Leave Your Car at Home Week – October 3-9, 2010

Did you know that 75 percent of all trips to and from work in the United Sates are in single-occupant vehicles? Did you know that for every vehicle mile traveled one pound of carbon dioxide is discharged into the environment and that it takes a mature tree one month to convert that carbon dioxide back into oxygen? Everyone wants a cleaner environment. Everyone wants to “go green”. But not everyone realizes that he or she can make a difference.

The Working Green Committee of the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce has a mission to help individuals and businesses navigate the confusing waters of “going green.” The Committee is mindful that everyday choices have a profound impact on the environment that we share, so, the Committee encourages all members to participate in the “Leave Your Car at Home Week” event scheduled this fall during the week of October 3-9.

To measure the success of our collective efforts we urge members to enroll on NuRide (www.nuride.com), the region’s premier internet-based rewards program for individuals who take “greener trips”. A greener trip is when one doesn’t drive alone but chooses to walk, bike, telecommute, carpool, vanpool, train, bus, or even work a compressed work week. NuRide can help you find others to share the ride with and NuRide is free to both join and use. WithNuRide you track your savings and earn rewards for every greener trip. For each recorded trip, NuRide will calculate reduced vehicle miles traveled and reduced emissions, so, the collective impact of all Chamber members will be aggregated for the “Leave Your Car at Home Week” event.

NuRide is sponsored by the New York State Department of Transportation in the Hudson Valley and is administered by MetroPool, Inc. Any company that chooses to participate in the event should provide their company name and address to Ken Cothren of MetroPool (kcothren@metropool.com) at least two weeks prior to the event so that their company can be added to the NuRide database. This will then enable their employees to register on the NuRide website and record their activity. To join NuRide you must be at least 18 years old and have a company or organization e-mail address.

The Working Green Committee asks that you join in the “Leave Your Car at Home” effort.
Together we can make a difference - one car at a time and one trip at a time.