Here’s my column from the Sunday paper. If you’ve already read it elsewhere, please skip on down to the comments below. Thanks.

CHECK OUT THESE WINNERS

A shoe subsidy for those who walk to work? An Internet antenna on the roof of the vanpool van? A Google-based map to help co-workers form carpools? They’re winners of the Commuter Choice Awards. “Commuter Creativity” might be a better name.

The annual ceremony was held on Thursday, and Roadguy had the privilege of serving as emcee. I didn’t do any of the judging — my job was to read a script, introduce people and not trip over the video guy’s extension cord — but I got to meet a wide range of commuters who are doing everything but driving alone.

The awards have been around for 18 years, but with volatile energy prices and the economy on the skids, the hunt for cheaper and more environmentally friendly ways to get to work is as relevant as ever.

During the lunch, I sat at a table with a couple of guys who take part in a vanpool that treks 40 miles to downtown St. Paul every day from Northfield. While a solo driver might spend that hour staring at the windshield, the vanpoolers make good use of their time in the passenger seats.

“The first row is laptops, and second and third row are all sleeper class,” said John Thomas, a Northfield resident who works at Travelers. He and another rider hook up their computers to a wireless device and get work done online, with the antenna on the roof helping to ensure a continuous connection.

The 10-seat van has eight or nine passengers a day, says Charlie Stark, another Travelers employee. He was named Commuter of the Year for his work on the vanpool, and he noted that the vehicle sometimes uses biodiesel, adding another layer of greenness.

The awards also honor workplaces. A crew from Boston Scientific’s Maple Grove location was recognized for its carpool matching program, which used a Google Maps interface. Hennepin County was saluted for letting employees convert unused sick leave into money for biking equipment. And Carmichael Lynch, the advertising firm in downtown Minneapolis, got an award for, among other things, offering a 50 percent subsidy on walking shoes for employees who commute on foot.

Commuter Choice is put together by Metro Transit and transportation councils representing Minneapolis, St. Paul, Anoka County and six cities along Interstate 494. There were too many honorees to list here, but I should mention that the lifetime achievement award went to Benita Warns, who long ago encouraged managers at the mail center where she works to turn over their preferred parking spaces to carpoolers.

More recently, she and her husband have started Mr. Michael Recycles Bicycles, which gives bikes to people who need them for transportation (visit www.mmrbstore.com). If you’ve got a bicycle languishing in your basement, you might want to look up Benita — or start fixing it up for your own use when gas prices go back up.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 23rd, 2008 at 11:14 pm and is filed under Main. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.