 |
 |
|
| HOME | YOUR COMMUTE | MEMBERS | NEWS & INFO | FORUMS | ABOUT GRTMA | CONTACT US |
 |
 |
|
 |
|||||||||
VOLUME 1 • SPRING • 2011 In this issue:
Promotions: News and Information: 2011 King County Construction Season is Upon Us Feature Articles: Download this issue in .pdf format ____________________________________________________________ NEW! A free 3-MONTH ORCA Pass for Bus Riders! myR-TRIP is offering for the first time a 3-month FREE ORCA Pass to new bus riders who live and/or work in Redmond. To sign up, go to https://www.gortrip.com/home/transit.aspx, to read about “Taking the Bus” and download the Transit Subsidy Application. Remember too, you can also earn $50 for your first fifty commutes from myR-TRIP by just tracking your trips on the myR-TRIP commute calendar. And there are monthly drawings where you can win prizes such as gift cards to Redmond restaurants, retailers, entertainment venues, and more. Log in to myR-TRIP to participate at https://www.gortrip.com. ____________________________________________________________ Planning Ahead: Bike to Work Day is Friday, May 20 this year! GRTMA will have two bike stations: One at 51st at SR-520 in Overlake and the other at the Lake Sammamish Trail (at 116th). Again, this year there will be gifts, T-shirts, drawings for prizes, bike repair, food and beverages. Come out and join us! If you would like to volunteer to help with this event, please contact cindig@grtma.org. Earth Day is Friday, April 22! Earth lovers (and who isn’t?) will unite behind the idea of “Leave Your Car at Home During Earth Week!” (April 18-22). Those who track at least one day of not driving a car to work that week or driving a carpool/vanpool on the myR-TRIP Calendar will be entered into a drawing for great prizes. You must be registered in myR-TRIP to participate. All GRTMA member employees may use myR-TRIP to track commutes. ALL NEW! Tour de Redmond begins June 1. The 2011 Tour de Redmond Summer Bicycle Commute Challenge is completely redesigned this year to make it easier, more fun, with more prizes and more recognition—and more use of technology (Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) for all of you who make the commitment to ride as a individual or on a company team. This year’s competition will be from June 1 through July 31. Start forming your teams now. Much more information will be coming in a special edition newsletter just for Tour de Redmond. ____________________________________________________________ The spring and summer are shaping up to be very busy for construction on roadways in King County. WSDOT has several projects to improve safety, ease congestion and maintain our infrastructure. That's in addition to roadwork being done by various cities that also affects state routes. Get prepared: ____________________________________________________________ Get To Know GOOD TO GO! All-electronic tolling on the 520 bridge could begin as early as May 2011, with Good to Go! tolls being collected electronically. Set up a convenient prepaid account by purchasing a pass for your vehicle or registering your license plate for photo ID. How it works
Online: www.wsdot.gov/GoodToGo In person:
By phone: 1-866-936-8246 ____________________________________________________________
Russ Wiecking – January Commute Champion January’s Commute Champion is Russ Wiecking is an Engineering Specialist at Physio-Control. Russ’ commute from downtown Bellevue to Redmond each day rain or shine is remarkable enough until we learn that Russ also wears a pacemaker. During the darkest days of winter employees at Physio-Control have noticed that Russ’ bike is the only one on the bike rack. Russ just smiles and says, “I’m trying to toughen up.” Russ received a Certificate of Recognition and a $50 Amex Gift Card. His nominator, fellow employee Steven Chester, received a $25 Amex Gift Card.
Don’t Like the idea of Carpooling with a Stranger? AVEGO’s Go520 Real Time Ridesharing may have the answer you are looking for. In cooperation with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), AVEGO has created “Go520”, the world’s first large-scale real-time ridesharing community. Using AVEGO’s real-time ridesharing system, 250 drivers with GPS-enabled smartphones will offer empty seats in their vehicles to 750 riders along the same route—in real time. But here is the surprising news: Each driver's driving record, insurance compliance, and background are checked. Even passengers must get a background check. This may be the safest and most confident you can ever be riding in a carpool. Learn more at http://go520.avego.com. and ride assured. ____________________________________________________________ It’s All About Saving Fuel! 8 Tips to Improve Fuel Economy With gasoline prices soaring up to the $4 mark once again, we decided to do a little research about how to save a little gasoline. 1. Drive Smarter. Slow down. Traveling 55 mph will almost always result in more MPG. Using cruise control, higher gears and avoiding idling will also help. Also, keep your temper—stomping on the brakes or gas will waste a lot of fuel. Anticipate if you can your next move far in advance—a slow application of the foot when slowing or accelerating will improve mileage. 2. Keep Your Car in Shape. A well-tuned, well-maintained engine will maximize your car’s performance and make a big difference. According to the Department of Energy, replacing a faulty oxygen sensor can improve MPG by up to 40 percent. Don’t forget to keep the tires properly inflated, your wheels aligned and your exterior clean and waxed for a little aerodynamic boost. 3. Use Correct Motor Oil and Fuel for Your Car. Using the proper motor oil and correct octane of fuel can up your fuel efficiency numbers by 1 to 2 percent. Gas is statistically at its lowest price on Wednesdays. So you can save a penny or two with a mid-week fill up. Also, avoid the MPG boosting pills, additives and other products—none of their claims have been validated by the FTC. And don’t forget to make sure your gas tank cap is on tightly. 4. Plan and Combine Trips. Try to combine trips and errands as often as possible to potentially double your efficiency. Letting your car stop and cool down, only to start it up and head out again, will use more gas than just making a second stop while the car is still warm. 5. Think about How You Commute and Travel. Be sure to use your most fuel-efficient vehicle for the type of driving. Hybrids are great for city driving with lower speeds and lots of stopping and starting. If you spend a lot of time on the freeway, the turbo diesel will provide better return on your investment. 6. Take off the Weight. Lessen the weight on roof racks and other exterior areas and pack those items in the trunk. That additional drag can decrease efficiency by 5 percent. 7. Buy a More Fuel-Efficient Diesel, Hybrid or Electric Car. New Turbo Diesels get 30 mpg in the city and 42 mpg or even better on the highway. Turbo Diesels can also run on biodiesel, which is a petroleum-free alternative fuel. Hybrids use an auxiliary battery and electric motor to conserve fuel. In fact, a hybrid makes many of these smart, efficient driving concepts mentioned above nearly automatic. If the battery boost of a hybrid doesn't satisfy your greed for more miles per gallon, consider an electric car like the Nissan Leaf or Ford Focus Electric and take the gallons out of the equation all together. An even more practical option for those without high-voltage charging stations at their home and office could be a plug-in hybrid like the Chevy Volt or Prius plug-in.8. Don’t drive alone. You knew that one was coming. Of course we say the best way is not to drive your car at all—bicycle, bus, ride or drive a vanpool, walk—but if you must (and we all must at times), then take someone with you. A carpool is not a difficult thing to do for most of us. Splitting the cost of gas will save you much more than any of the seven other ways above. Just think about that the next time you fill up. Source: http://www.vehix.com/articles/tips--advice/6-tips-to-improve-fuel-economy ____________________________________________________________ |
||||||||||||
While we are on the subject of fuel savings, let’s dispel the myths about how to save fuel. See if you know the answers: 1. Driving with the air conditioner off on the freeway saves fuel. 2. Gas additives boost fuel economy. 3. Keeping your motor running while idling saves gas. 4. Premium gas improves MPG. 5. Over-inflating your tires improves fuel economy. 6. Fuel efficiency decreases as a car ages. 7. Changing a dirty air filter will boost MPG. (Answers are to the right.) Source: http://www.vehix.com/articles/green/eight-fuel-economy-myths-debunked |
1. Part Truth/Part Myth You are technically correct if you said ‘truth’. Turning on the a/c does burn more gas, particularly at low speeds. But at highway speeds, rolling down the windows instead actually increases drag and cancels out the savings from not turning on the a/c. 2. Myth Many of the additives tested make no measurable difference in fuel efficiency. We are further warned against investing in them. 3. Myth Fuel-injected engines start very efficiently, so it is better to turn off the engine if you will be idling your car for more than 30 seconds. But this does not mean you should shut off your engine when stuck in traffic. That is dangerous and contributes to wearing out your starter prematurely. Notable exceptions are the new hybrids that shut off the engine while stopped and shift to battery power. 4. Part Truth/Part Myth If your goal is to save money by achieving higher average MPG in daily driving, don’t buy higher octane fuels. The extra cost per gallon will quickly eat up any potential savings from the minimal mileage gains. Even high end performance and luxury cars run fine on regular fuel. Check with your mechanic or dealer to see what makes the most sense. 5. Myth Inflate your tires to the proper PSI, but ignore anyone who tells you to keep pumping. Over-inflated tires can degrade handling and braking and cause uneven tire wear—and an increased risk of blowouts. 6. Myth A well-maintained vehicle can often hit the same MPG figures for decades. After the initial break-in period, MPG can actually increase over the first several years of ownership. Some owners may perceive a decrease after the first 7 years of ownership, but you may simply be achieving the EPA estimates for your vehicle when it was new. 7. Part Truth/Part Myth Today’s computer controlled, electronically fuel-injected systems can easily adjust and correct for a little junk in the filter. A study on this subject by the federal government discovered that although there was no improvement in fuel economy by replacing dirty filters with new ones, there was up to an 11% improvement in acceleration. |
|||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Home | Your Commute | Members | News & Info | About GRTMA | Contact ©2009 Greater Redmond Transportation Management Association All Rights Reserved |
||||||||||||
