directorate for Tourism, is implementing a series of measures for the qualification and improvement of several officially approved hiking trails that are part of the regional network, with a view to a continuous improvement of their quality and safety.

These measures included the placement of several signposts on all approved hiking trails on the island of Pico and the implementation of PRIS (Rapid Intervention and Rescue Plan) signposts on 10 hiking trails on the same island. The initiative involved the collaboration of the Regional Secretariat for the Environment and Climate Change, through the Pico Island Environment and Climate Change Service in conjunction with the municipalities of São Roque do Pico and Lajes do Pico.

PRIS consists of the implementation of numbered and georeferenced signposts every 500 m along the trails. It aims to create easily identifiable points for rescue authorities, reducing the intervention time in rescue situations.

Currently, the Pico network of hiking trails has 13 approved trails with an overall length of 115 km. The implementation of PRIS covered 88 km. All the hiking trails on the island are operational and open to hiking activities.

Moreover, PRIS provides for the training and qualification of the entities responsible for rescue operations as well as for dissemination initiatives among various tourist agents and the general public.

PRIS is currently implemented on six islands: Corvo, Pico, São Jorge, Terceira, São Miguel and Santa Maria.