Ready, set, search! It’s time for the second annual Car-Free Scavenger Hunt

Your mission, should you choose to accept it: grab a few friends and head downtown to explore the city as part of Car-Free St. Pete’s second annual Car-Free Scavenger Hunt.

The hunt, held as a one-day event in 2019, will run from Saturday, Dec. 12 through Sunday, Dec. 20. As the name suggests, participants will not be able to simply hop in their cars to to complete the hunt – they’ll have to get around using alternative transportation options such as buses, bikes and electric scooters. 

“Many residents aren’t aware of the variety of transportation options they have in St. Petersburg – or maybe they are but they haven’t tried them yet,” said Whitney Fox, PSTA’s director of communications and marketing. “This Car-Free Scavenger Hunt is a unique way for them to learn about PSTA’s new autonomous vehicle, where the free Looper trolley stops are located, how to download a scooter app and more.”

Along with the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership, Coast Bike Share and the Cross-Bay Ferry, PSTA is one of the partner organizations involved in Car-Free St. Pete. The group’s mission is to inspire the downtown community and its leaders to make thoughtful transportation choices to reduce the impact of driving alone, resulting in healthier individuals, safer streets, a cleaner environment and a stronger economy. 

How to play

The hunt works like this. Participants register online as individuals or part of a team and then watch their inbox for clues, which will begin appearing Saturday to correspond with the start of the event. They’ll also receive additional clues via snail mail throughout the week, along with Car-Free St. Pete merch. They can then begin deciphering the clues and head out on their car-free journeys to destinations around the downtown area, which they can document on Instagram at #CarFreeStPete. 

To get your creative juices flowing, here are a few examples of the clues provided last year:

• “Your destination is a place where anyone can sail away. This downtown spot is best for getting across the bay.”
• “Your next clue is in the 600-block alley with many mural hidden gems. Make sure to snap a unique photo with your favorite one of them!”
• “Take a photo in front of St. Pete’s downtown Pink Palace. Retrieve your next clue from the outdoor space where one may drink from a chalice.”

While participants don’t have to complete the entire challenge to play, each photo submitted gets them an additional entry into the grand prize giveaway for a year of free micromobility, which includes an annual membership to Coast Bike Share, a $100 gift certificate to use on the Veo electric scooter app and a Razor E Prime III electric scooter. The winner will be announced on Car-Free St. Pete’s social media page Dec. 21.

“Our participation in this year’s Car-Free Scavenger Hunt reflects Razor’s commitment to getting folks out of cars and building up St. Petersburg’s burgeoning public transit infrastructure,” said Brandon Cheung, Senior Manager of Government Relations at RAZOR USA. “We look forward to helping local residents explore downtown in a fun, safe and sustainable way.”