This past summer, our local regional planning and air quality authority, the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA), challenged northeast Ohio workplaces to reduce atmospheric pollutants. The region has recently failed 3 of 6 pollutants in the National Ambient Air Quality Standards under the Clean Air Act. Vehicle emissions have been shown to be a major source of these pollutants.
In June, NOACA held the June Clean Air Commuter Challenge to encourage commuters to walk, bike, take RTA, or carpool, instead of driving their own vehicle. CWRU rose to the challenge, with more than 6,700 commuting miles and 674 trips logged using the GOhio Commute online trip-planning tool. 34% of commuters biked, 33% drove alone, 12% rode RTA, 10% carpooled, 5% walked, 3% telecommuted, and 3% logged a day off. In total, CWRU reduced harmful air pollutants and saved 750,000 lbs of CO2 using alternative transportation!
Thank you to our top CWRU trip loggers!
Janice Gerda: most walking trips (20)
Katie Skapin: most trips logged (44) and most carpools (42
Marie Vibbert: most biking trips (32)
Sienna Warshawsky: most RTA trips (28)
Those who logged their commute were celebrated with breakfast and conversation in early August with the Office for Sustainability.
Stay tuned for our next commuter challenge, when you can try a new day to get to and from campus!