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On your marks, get set, walk

Walkers across the metro area are lacing up and getting ready to take to the streets in April to improve their health, help clean up the air and reduce traffic during the Metro Atlanta Walk There! Challenge.

The month-long competition runs from April 1-28, promoting physical activity and walking as a form of transportation. Sign up begins March 1 and ends March 25.

Participation is easy for individuals, employers and property management companies. Sign up by visiting www.cleanaircampaign.com, strap on a free pedometer and begin tracking the number of steps you walk each day. The Web site also has rules of the competition and easy tips to make walking a bigger part of your daily routine.

Each week an iPod shuffle will be presented to the two individuals in each area (10 total areas throughout metro Atlanta) who log the greatest number of steps taken during that week. The overall winner for the region will win a grand prize trip for two to the luxurious Divi Village Golf & Beach Resort (www.diviresorts.com) in Aruba.

The Metro Atlanta Walk There! Challenge is a region-wide event drawing on the strengths of the nine organizations in metro Atlanta working to reduce traffic congestion by increasing the use of commute alternatives. These organizations include The Clean Air Campaign, BATMA, the Clifton Corridor TMA, CobbRides, Commuter Club, Central Atlanta Progress' Downtown TMA, the Hartsfield Area TMA, Midtown Alliance's MTS and the Perimeter Transportation Coalition.

"Although most people may not be able to walk to work, we all make short trips that are better suited to our feet than our automobiles," said Ellen Macht, executive director, The Clean Air Campaign. "A quarter of automobile trips in the United States are less than a mile in length. The Walk There! Challenge makes use of pedometers to draw attention to the opportunities we all have to walk more and drive less. Such changes in behavior can have a lasting impact on our physical health and the health of our region."

Depending on stride, most people cover a mile in 2,000 steps. Though studies suggest that 10,000 steps per day is a good ballpark goal, many Atlantans are more likely to find themselves in the range of 900 to 3,000 steps per day. Getting the steps to add up can be quite easy. Many people work within walking distance of restaurants and shops, or errands like trips to the ATM, the drugstore or dry cleaners. At home and on the weekends, there are additional opportunities to reduce driving, such as walking your child down the street to a friend's house rather than driving or walking to stores within a shopping center as opposed to driving to each one.

The Walk There! Challenge is the brainchild of Heather Alhadeff, director of the Downtown Transportation Management Association. Last year, the Downtown TMA held a smaller version of the Walk There! Challenge for employers and employees in downtown Atlanta which was supported by Mayor Shirley Franklin and other local leaders. Over 700 individuals and 27 companies participated, and more than 27,000,000 steps were logged in throughout the competition.

Alhadeff saw the potential of expanding the event region wide, with the help of The Clean Air Campaign and the region's seven other TMAs.

"Something came over our participants last year the moment they started wearing their pedometers," commented Alhadeff. "People were really into it. I'm looking forward to seeing the impact of the program now that we're taking it region-wide."

The competition focuses on education about pedestrian issues in a fun and friendly competitive atmosphere. Challenge your neighbor, co-worker, friends, staff and yourself to walk more, drive less, and, in the process, to promote better health, cleaner air and less traffic.

The Clean Air Campaign is a not-for-profit organization that offers employers free assistance in the design and implementation of commute options and other smog-reducing programs as part of its role as the region's clearinghouse for solutions to air pollution and traffic congestion. In addition, the organization provides a children's education program, issues Smog Alert notifications and provides financial incentives to promote alternative commuting behavior. For more information about The Clean Air Campaign, call 1-877-CLEANAIR or visit www.cleanaircampaign.com.

There are eight regional Transportation Management Associations in the region. A partnership of employers, developers and public agencies, TMAs respond to existing traffic congestion and or access problems. Metro Atlanta's TMAs work with employers and property managers in some the region's highest density areas. The eight TMAs in the region are:

• Buckhead Area TMA (BATMA) - www.batma.org.

• Clifton Corridor TMA - www.cctma.com.

• CobbRides - www.cobbrides.com.

• Commuter Club - www.commuterclub.com.

• Downtown TMA - www.atlantadowntown.com.

• Hartsfield TMA - www.hatma.org.

• Midtown Transportation Solutions - www.midtownalliance.org.

• Perimeter Transportation Coalition - www.perimetergo.org.