Georgia Commute Options Presenting Prizes to Workplace Winners This Week
Atlanta, GA – Nov. 30, 2023 – The 11th annual Biketober Challenge recently crossed the finish line in high-flying fashion, with the number of riders registered, miles biked, and trips logged all surpassing last year’s totals.
Thousands of residents and more than 350 companies from across the 20-county Atlanta area biked nearly 340,000 miles and saved nearly 34,000 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions during the monthlong cycling competition, sponsored by Georgia Commute Options (GCO). For more results, see the table below.
| Biketober Results: 2022 vs. 2023 | |||
| 2022 | 2023 | % change | |
| Riders registered | 3,295 | 4,119 | 25% |
| Riders participated | 2,568 | 2,632 | 2.5% |
| Miles | 333,083 | 340,116 | 2% |
| Trips | 29,174 | 31,214 | 7% |
| CO2 (lbs) saved | 31,870 | 33,871 | 6% |
This week, the GCO team is presenting prizes to local workplace winners. First-place winners, which also received trophies, included Georgia Tech (2,000+ staff), Environmental Protection Division (500-1,999), Atlanta Regional Commission (200-499), REI-Kennesaw (50-199), Trees Atlanta (20-49), Stability Engineering (7-19), and BLDGS Architects (1-6).
“We are thankful for the support from the metro Atlanta region, our partners and all those who participated in another successful and memorable Biketober,” said Roz Tucker, GCO’s managing director. “Biketober not only reflects our region’s passion for healthier commuting, but it also shows our collective commitment to reducing environmental impacts. That passion and commitment continue to strengthen each year.”
In addition to promoting a healthy, environmentally friendly alternative to driving, Biketober offered participants the chance to win big prizes. To enter the prize drawings, participants logged their miles and earned points for every mile they biked, every day they rode and for every additional person they encouraged to sign up. The more points they earned, the more chances they had to win prizes, including cash and this year’s grand prize: an Edison electric bike.
Brookhaven resident Jon Button, who biked 28 days during this year’s event, won the Edison electric bike. He picked up the e-bike Nov. 21, and he’s already incorporating it into his daily routine. On Thanksgiving Day, he joined more than 20 fellow cyclists for the Brookhaven Bike Alliance’s 26-mile ride, and he’s used the e-bike three times over the past week for his three-mile commute to work at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Chamblee.
“I’m obsessed with the bike,” said Button, adding the Edison is a “huge upgrade” from his current wheels.
Button has participated in Biketober for six years but even as this year’s grand prize winner, he has no plans to exit the competition.
“The next challenge for me is to encourage other people to ride,” he said. “The world would be a better place if more people rode.”
For news media inquiries and interviews, please contact Joel Wascher at JWascher@AtlantaRegional.org, 470-698-6106, or Shane Blatt, sblatt@gacommuteoptions.com, 770-384-6715.
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About Georgia Commute Options: Georgia Commute Options, a program managed by the Atlanta Regional Commission and funded through the Georgia Department of Transportation, works with employers, commuters and schools to encourage drivers who ride alone to make the switch to a commute alternative such as riding transit, teleworking, carpooling, vanpooling, walking and/or biking, with the ultimate goal of reducing congestion and the emissions that contribute to smog pollution. For more information, visit www.GaCommuteOptions.com and follow Georgia Commute Options on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. Get access to cash incentives by logging your clean commute on our website or through the Georgia Commute app, which is available for download via the App Store or Google Play.