Submitted by Kris Thompson on Sun, 01/15/2012 - 09:35

in Commuting World Cycling News
From Boulder .gov website

Driven to Drive to Less, a city campaign that challenges residents to ditch their car at least once a week, has crunched its first-year numbers. Here are some of the highlights:

- Boulder residents, employees and students reduced car miles travel by 803,816;
- Single-occupant vehicle trips to/from work or school decreased by 38 percent;
- Bike commuting increased by 44 percent;
- Transit use increased by 27 percent.

Numbers are based on before and after survey data collected about participants trips to and from work or school.

The campaign uses a game-style participation model, where the color of one’s car dictates the day they do not drive. More than 1000 participants took the Driven to Drive Less pledge. One year after the pledge, the average participant reduced his or her weekly vehicle miles of travel (VMT) by 15.5 miles or approximately 800 miles for the year.

The total annual reduction of 803,816 VMT equates to 722,000 pounds of CO2 not being emitted.

A Driven to Drive Less celebration and award ceremony will be held at Alfalfa’s Market as part of 2012 Winter Bike to Work Day.

The campaign will recognize participants at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 18, at Alfalfa’s breakfast station. The grand prize, an electric bicycle from Pete’s Electric Bikes, will be awarded to one of three finalists based on essays written about how the campaign impacted their lives and how they got around town. Second and third place prizes will also be given out.

The Driven to Drive Less Campaign was supported in part by a federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality grant, the City of Boulder and local sponsors, which included Noodles & Company, Backpacker Magazine, Full Cycle, The Sink, Pete’s Electric Bikes, Eco Products, The Onion, eGo Car Share, Community Cycles and Downtown Boulder Inc.