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ITD slips to 3rd in commuting competition

ITD employees in Boise continue to put into motion their commitment to alternative transportation.

According to Ada County Highway District’s Commuteride, 64 ITD employees participated in the annual May in Motion alternative commuting promotion. Several other Treasure Valley organizations substantially increased their levels of participation and edged ITD out of first place in its division.

For the first time in three years, ITD did not receive the honor for the highest percentage of employee participation by an organization with more than 500 employees. That distinction went to the U.S. veteran’s medical center, which recorded 12 percent participation.

ITD tied for third among the 10 participating large employers.

The department’s 64 participants walked, biked, rode a bus, joined a car pool or rode in one of the valley’s Commuteride vans to work during the annual May in Motion program. They collectively accounted for 945 days of commuting alternatives.

Throughout the valley, participation was up by 4,312 individuals this year, due in part to escalating gasoline costs.

Participation data released last week at an awards ceremony indicated that participation increased from 14,020 commuters in 2005 to 18,332 this year. Most of the participants shared their morning and evening commutes with other riders – 6,847 people were involved in carpools this year, up 807 from the pervious year.

Those using vanpools jumped from 2,829 to 3,028, and public transit ridership jumped from 1,608 to 2,214. One of the most dramatic increases from 2005 came in the form of walkers, rising from 567 to 908, or more than 60 percent. The number of bicyclists also showed an impressive gain, from 2,975 last year to 4,633 this year – an increase of nearly 56 percent.

For the first time, Commuteride reported that 702 individuals participated in a telecommute program, conducting their work from an alternative location, such as their home

The five employer “Commuter Champions for 2006 are: