Today begins one of the most relevant and enlightening annual activities in Salt Lake City and the Wasatch Front that I am personally aware of: the Clear The Air Challenge. For the next four weeks those of us that normally fill Utah’s roads and freeways in single occupant vehicles–generally for good and productive purposes–have an opportunity to evaluate how we get from point A to point B and back. I believe this will be the third year that my office has participated in the challenge. Last year, Lloyd Architects was awarded the Clear The Air Challenge Small Business Award, largely on the backs (or legs) of two of our intrepid team members, Aaron Day & Liz Yonashiro. They spent much of the month commuting north and south from Davis & Weber Counties via Frontrunner and bicycle. At 37 miles each way, that is a considerable reduction of carbon emissions.
My morning commute is much more modest at about 2.3 miles, basically from Sunnyside Park to Trolley Square. I do find, however, that once at the office with a bike, I can still generally handle my daily trips to my typical destinations: the City/County Building, the AIA Utah office, and our local project sites in the Lower Avenues and over to the Granary District. As we start this year’s challenge, the office crew and I will be tracking miles, but we will also be opening our eyes to see parts of the City that we miss from our windshields. Re-connecting with our city from on foot or on bike may well be a bonus reward, on top of clearer air, stronger legs, and dollars saved at the pump.
Here’s to a healthy challenge!
When I moved to the Salt Lake Valley four years ago I noticed, as many visitors do from the East Coast, that Salt Lake is an exceptionally well manicured place. This, of course, makes the area an attractive, comfortable place to live. However, being accustomed to seeing factories, trains, and various modes of infrastructure intersecting, sometimes presumptuously, with homes and businesses, I wondered where all that stuff was kept in Utah. I discovered a path through the infrastructure I was seeking and an invigorating architectural experience by commuting on Trax. (more…)
