On November 4, the Office of Sustainability and Parking & Transportation Department wrapped up October’s Active Transportation Month with a lunch and awards ceremony for Active Transportation Challenge participants and winners. Challenge participants earned points throughout the month by logging car-free commutes, participating in a photo contest, and attending events including a bike trip to Grove Fest, free bike tune-ups by Big Shark Bicycle Company, and a Coffee for Commuters.
Forty-one individuals participated in the challenge, making up ten teams total. WashU Anthropology won first place with 795 points, WashU Biblioriders came in second place with 570 points, and WUSTL Music received third place with 530 points. WashU Anthropology had the highest average number of trips, with 24 per person, and WashU Biblioriders saved the most CO2, at 3,643 pounds. Congratulations to the winning teams, along with the top scoring individuals: Tao Zhang (first place), Alyse Kuhlman (second place), and Calin Sterling (third place)!
Beginning in spring 2017, the Active Transportation Challenge is integrating with WashU Moves, a Human Resources initiative designed to reward participants for being active. This challenge is available to all benefits-eligible faculty and staff members, clinical fellows, and postdoctoral appointees. Employees are encouraged to log 10,000 steps per day over the 100-day challenge. The platform also provides conversion charts to translate biking and other activities into steps to contribute to each total. Metro users can gain a significant number of steps by biking or walking to and from their Metro stops.
In addition to the 100-day challenges that occur each semester, all benefits-eligible WashU employees can earn monthly “Yay! Points” for walking, biking, or taking public transit to work at least four out of five days each week beginning in January 2017. As participants accumulate points, they become eligible for gift cards throughout the semester. We will follow up soon with a schedule of events for the April Alternative Transportation Month and more information on registration for the spring WashU Moves challenge!