Valley Commuters Save a Million Pounds of Pollution

PHOENIX (Aug. 6, 2009) – Valley commuters have kept more than 1 million pounds of greenhouse gases out of the air by choosing environmentally responsible forms of travel found through ShareTheRide — an online tool that Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority launched just over 100 days ago.

More than 4,500 individuals are using ShareTheRide and have shared 4,680,450 miles of vehicle travel. Had those vehicle miles been driven alone, more than 1 million pounds of additional greenhouse gases would have entered the air. 

According to the Maricopa Association of Governments, personal vehicles are among the largest, non-industrial contributors to ground-level ozone – a harmful, odorless gas that plagues Arizona every April through September. Air quality can be helped when Valley residents don’t drive alone, but instead use the bus, light rail, carpool, vanpool, bike, walk or telecommute to work.

“We’re very pleased to see so many Valley commuters doing their part to improve air quality,” said David Boggs, executive director of Valley Metro RPTA. “We hope more residents will discover how ShareTheRide can help them start a new, environmentally friendly habit that will benefit each of us.”

The free ShareTheRide system at www.ValleyMetro.org helps commuters learn how much pollution their vehicle or mode of travel will generate. Residents create a personal profile, enter the type of vehicle they normally drive and how far they commute. Next they log how they travel each day (by bus, light rail, carpool, vanpool, biking, walking or telecommuting) in an online calendar. ShareTheRide shows how much pollution they’ve saved or produced as a result. An online calculator identifies which types of pollution and how much will be generated by different modes of travel: greenhouse gas, volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, non-methane organic gas, formaldehyde, or sulfur dioxide.

The system’s primary function is to connect individuals to a carpool partner to help reduce total traffic emissions. More than 85 Valley companies also are using this system to help employees share the ride to work.

Valley Metro/RPTA provides eco-friendly public transit options to residents of greater Phoenix and Maricopa County, including a clean-fuel bus fleet, low-emissions light rail, online carpool matching and bus trip mapping, and bicycle and telework assistance. Funding is provided by local, state and federal revenues; and administered by a board of 15 governments working to improve and regionalize the public transit system.                                    ###