Tahoe Bike Challenge, Car-Free Day a Success
By the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
Through late spring snow and cold temperatures, more than 300 people around Lake Tahoe rode in the 2011 Tahoe Bike Challenge, logging over 3,000 commuter bike or pedestrian trips and 10,000 miles of zero-emission travel. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that 1.9 pounds of CO2 is prevented by every bicycle mile traveled.
The Tahoe Bike Challenge is hosted by the Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) and many local businesses each year to increase ridership in the Lake Tahoe Region and to show support for improved bike and pedestrian facilities around the Lake. This year the Challenge was from May 23 through June 3.
“The commitment to alternative transportation this year’s participants showed provides crucial support to local jurisdictions, transportation agencies and land managers when they sit down to plan and prioritize projects,” Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition President Ty Polastri said.
According to TRPA Community Liaison Jeff Cowen, people are surprised to learn that air pollution is linked to Lake Clarity. The crystal-clear, pristine waters of Lake Tahoe have seen a dramatic increase in algae growth in the last 40 years. Lake visitors and residents can observe slime-covered rocks and algae washing ashore.
According to Cowen, science has determined that 55 percent of the nitrogen feeding this alga comes from vehicle and wood stove emissions that settle into the water.
Reducing vehicle miles traveled reduces the pollution that enters Lake Tahoe.
“The people who rode or walked to work, school and play through this year’s Tahoe Bike Challenge deserve our thanks for doing their part to restore Lake Tahoe and to encourage greater safety and connectivity in our communities,” Cowen said.
The results of the Challenge are available on the Tahoe Metropolitan Planning Organization statistics
page here.
To finish the two-week challenge, staff at TRPA dedicated the last day of the event as Car-Free Day at the TRPA office building in Stateline, NV. One hundred percent of staff at TRPA and adjoining offices participated resulting in an empty parking lot most of the day and a worried reaction from customers who saw the empty lot and thought the offices might be closed.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency cooperatively leads the effort to preserve, restore, and enhance the unique natural and human environment of the Lake Tahoe Region now and in the future.
For additional information, contact Jeff Cowen at 775-589-5278, or email to jcowen@trpa.org.
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