August bike and kids rodeo, Bike to Work Day coming next month, time to start planning, and more — read on!

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August 2021

The Smart Commuter

August Bike to Summer: "I Bike With Kids"

August 21: Northglenn Kid-Focused Full Moon Morning Ride

(Photo below from Thornton's Bike Rodeo August 7 with Mayor Pro Tem Sandgren of Thornton, and Tammy of Smart Commute)

Bike to Summer Website

Bike to Work Day is coming up in September, culminating a bikeable summer filled with ways to get out and ride a bike.

Bike to Work Day is Wednesday, September 22 in 2021. This will be the first time Bike to Work Day will be celebrated in nearly 15 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, now is a great time to get out and ride a bike outside (air quality permitting!). Biking has enormous health benefits, as presented by health-expert Sue Liddell Caudillo of St. Anthony North Health Campus in our six-minute YouTube Video, including strengthening the immune system.

Participants can register right now. For employers, it's time to consider how to celebrate with their workforce. Smart Commute has outlined plenty of ways to promote Bike to Work Day generally, and many of these can be adapted for outdoor or distributed events.

If you are passionate about biking, but not ready to organize a work event, there are still many ways to get others involved - consider inviting your neighbors to register by posting to Instagram, Nextdoor or Facebook .

Smart Commute Member, United Power, is preparing the North Front Range for EVs, installing a new EV Charging Station (on the ChargePoint network) in Keenesburg, a great midpoint between Brighton and Fort Morgan. "It's important to be ahead of the wave, to meet the needs of our members in the community."

Learn more at the above video, or in this newsletter.

In a special meeting Aug. 10, RTD’s Board of Directors adopted a new strategic plan that looks toward the next five years of the agency’s future. The document – against which all initiatives, projects, and priorities will be measured – serves as a blueprint for success and outlines the intentionality RTD will bring with its redefined mission:

“We make lives better through connections.”

Take a look at RTD's interactive page.

On July 21, the Air Pollution Control Division (APCD) withdrew their Proposed ETRP Rule that was set to go before the Air Quality Control Commission August 18. Smart Commute had been working diligently for over a year to ensure that any imposed rule was not only fair, but achievable, and would result in meaningful reductions in air pollution.

APCD staff recognized the support of Smart Commute and our sister organizations in a statement, released July 28.

While this regulatory rule is no longer imminent, air quality concerns remain. Smart Commute is ready to help employers to explore voluntary measures to reduce their transportation-related GHG emissions, including grants to help businesses install EV charging stations.

Schedule a meeting with Carson now to explore your options.

Interesting Article: What does the AQCC do?

Smart Commute is working with employers now on Voluntary ETRP efforts, starting with evaluating a worksite's SOV Drive Rate according to the standard that ETRP would have required.

Interested in investigating Voluntary ETRP at your office? Meet with Carson now to initiate an analysis.

Smart Commute was very busy through July! From Brighton to Northglenn, from Broomfield to Thornton, Smart Commute was everywhere celebrating bikes!

Smart Commute's eBike Program is having great success! In July, 7 participants, and 88 car trips replaced so far (resulting in 118 lbs less GHG emissions via CO2). Below are some great shots of our participants.

News (etc) to Peruse

            Kansas City streetlight-mounted EV charger pilot aims for equity (Smart Cities Dive)
        

            Cargo bikes deliver faster and cleaner than vans, study finds (The Guardian)
        

            Colorado’s Unrelenting Ozone Pollution Could Mean Long-

Term Problems For Your Health (CPR)

            London Ambulance Service issues emergency alert amid Covid surge and heatwave (Evening Standard)
        

Smart Commute is the Way to Go provider for the north metro area. Learn about this regional program at waytogo.org.

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Photo Credit: Amy Hirschi | Michal Vrba