Spring arrived just in time for Missoula In Motion’s (www.missoulainmotion.com) annual Commuter Challenge.  Record numbers of Missoulians took the challenge and found a way to get to work other than driving alone in their car. 

One hundred twenty-seven (127) Missoula businesses and organizations competed in the annual Commuter Challenge, and over 1050 individuals reported more than 4075 sustainable commutes by the end of the week.  Businesses and organizations were divided by size and type and winners were declared based on level of staff participation.  With so much energy and enthusiasm, the competition was fierce - there was a five-way tie in the small non-profit category with all five businesses reporting "Perfect, Perfect Participation" (100% of their employees used sustainable transportation for 100% of their commutes during the challenge period).

The Commuter Challenge is a business-to-business competition sponsored by Missoula In Motion. It is aimed at raising awareness and rewarding commuters who choose sustainable transportation for their work commute during Missoula’s Bike Walk Bus Week. The 2011 Commuter Challenge was from Sunday, May 1st, through Saturday, May 7th. It is a way to try a new commute, get back to old habits or be rewarded for your everyday sustainable commute ritual.

"We're not sure if Missoulians were excited about the prospect of Spring after such a long winter or if rising gas prices made folks think twice about how they get to work, but we've had more businesses register for the Commuter Challenge than any previous year," said Missoula In Motion Program Supervisor, Alexandria Stokman.

The recently released AAA Driving Cost Report  (http://www.aaanewsroom.net/Main/Default.asp?CategoryID=4&ArticleID=835) indicated that the operating cost (gas, maintenance and tires) for the average sedan was 17.74 cents/mile; a 5.97% increase over the previous year.  With the average roundtrip commute for Missoula residents at 12 miles, that round trip costs $2.13 per day and that is based on a study completed when gas was only $2.88/gallon. 

Sunday Streets Missoula June 2011

The second Sunday Streets Missoula event took place on June 5, 2011, transforming 1.7 miles of downtown roadway, trails and parks into a car-free environment.  A free event for the entire community, Sunday Streets Missoula featured over 50 activities that encouraged recreation, exercise, family fun, and sustainable transportation choices in the street and adjacent parks.  From 10am to 4pm, well over 6,000 people participated in healthy physical activities, supported active transportation choices, and celebrated Missoula as a bikeable and walkable community.   

The day began with a “Geezer Ride” hosted by Missoulians on Bicycles, and included other biking and walking events, a proclamation of “Neighbor Day” by the mayor, and dozens of activities.  Over 40% of participants rode their bikes downtown and took advantage of a 1.6 mile Ciclovía-type route that coursed through downtown and along the riverfront trail system.  As people leisurely walked across the Higgins Avenue Bridge, they were able to take in the panoramic vistas, or contribute to the chalk mosaic in the middle of the street.

More information about Sunday Streets Missoula can be found at www.sundaystreetsmissoula.org, where a final report from our September 2010 event lives.  Also, Street Plans is compiling information about open streets initiatives all over North America, and will include information about Sunday Streets Missoula in their guide.  More information about their project and the proliferation of open streets events can be found here: http://bit.ly/openstreets.   

Modeled after the famed Ciclovía in Bogotá, Columbia, Sunday Streets Missoula is one of the most recent implementations of this idea in the US.  By repurposing the streets to actively encourage multimodal use, Sunday Streets Missoula builds community while allowing citizens unprecedented access to their public infrastructure.  The response from attendees has been extremely positive.  The Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Association for Commuter Transportation helped make the inaugural event in 2010 possible, and now it has grown into what a city business leader calls “the most important event in our downtown.”  Thank you for your help in making Sunday Streets Missoula a success.