Price and Helper cities have joined together to bring an exciting new travel and history opportunity to the area through the TravelStorys app.
Price City Councilman Layne Miller has been working in conjunction with Carbon County as they utilize the app for Nine Mile Canyon. While working with the county, he saw that it would be a great opportunity to offer it in the cities as well. This app is GPS-oriented, meaning that whether the user in an area with cell service or not, the app will work.
Once an individual downloads the TravelStorys app, which is free for all users, nearby landmarks within Price and Helper will be brought to the user’s attention with a notification from their phone. An oral presentation will then guide the individual through both cities with historical information and facts. There will be ten stops in Helper and ten in Price.
While working on this project, Councilman Miller stated that he had the idea to bring in Helper as the two cities have a close working relationship. “It seemed right if we were going to do something like this, we should include Helper,” Councilman Miller stated.
Councilman Miller explained that the intention for Price is to direct people to the Peace Gardens and the library as there is free WiFi available. Once downloaded, the app may be utilized as a driving and walking tour with the verbal presentations. Once one presentation is complete, users will be directed to the next one.
The total for the app to start up and run throughout the first year is $10,000. A grant was received from Carbon County Tourism for $5,000. From there, both Price and Helper cities received grants of $2,500 each from the Coal Country Strike Team, meaning the grant money will cover the cost of the entire first year.
Following the fees for the first year, there is a yearly fee for maintenance and presence. However, the fee following the inaugural year is much less than the start-up cost. Councilman Miller stated that they are in the process now of identifying the different stops, with the Price town square being the starting point.
At this time, the sites have not yet been fully identified. Councilman Miller also stated that following the first year, if there is a desire to further the use of the app with more locations, that is a viable option. The hope is that the app will be ready for users to utilize in spring or early summer. In the future, once the cities are more oriented with the app, the hope is to have specific areas, such as restaurants, feature their menu.