Durham Receives Honor for Alternative Transportation Options for Employees

The City of Durham was recently recognized for outstanding alternative transportation efforts at the Annual Triangle Commuter Awards event held by the area GoTriangle Transportation Demand Management Coordination Program.

The City of Durham received commuting honors for its efforts to promote alternative transportation among its employees, which includes free transit service on the Durham Area Transit Authority (DATA) and the Bull City Connector as well as bike racks, compressed work weeks, and teleworking. Durham was also recognized for having the highest percentage of employees participating in the SmartCommute Challenge for an entity with 2,000 to 4,999 employees.

Two Durham residents also received the Golden Spokes Award as champions of bicycle commuting and leaders in the cycling community. Scott Carter, chair of the Durham Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission (BPAC), averages more than 4,000 bike miles per year riding from his home in southern Durham to IBM. Jack Warman, a former member of BPAC, commutes daily from Durham to Morrisville and is involved in several efforts to strengthen the bicycle community in Durham, such as writing for the http://www.bikewalkdurham.org/ website.

The Golden Mode Awards recognize transportation initiatives that contribute to local efforts to reduce emissions, traffic congestion, and single occupancy.

Durham is a community with many alternative transportation options, biking alternatives; Downtown Durham rates very highly on the site walkscore.com, with some areas being rated as a "Walker's Paradise."