Click on the logo to sign up for Freddy's Commuter Challenge!
Freddy’s Commuter Challenge is an online program designed to encourage ‘alternative commuting’ . The goal of the program is for all participants together to achieve 100,000 alternative commutes over the challenge period. To symbolize progress an icon of Freddy (the famous fountains ‘nude dude’) will progress along a 100,000 commute path with each step being triggered by the entry of one alternative commute.
Freddy’s Commuter Challenge is supported by Green Matters and in motion.
Use of City Trail System Spikes In Week Following Bridge Closure
The number of cyclists and pedestrians using the City’s Trail Visitor centre between 4-6 p.m. in the week following the closure of the Princess Margaret Bridge was significantly higher when compared to the week before the bridge closure.
“We counted the number of bicyclists and pedestrians as they passed by the Visitor centre as a way of sampling residents’ use of recommended alternative forms of commuting during the bridge closure,” said City of Fredericton Recreation Officer Kathryn Baird. “The number of cyclists increased by 125 per cent and the number of walkers went up 28 per cent from one week to the next.”
The use of the City’s trail system by cyclists and pedestrians is one of the reasons why traffic congestion on the Westmorland Street Bridge has been lower than anticipated during construction on the Princess Margaret Bridge. The City’s introduction of Park & Go and Park & Ride locations as well as car-pooling, adjusted work schedules and use of City Transit also are contributing to easing potential traffic delays in the City’s core. Approximately 20,000 vehicles a day are being diverted to the downtown bridge from the Princess Margaret Bridge during the July 5 to August 8 construction period.
Also, more than 4,000 alternative commutes have been logged in Freddy’s Commuter Challenge by more than 350 active participants. Freddy’s Commuter Challenge is hosted by the City of Fredericton through its in motion strategy and Green Matters campaign in partnership with the Government of New Brunswick, UNB and other major employers in the City. For more information on the Commuter Challenge visit www.inmotionfredericton.ca.
“We still have another three weeks to go before the Princess Margaret Bridge work is completed for this year,” said Ms. Baird. “It is important that we not become complacent and continue to use alternative commuting and all the other initiatives in place to keep traffic disruption to a minimum.”
