Chuck Boelkins

Every work day of 2009, Chuck Boelkins boards GRTA’s Xpress bus for his commute from Conyers to downtown Atlanta. And every day he adds that clean commute to the 840 clean commutes he logged from 2004-2008. He’s been riding Xpress for five years now, has driven into work just four times and has no intention of stopping.

“I'll use GRTA coaches until the program is canceled or I die—whichever comes first, as I have no intentions of retiring from a great job,” said Chuck, who works for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Pollution Prevention Assistance Division, a Platinum level Partner of The Clean Air Campaign.

Because of Chuck’s line of work, he’s no stranger to the dangers of pollution, which is why Chuck is proud that his commute alone has kept well over 19 tons of pollution out of Georgia’s air!

Another great reason for riding transit day in and day out for five years? The money. Chuck has done his homework and has found that his clean commute really keeps money in his pocket. During his first four and a half years riding Xpress, Chuck travelled 38,712 miles, which would have cost him over $5,000 in gas alone had he driven his truck. Instead, Chuck pays just $85 for Xpress passes that last him well over a month each. Through the years, Chuck found that he has saved more than $1,700—plus reduced over 38,000 pounds of pollution.

“That’s why I use GRTA Xpress,” says Chuck.

He’s also an avid logger who logs his commute every day, and so far, he’s won three gift cards through Commuter Prizes.

Chuck started clean commuting five years ago to both do his part and avoid the daily stress and frustration of driving alone 300 miles a week, but he never thought he’d see the incredible savings he has. He’s even convinced his wife to become a transit rider, saving the family additional money and keeping even more pollution out of the air.

To find out how much your commute costs you and how much you could save, use The Clean Air Campaign’s Commute Calculator. Then decide which commute alternative works best for you and start saving money and the environment right away.