New year. New challenges. Same mission. And more moxie than ever to see this thing through. Yes, 2013 is going to be big. So, stick with Merging Lanes for all the latest analysis about how transportation and air quality issues play out in Georgia during the year.

Fiscal Cliff Deal Brings Welcome Changes to Commuter Choice Program
As the nation teetered on the edge of the “fiscal cliff” earlier this month, Congress came through for transit and vanpool commuters with an increase in allowable tax benefits that restores parity with commuter parking benefits. The new maximum benefit for 2013 climbs to $245 per month for qualified transit, vanpool and carpool expenses. The bicycle commuter benefit remains at $20 per month for qualified expenses. For workplaces, the “Commuter Choice” program that carries these non-taxable benefits (IRS section 132(f) for those interested in looking it up) represents an important and still-overlooked resource. According to a US Census Bureau National Compensation Survey on employee access to quality of life benefits, 34% of all workers have access to wellness programs through their employer, but only 6% of workers have access to subsidized commuting. It’s time for more employers to connect the dots between these concepts and how they can work together to make employees happier and healthier.

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Airpocalypse: Smog Goes Off the Charts in Beijing
January’s events in China’s largest metropolis remind us that there’s poor air quality, and then there’s air quality so hazardous it could not be measured. A massive air inversion enveloped Beijing in a cloud of particle pollution for a week, with concentrations of soot that surpassed the measurement scheme created to gauge them. What caused this phenomenon, dubbed by some English-speakers in China as “the airpocalypse?” A combination of high energy demand satisfied by coal and a rapidly expanding fleet of cars, plus stagnant weather. And concentrations there were reported to have reached as high as 800 micrograms per cubic meter, which would obliterate the scales using the EPA’s measurement system. For reference, the Air Quality Index values we use in the United States end at 500, which indicates hazardous conditions that would be grave enough to seriously affect everyone’s health. Fortunately the likelihood of this occurring in our neck of the woods is extremely remote. But a hemisphere away, another Olympic city is puzzling through similar challenges to manage population growth and energy consumption that results in particle pollution.

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Not-So Wide Awake: New Study Examines Drowsy Drivers Among Us
Maybe it’s time to switch to espresso. A recent study released by the Centers for Disease Control found that one in 24 of adults admit to having dozed off while driving. Yikes. The findings suggest men were more likely to have driven while drowsy and those ages 25-34 also indexed higher. At the root of these slumbering sojourns, of course, is sleep deprivation. Perhaps a great excuse to get more shuteye, and find a wakeful wingman to carpool with. Be careful out there.

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Look Around: The Signs Point to Georgia Commute Options
If you’ve been crawling in traffic around metro Atlanta recently, your eyes may have cast a glance toward digital billboards for Georgia Commute Options, the new name for the suite of services that help commuters and workplaces take action to reduce congestion. Georgia Commute Options is a program of the Georgia Department of Transportation, delivered in partnership with The Clean Air Campaign and local transportation management associations. These colorful billboards are part of a campaign to introduce commuters to the notion that they can get more out of life by driving less. Because when it comes to commuting, more of us have more options than we realize. Have you taken stock lately of what else is out there to try besides driving alone? Find out more about what Georgia Commute Options can do to help you.
 
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Brian Carr is Director of Communications at The Clean Air Campaign, one of several organizations in the Atlanta region that deliver Georgia Commute Options programs and services in partnership with the Georgia Department of Transportation. A daily MARTA rail rider, Brian uses his morning commute time on the Blue Line to read about current events and play "Words With Friends."

It’s no surprise that one of the most common New Year’s resolutions is to lose weight and get fit. Gyms offer pop-up discount memberships. Department stores display their athletic gear so that the basketball shorts and brightly colored sports bras smack you in the face with the smell of new spandex right when you walk in. Reminding you that this is the year you are going to get that six-pack you have always wanted. Getting in shape is also one of the most commonly broken New Year’s resolutions. It is hard to stay motivated to eat healthy and exercise when work kicks into full gear and you find yourself much too busy to grocery shop, let alone spend hours at the gym. Instead of devoting time traveling to the gym, working out, and then traveling home, why not use your trip to work as your work-out? Why not try active commuting?

Biking, walking and taking public transit to work is a great way to include physical activity in your daily routine. Incorporating active commuting into your workday will also help transform exercising into a regular habit, the most important thing you can do to retain a change in behavior. Active commuting even one or two days a week will make a big difference in the size of your waistband and the weight of your pockets- and sneakers don’t require regular fill-ups to run! Unlike that neon green sports bra that fades into a dull green color after too many washes, adopting active commuting as a habit is a gift that can continuously give back. Happy New Year!

Source: New Public Health

Raina Sayer is a Commuter Services Coordinator with The Clean Air Campaign, helping individuals utilize the Georgia Commute Options services like ridematching and earning money for clean commuting. Raina is also the Health Subject Matter Expert for the team.

Season’s Greetings!  Georgia employers and commuters stand at the threshold of a new year.  But before we pass through, it’s worth reflecting on 2012, and what a remarkable year it has been for transportation and air quality issues in Georgia.  Merging Lanes breaks down a handful of the events that shaped a year of big decisions in the metro Atlanta region and around the state.

EPA Introduces Tighter Air Quality Standards
The US Environmental Protection Agency finalized in the spring a standard for ground-level ozone (originally discussed in 2008) and issued designations to illustrate which areas comply with the standard and which do not.  In all, 15 counties in metro Atlanta do not meet this new standard, which represents an improvement over the 20+ counties that were previously found not to meet the prior standard.  Air quality is improving in Georgia.  But the balance between long-term population growth and increased demand for energy and transportation is a fragile one, in terms of environmental impact.  

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Atlanta Takes a Detour from Transportation Penny Sales Tax
The nation was watching when metro Atlanta voters voiced their opposition to a penny sales tax to fund a list of 157 transportation projects in the region over the course of a decade.  With no windfall options for funding large-scale expansion to the region’s existing transportation network, the conversation turned to developing a “Plan B” alternative.  According to a recent poll conducted for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 76% of Atlantans feel traffic is a major problem.  But not everyone agrees on how improving transportation should be paid for.  While 10% suggested increasing the motor fuel tax we all pay for gasoline, 39% suggested carving out transportation funds by adding more tax to alcohol and tobacco purchases.  Another 16% indicated they would favor a special sales tax to pay for transportation.  One thing is for certain: if the region can again harness even a fraction of the interest in this issue demonstrated by the business community in the future, anything is possible to beat back traffic.

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Third-Annual Georgia Telework Piques Conversations on Scalability
Underscoring the increasing adoption of telework as a business strategy to improve operations, more than 100 Georgia employers in the public and private sectors showed their support for Georgia Telework Week.  This commute option has continued to grow as an integral part of the way business is done in the Atlanta region, where each week more than 336,000 commuters are teleworking.  The week also drew more attention to the nearly-quarter-million commuters who believe their jobs are conducive to telework but have not yet received approval from management to do it.  In terms of raw potential, the impact of putting this group to work at their home computer instead of their office computer could erase the equivalent of the total daily traffic volume on the top end of I-285.

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Inaugural Bike to Work Challenge Celebrates Pedal Power
Each week in the Atlanta region, more than 20,000 commute trips are made by bicycle.  With new findings from the medical community that warn about the risks of sedentary living – including the time we log behind the wheel in traffic – plus an energetic community of bicycling enthusiasts, The Clean Air Campaign, Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and regional partners hosted the first-ever Bike to Work Challenge.  This month-long event held in October featured a points-based competition for individuals and teams of all skill levels, inviting rookie bike commuters to learn the ropes from grizzled cycling veterans.  The response was off the charts: over 17,000 bicycle commute trips were logged, resulting in 130,000 miles of vehicle travel eliminated from Georgia roads.  

In this year of big decisions, hats off to the more than 1,000 bicycle commuters who decided to drive their bikes to work as part of this event.  Here’s to more commuters making more of these kinds of decisions in 2013.

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Brian Carr is Director of Communications at The Clean Air Campaign, one of several organizations in the Atlanta region that deliver Georgia Commute Options programs and services in partnership with the Georgia Department of Transportation.  A daily MARTA rail rider, Brian uses his morning commute time on the Blue Line to read about current events and play "Words With Friends."

When my wife and I moved to Atlanta from Portland, Oregon just over four years ago, we simply took it for granted that we’d be able to continue the lifestyle we’d been leading. In Portland, we shared a single car that was used mostly for weekend getaways, while daily errands like grocery shopping, visits to friends, trips to restaurants, and my wife’s work and school commutes were accomplished by foot or on our bicycles, with the occasional light rail or bus trip thrown in as well. The car could sometime sit for weeks without being used.

We made the cross country trip to Atlanta in 2008 so that I could pursue a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the excellent program offered by Georgia Tech and Emory. Up to that point, I’d been making a living as a professional road cyclist, traveling across the US and around the world to compete. That experience gave me the chance to see some great bicycle infrastructure such as parallel bike roads in central Beijing and protected lanes with dedicated signals across Europe. But I also got to see just how far behind most American cities, including Atlanta, were in providing safe and convenient road space for cyclists.

So it shouldn't have been surprising to learn that our nearly car-free lifestyle would be more challenging here. But we were determined. And, frankly, buying a second car wasn't financially feasible anyway. We found a house in Cabbagetown, where we fell in love with the old homes on narrow streets, along with the easy access to MARTA. My wife found a bus route that was a short bike ride away and took her straight to her new job as a teacher in Dekalb County. I set about trying to find the best possible bike route to Georgia Tech, with MARTA as a backup when thunderstorms threatened. It took some effort, but in time, the car started to see less and less use.

But what’s been most encouraging over the last four years is how many people have been joining us. There’s been a noticeable increase in the number of fellow bicycle commuters that I see on the roads daily, with events like the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition’s Streets Alive and the inaugural Bike to Work Challenge showing even more people how easy it can be to ride a bike in Atlanta. And it seems like city officials are also starting to get the message. A new signal and green bike lane appeared in early October to help connect two previously discontinuous bike lanes where 5th street crosses West Peachtree at Tech Square. Mayor Reed just announced plans for some additional and much needed new bike infrastructure in Midtown. And despite only being open for a week, the Beltline is already overflowing with commuters in the morning and evening.

However, this city still has work to do. The Beltline ends suddenly at Monroe without connections to any existing bike lanes, and there are too many areas where cyclists have no choice but to mix with sometimes unfriendly motor vehicle traffic. But the best way to demonstrate the need for more bike infrastructure is to get out there and use what we have. With a little bit of planning, a person can get just about anywhere in Atlanta by bike, and do so safely. Resources such as the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition’s bike suitability maps and the bike option in Google Maps are great ways to plan routes. Learning to live without complete reliance on a car is extremely liberating. It’s exciting to watch more people in this city free themselves from that dependency. See you on our current and future bike routes.

Doug is a PhD candidate at the Georgia Institute of Technology and is a former professional road cyclist.

I hate to drive. It all started three years ago when living in the Middle East where the roads are lawless. Motorcycles, pick-up trucks from the 80’s, Asten Martens all going wildly different speeds with no reverence for double yellow lines, red lights, or traffic laws. Just being a passenger was terrifying.  

Thus when moving to Atlanta, I was nervous. Culling the Atlanta subreddit and local newspapers, rumor had it Atlantans loved their cars as much as their sweet tea.  The idea of driving, even with traffic enforcement, stressed me out.

After careful planning, I moved to a neighborhood where I could take MARTA to work. I walked 15 minutes to MARTA station and rode 20-30 minutes depending on train times.  It worked, it was time consuming, but it worked.

When I heard about The Clean Air Campaign’s Bike to Work Challenge, I thought it would be good to try. So I signed up thinking that it wouldn't be easier or faster than the MARTA, but it would be a change of pace.

Early morning on October 1^st, I headed out on my Georgia Tech Starter Bike (total value of $35) on the route I carefully chosen to avoid hills and major streets. I left extra early to account for any wrong turns and my slow speed. I ended up being too early for work. It took me only 20 minutes on bike rather than the 45 minute MARTA commute.

Now with three weeks of biking under my belt, my speed hasn't increased, but my huffing and puffing has decreased. On the bike, I save time and get exercise. Biking has transformed my commute to work.

Becky Katz works for Park Pride, a non-profit organization that works with communities all over Atlanta to improve their parks.

My task in the Bike to Work Challenge is to infect others with the love of bike commuting since I already do it—and have been doing it for years!

After college, I moved from Athens, Ga. to Washington D.C. to intern for my senator and I had heard that you absolutely didn't want to bring a car. The drain on your bank account, (mind you interns don’t even get paid), would bankrupt you in no time: gas, insurance, paying for parking, parking tickets...just pure hassle. I had biked in college and I didn't own a car anyway, so I embraced the advice and bought a monthly subway pass. Soon after, friends in my ultimate Frisbee circle talked me into bike commuting as an alternative to the subway. I was sold.

I had actually taken cycling as a course in college, so I was a trained rider, but I was also mentored by veteran D.C. bike messengers who showed me how to ride, safely and assertively.

Soon after my internship, I landed my first job with McKinsey & Co. and I knew bike commuting was meant to be. My company subsidized our commutes with monthly transit fare cards and even put in showers at the office. Back then, I suited up daily, so I preferred riding gear, a shower, and a change to start the day. Now I’m much more streamlined and ride dressed for work each day.

After a short stint of biking to work when I took a job in San Francisco, my second career landed me back in Athens, Ga. I knew that as an undergrad, Athens had been bike friendly—even back in the late 80's—so I returned and bought a house within a two-mile radius of downtown where I worked and continued commuting by bike every day with an occasional ride on transit when there was inclement weather. Although it was a bike friendly city when I was in school, I was pleased to find out that Athens continued to make progress by adding bike lanes, greenways and even bike racks on buses!

It might look as if commuting is all about economics for me—and sure it was when I was a lowly intern with no salary—but it became a way of life, a great way to set the tone for my day and arrive at work without road rage. I also enjoy doing my part to reduce emissions.

Today I find myself working in the transportation industry in Griffin, Ga. and I’m still biking to work. As I enter the fifth decade of my life, I’m stoked to keep moving and happy to have logged thousands of miles all over the planet, both to work and on vacation. It’s really become a way of life for me and a great one. I urge you to give it a try!

For those interested in getting started, I’d be happy to show you my gear, route, and wardrobe. In fact you can check out pictures on my Facebook page to see what I wear and even get a few tips (I like to share). Oh and for those who love pictures I have posted a photo essay of the graffiti/murals on my cycling route to work when I lived in Athens.

If you like taking photos, you can share and even get points in the Bike to Work Challenge by posting photos on The Clean Air Campaign’s Bike to Work Photo contest page on Facebook.

Tracie Sanchez, MPA, is a mobility manager for the Three Rivers Regional Commission in Griffin, Ga.

With the cooler weather approaching, I decided it was time to dust off my bike from junior high school and commit to riding again. Yes, that’s right: I wrote “junior high school." The last time I rode a bike was for approximately 7 minutes a year ago in beautiful, flat Florida. I rode my mother-in-law’s bike for about five minutes until I realized she had two flat tires. I tried to ride for 2 more minutes until I decided maybe I should get off the bike. Needless to say, I’m not a huge cyclist, which makes the notion of dusting off an old bike to ride sound even more arduous.

The Bike To Work Challenge gave me the perfect opportunity to test out getting back in the saddle. It would be just like when I was 12 years old! I could hop on my old-school, vintage Murray road bike and feel the wind in my hair as I cruise down the street feeling a sense of independence.

After confirming with my father that my bike was, in fact, twenty years old, I decided it might make sense to have it checked out. I have a DIY nature, so I took my bike to the nice folks at SOPO bicycle cooperative in Grant Park. I like SOPO because they don’t just fix your bike for you. Instead, they actually assist and guide you as you fix your bike yourself. SOPO’s “employees” are volunteers and they take donations in exchange for their expertise. The gentleman who helped me was extremely knowledgeable and checked my brakes, tires and gears. He also explained that bike companies discontinued making the types of pedals on my bike because they snap off… Enter paranoia, stage left!

At this point, I decided that I needed to become more knowledgeable about bike maintenance and safety to fight off my inner bike wuss. Working at The Clean Air Campaign, I knew that the Bike To Work Challenge website had multiple resources for cyclists, including classes. After reviewing tips on commuting, planning your trip to work and even watching a video of zombies teaching me how to put a bike on a bus I found a free class called “Confident City Cycling” and immediately registered.

Mike Laurie and Shawn Deangelo, from the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition, led the five hour “confidence” class that included classroom training and participating in bike handling drills. This class was FUNtastic! The instructors were not only knowledgeable, but they were also enthusiastic and very sensitive to all levels of riders. A light, delicious breakfast of bagels, fruit and coffee was served to the 10 people who attended the class. The instructors covered topics such as selecting a bike, correct clothing to wear, gearing and shifting, Georgia traffic laws and more. It was very helpful! For example, I learned it’s illegal in Georgia to not have lights on your bike at night when you are riding. I also learned that it’s illegal to ride your bike on the sidewalk and that you can actually get traffic tickets when you break traffic laws while riding a bike. All in all, I left the class feeling more empowered and definitely more confident.

Last Monday was the first day I rode my bike to work. Technically, I rode my bike to MARTA, but either way I did not drive my car, which is better for the environment, my wallet and my inner child. I’ve decided to name my bike “McMurray”. He seems Irish to me. Old McMurray did well that morning and I felt strong and confident because I knew, unlike last year on my mother-in-law’s bike, that I was not riding on two flat tires. I also knew that if I did get a flat, I could take the tire off, locate the cause of the flat, repair or replace the tube as needed and be on my way.  That knowledge and confidence allows me to ride a 20 year old bike named McMurray, as the wind blows over my helmet, while I rediscover my appreciation for cycling that I had when I was twelve.

Beth Ament is an Employer Program Manager and Team Leader at The Clean Air Campaign.

With metro Atlanta’s traffic situation getting worse, gas prices at $3.40 plus a gallon, and pollution in our air, teleworking is a wonderful alternative to the solo drive. It allows us to not only use less gasoline/oil, emit less pollution, but also remain stress free.

I’m sure that Assurant also sees the benefits of teleworking, including increased productivity from employees, fewer call-outs, more available office space for those unable to telework, an increase in available parking spaces, healthier and happier employees, and lower overhead expenses.

For me personally, I am no longer stressed due to traffic and the commute. At home, I enjoy fewer interruptions while still being able to engage in human contact with my co-workers, via instant messaging, telephone calls, and email. The time previously used to commute is now used to fix my son a healthy breakfast before going to school, which allows me to maintain a better balance between my work and home life. My budget for clothing, car maintenance, and eating out has also decreased tremendously. I’m able to exercise during my lunch break (I’ve lost 15 pounds). I could go on and on, but all I’m going to say is……….WIN-WIN-WIN!

Kris Powers, Hazard Operations associate at Assurant’s Duluth location, has participated in the company’s teleworking program for a year and a half.

Assurant, with more than 2,000 employees in north metro Atlanta, believes that providing employees flexibility in work schedules helps contribute to a highly satisfied, productive work force, and can contribute to a higher level of customer service and performance. As part of that flexibility, Assurant believes that teleworking can provide opportunities for success for customers, employees, and for the company.

Teleworking makes employees happy. Happy employees are motivated to go the extra mile, which makes for happy clients. It's a simple equation.

That's why we introduced a telework program at ADP more than 20 years ago. With two decades of experience under our belt and more than 5,000 associates nationwide participating in our program, we know telework works. Not only are our associates happier and more productive, we have also experienced a higher retention rate among our workforce.

In 2008, ADP recognized the need for expert counsel to fully capitalize on all of the benefits telework could provide. Establishing a partnership with The Clean Air Campaign has allowed us to grow our program by 10 to 15 percent each year, ultimately enabling us to realize our full potential.

In addition to reducing commute costs for our associates, having a telework program in place allows us to leverage savings on real estate expenses because we no longer need as much office space. The savings we realize annually far exceed the cost of any equipment or support infrastructure investments needed to facilitate an effective teleworking experience.

But ADP recognizes that the impact of these savings extends far beyond the company's bottom line. Based on data from the latest AAA "Your Driving Costs" report, our teleworking employees are saving approximately 50 cents a mile on gas and car expenses. Over the course of a year, this can yield thousands of dollars in savings on commute costs. In fact, from last September to this September, our Georgia associates saved a combined total of more than $200,000 on commute costs as a result of teleworking.

During that same time period, ADP teleworkers in Georgia have also eliminated 400,000 vehicle miles of travel, keeping 200 tons of pollution out of the air we all breathe. Not only is ADP doing our part to be environmental stewards, we are also providing our associates a better work/life balance. Having this work arrangement in place, everyone comes out a winner.

This week, ADP is helping The Clean Air Campaign by supporting the third-annual Georgia Telework Week. I encourage you to show your support for telework as a business strategy that has been proven to increase employee productivity by as much as 20 percent. For any company considering telework, I recommend that you talk to businesses or companies already engaged in teleworking. I assure you that you will be highly encouraged by the response you receive.

Mac Peden is a senior vice president at Automatic Data Processing, Inc.,
(ADP) headquartered in Alpharetta, GA. Leveraging more than 60 years of experience, ADP is one of the nation's leaders in offering a wide range of human resource, payroll, tax and benefits administration solutions from a single source.

At Coca-Cola Refreshments Customer Care, we love to use the motto, “Live Positively.” It is our way of showing our commitment to sustainability in everything we do. As part of that commitment, we introduced a telework program in 2004. Following a highly successful pilot program, we partnered with The Clean Air Campaign in 2005 to make teleworking available to all employees at our Alpharetta-based location. Since that time, our program has grown rapidly. Currently, we have 425 associates—more than 50 percent of our workforce—who telework five days a week, using the opportunity to avoid the hassles of traffic congestion and have a productive workday.

Our teleworking associates make a significant contribution to our company’s sustainability efforts. Each workday, they collectively eliminate 850 commute trips, keeping more than 7 tons of pollution out of the air we breathe. They also save nearly $7,000 in gas and car-related expenses each day.

The results of our telework program have not only benefitted our associates’ wallets, but also improved productivity and morale. Recent internal surveys show that our associates not only enjoy the convenience of working from home, but also the additional time they get to spend with their families because they no longer have to sit in traffic.

Beyond these altruistic benefits, telework has also proven to be a very cost-efficient business strategy. We have reduced real estate expenses because we need less square footage for our operations with more employees working remotely. Our teleworking arrangement is truly a win-win for our company and our workforce, allowing us to deploy associates so they can be more efficient and better serve our customers.

This week we are proud to support Georgia Telework Week. Now in its third year, the week is designed to educate employers about the benefits of telework as a strategy that yields improvedemployee satisfaction, cost savings for companies, environmental stewardship and increased productivity in the workplace.

Georgia Telework Week is just as much a call for employers to establish new telework programs as it is a celebration of employers who have previously-established programs. In metro Atlanta, some 250,000 commuters have jobs they believe are conducive to this type of program, but their employers have not given the green light for them to telework. Just think of all the traffic congestion this region could alleviate - and the productivity gains that would result – if these commuters were to work from home even occasionally. There has never been a better time to join the movement.

Luiz Montoro is a Customer Care project manager for Coca-Cola Refreshments