Join us!

WALK RIDE DAY, the last Friday of every month!

 

Commute car-free, celebrate, and check-in!

 

Be proud and rewarded by retail partners, too!

 

Walk or ride a bicycle, bus, train… even carpooling or walking partway count!

 

Invite your colleagues, family and community… we can show you how!

  • Jamal Halawa's Story

    "In my family, I am part of a long line of cyclists, and I want to pass down this love of bicycles. We ride as much as we can and try to use our bikes for transportation at all times - for no other reason than enjoyment. That said, I think the bicycle is the cheapest, quickest, smartest, and most enjoyable way to get around. Cycling makes a person feel healthy and self sufficient and a part of his/her surroundings. I want everyone to experience that. I think Walk/Ride Day is a great first step in that discovery and I hope that the event can grow and expand and help people in my community live happy and healthy lives. I want to link people to local, small, health/bicycle businesses, and organizations. I want to help in an organic, ground-up growth of networks of different people, based on health and community, and I feel we can accomplish this through Walk/Ride Day."

  • Betsy Bouche's Story

    "I got rid of my car about a year and a half ago, and get around by walking, public transportation and occasionally Zipcar (which I joined on a recent Walk/Ride Day). I grew up locally, and I've been in Somerville since the '70s. In other aspects of my life, I grow vegetables in my backyard and do as much of my shopping as possible at farmers' markets."

  • Amy Lewis's Story

    "My fiancé and I choose not to own a car — we live in Arlington and both work in Kendall Square, so it’s an easy commute via bike, T, walking, bus, or some combination of those. I’ve been participating in Walk/Ride Day since my employer first announced it. I’m happy to support anything that raises awareness of — and use of — alternate means of transportation."

  • Dr. Jamie Redgrave, Endocrinologist

    I saw Janie today at Holyoke Center and now I'm motivated to share my story.  When I last knew her I was not a biker.  I started biking from my home in Brookline to Brigham and Women’s Hospital which takes about 10 minutes due to the cost of parking there.  Eventually I started to really enjoy the ride and feel healthier.  I also work in Harvard Square but thought I was too old, it was too dangerous and too long a ride.  A young co-worker said those were all incorrect and I should just try it.  I was scared at first about the car traffic but after my first ride which I survived, I was just elated.  Now I ride all the time in all weathers except snow and ice on the roads. I feel so energized, I have also started to exercise more, my health has improved, I've lost weight, gained muscle mass and it turns out that biking to Cambridge for me takes 30 minutes, taking the bus or the T takes an hour!  Plus I save on the order of $20-$30 on parking. 

  • Janie Katz-Christy, Executive Director of Green Streets, Shares Her Green Travel Plans

    My husband and three kids (ages 11, 13, and 15) and I are planning a very exciting trip for next week! We're taking the commuter rail to Plymouth, then bicycling to Cape Cod, staying for a night at a B+B in Sandwich and then hostels in Hyannis, Eastham, and Truro. After 6 days, we'll take the ferry home from Provincetown to Boston!

    We'd welcome any advice… and good wishes!

  • Bike Trip to Maine

     

    My husband + I have vacationed every summer by exploring a new location + taking a self supported cycling adventure. We pack a few clothes in panniers, various cycling clothing for different temps, a tent, light weight sleeping bags + cooking gear, and head out on the road. We’ve ridden directly from our house in Malden MA to Kennebunkport + Portland ME, taken trains part way + ridden the rest or parked at friends places in VT and ended back at their place for a nice visit before heading back home. Last summer we rode from Bar Harbor to Kennebunkport and rode mostly off road on all the rail trails + dirt roads that are connected along the way. It’s always exciting + so much fun! The folks we meet along the way are always awesome as well!

     

    Susan Margot Ecker

    ACIS Educational Travel

  • Summer trip suggestion: Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket!

    Four friends and I took a very 'green vacation' 2 summers ago: we met at South Station with our bicycles loaded for a 5 day tour of Martha's Vinyard and Nantucket, using only rail, boat and our own pedal power. For the first leg of our trip, we took the Greenbush commuter line to Scituate. We biked from there to Woods Hole and took the ferry to Martha's Vinyard, where we stayed with a friend and biked around the island for 2 days. Biking to the ferry on the 3rd morning, we arrived back at Woods Hole, rode our bikes to Hyannis and ferried to Nantucket - where we stayed overnight at a wonderful youth hostel. After exploring the island we again took a ferry to the mainland and then cycled to Scituate, where we took the commuter train back to South Station! What a pleasant way to tour this lovely area - and without a drop of gasoline :-)

    George Ulrich

  • Summer trip suggestion #3: North Shore and Cape Ann... and NYC!

    1) Take the commuter rail Gloucester-Rockport line from Boston out to Beverly farms, Gloucester, or Manchester with your bike.  Bike around the perimeter of Cape Ann staying overnight in a B&B in Rockport, Gloucester or Ipswich.  Return trip the next day.  Make sure to have some great local seafood and locally brewed beer in Rockport center!  Optional excusions - Plum Island, Hammond Castle, etc.

    2) The Chinatown buses (and probably others) let you take bikes on the bus for no charge.  In fact there is usually so much room in the cargo area you don't even need to remove your front wheel.  Take the bus to NYC ($15) with your bike.  Bike from Chinatown to the West side on NY's well bike laned streets.  You can bike leisurely up the Hudson River Greenway all the way to the upper west side, dipping into Manhattan wherever you are interested in going.  Also very nice to spend a day by bike in Central Park and at the museums.  On the weekends most roads in Central Park are closed to cars.  Of course www.couchsurfing.org or Hostels are the cheapest way to stay in NYC unless you have friends with space.  Otherwise in Brooklyn there are some decent Motels that are reasonably priced, even at inflated NYC prices.  When you factor in that the bus round trip is only $30 (with free wifi) and you have your own pedal taxi - it's still quite a cheap, green, and exciting destination.  Oh - and if you do want to take the train in the city you can put your bike on it (and most stations have elevators to make things easier.)

    Daniel Fox

  • Winner of our request for feedback on Walk/Ride Day and stories of green vacation travel

    Congratulations to Karen May, of the Lemuel Shattuck Memorial Hospital. "I think the Walk/Ride Day program is a great idea for so many reasons: the environment, physical and mental health, and saving gas! I actually try to run to work twice a week if I can, so maybe you can make it Walk/Ride/Run! Thanks so much for the gift certificate. I really appreciate it! Hope you have a fun and safe summer!