Written By: OmniRide

WOODBRIDGE, VA – Reduce congestion and pollution! Get some exercise and fresh air! OmniRide, in partnership with Commuter Connections, is asking residents to pledge to be car-free on September 22, 2021. On this day, the agency would like residents to forgo commuting alone by car and instead choose to either use public transportation, carpool or vanpool, bike, walk, or even telework from home.

Car Free Day is a worldwide event that encourages greener methods of travel. Commuter Connections hosts Car Free Day in the Washington, DC region to bring awareness to the benefits of travel options such as transit, bicycling and walking; and also telework for people who can work from home. Carpooling and vanpooling count too, which is referred to as “car-lite” since they are both lighter on the wallet and the environment than driving alone in a car.

Once participants take the online pledge they will automatically be entered into a raffle for all sorts of great prizes, including a $30 gift card to discover great local businesses from Nift (Neighborhood Gift). View prizes here.

Pledge participants also have an opportunity to learn about the transportation options, infrastructure and resources in Prince William County, by playing BINGO.  Play for a chance to win a Historic Manassas Inc. gift card or an OmniRide gift bag. There will be one gift card winner and five gift bag winners. Prizes will be mailed to the winners after they have been contacted. Play bingo here. 

Commuter Connections is a program of the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG). Commuter Connections promotes bicycling to work, ridesharing, and other alternatives to drive alone commuting; provides ridematching for carpools and vanpools; and offers the free Guaranteed Ride Home program. Commuter Connections is funded by the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and the U.S. Departments of Transportation.

OmniRide’s Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Program assists employers to coordinate ridesharing, implement teleworking and commuter benefits programs for their employees. OmniRide TDM also partners with other agencies on transportation planning and operating initiatives, ridesharing strategies, transportation planning studies, capital project management, policy analysis, and regional coordination.

“Car-Free Day and our BINGO card provide really great opportunities to get out of the house in a social-distancing safe way to explore what Prince William County has to offer while also exploring different ways to travel and commute throughout the County,” said Holly Morello, OmniRide TDM Manager. “It is our hope that once residents experience how easy it is to use alternative transportation and the many benefits that come with it that they will choose to make this a habit in their daily lives.”

There are many benefits to going car-free for both humans and the planet. Bicycling and walking are great ways to stay healthy. Using more sustainable ways to get around helps reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and traffic congestion. The more people who travel using bicycles, buses, trains, carpools and vanpools, the fewer pollutants are released into the atmosphere.

View more information here.