Press Release
For Immediate Release
April 25, 2024
Contact
Lilliane Webb
328 S. Fifth Ave.,
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104
734-219-6596
LWebb@TheRide.org
ANN ARBOR, MI – The getDowntown Program has announced sign up is open for the 2024 Commuter Challenge. Each year, the Commuter Challenge runs May 1 – 31 and encourages people working in southeast Michigan to commute via walking, biking, carpooling, vanpooling, and taking the bus. The Ann Arbor area competition is incentivizing commuters to start forming their teams and logging trips.
“Warmer weather, longer days, and sustainability being top of mind all make now the perfect time to start an active commute or use shared transportation,” noted getDowntown program director Lilliane Webb. This year’s Commuter Challenge offers opportunities to win prizes April through June for people who work in the cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti and Ypsilanti Township.
In a contest occurring before the Commuter Challenge, two $50 gift cards will be provided to two participants who start logging trips on getDowntown’s challenge website, www.commuteandwin.org, during April, which is Earth Month.
Participants in the Commuter Challenge can earn prizes by logging trips taken by bus, bike, carpool and other non-car transportation. Available prizes include a free scoop of ice cream from Washtenaw Dairy and unique patches. In addition to the individual prizes, several local workplaces will be recognized for achieving high employee participation in the Commuter Challenge and awarded a catered lunch celebration.
“Employers play a large role in setting norms for the workplace,” continued Lilliane Webb. “It’s helpful when employers emphasize to employees that biking, buses, and carpooling are encouraged forms of transportation to reach their workplace.”
Organizations who create teams for their employees on the challenge website can track estimated greenhouse gas savings and other sustainability measures achieved by their team. Community members are invited to continue using the website to log trips and win various gift cards through the end of the A2Zero Week celebration on June 15.
To join the Commuter Challenge and related contests, interested individuals can register and log their alternative commutes on commuteandwin.org. A listing of prizes, rules, commuting resources, and video tutorials on how to get started are available on www.getDowntown.org.
The Commuter Challenge is organized by the Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (TheRide) and the getDowntown Program in partnership with the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority and the City of Ann Arbor. For up-to-date information on this and other benefits of commuting by alternative modes of transportation, visit http://www.getdowntown.org/.