With one in 10 trips in Peterborough being made through active transportation and a growing number of people using public transit, Peterborough GreenUP is aiming to maintain the momentum for alternatives to solo car travel in the city.
While its ‘Shifting Gears’ May Challenge is over, GreenUP aspires to keep the wheels spinning all year long. That’s the biggest hope of Ashley Burnie, GreenUP program coordinator, following the month-long challenge that encouraged Peterborough residents to make the switch to active and sustainable transportation.
“I hope that it acts as a catalyst for longer-term changes,” Burnie told kawarthaNOW. “I hope that it encourages workplaces to be more friendly to staff or clients arriving by way of active and sustainable travel.”
“If someone began to build a successful habit over May, I hope they keep going and are able to enjoy the benefits — whether it’s more fresh air, exercise, time to socialize, money — beyond our campaign. I hope recognizing the hard work of the workplace teams and champions shows them that their positive impacts are celebrated in this community.”
This past May, participants in the Shifting Gears challenge took 6,472 active and sustainable trips, which accounted for 46,627 kilometres of travel by walking, cycling, taking transit, carpooling, and telecommuting.
GreenUP recently celebrated the latest cohort of May challenge winners with an awards celebration and bike-in movie.
GreenUP said the program has moved new and returning participants to make the shift towards more planet-friendly transportation means in pursuit of both personal and community benefits: added daily activity, savings of transportation costs, social time and/or self-care time, decreased vehicle congestion, improved air quality, and reduced greenhouse gases.
“Peterborough is only 13 kilometres from north to south and has 26 kilometres of trails within the city limits — not to mention our other supportive infrastructure, such as more than a dozen bus routes, numerous bike lanes, et cetera,” Burnie said. “With such a cityscape comes a lot of potential for shifting away from solo car trips in favour of walking, biking, taking transit, and carpooling and Shifting Gears wants to make sure we celebrate every single trip.”
Now in its 20th year, Shifting Gears has grown over the years to include community members and schools, workshops, rides, special events, and more.
“Outside of the Shifting Gears May Challenge, we have other programs and supports under that brand for business and community audiences, and we have other programs under Active School Travel Peterborough which support our school and family audience,” Burnie noted. “This time of year, we primarily engage in other bike-culture promoting activities.”
For example, June is “Bike Month” and GreenUP will be holding pop-up events in Peterborough and Lakefield and helping facilitate a bike maintenance workshop at a local high school.
For more information about Shifting Gears and upcoming opportunities, visit greenup.on.ca/shifting-gears/.
