This morning’s Oakland Tribune featured a front-page story on the Car-Free Challenge, the month-long community challenge to “drive less and live more” during June.  Sponsored by WOBO allies at Oakland-based TransForm, the Challenge recruited over 165 people to track their drive miles for 30 days and blog about their experiences.  The article by Denis Cuff of the Contra Costa Times followed car-free single mother Annette Gormley of Castro Valley on a shopping trip, describing how and why it’s better not to drive:

Transform said heavy reliance on automobiles has led to gridlock, stress, obesity, a lack of exercise, urban sprawl, a reduced sense of community, and smog and global warming.

Autos are costly, too. Americans spend an average of about $7,500 a year to own, operate and fuel a car, Transform says.

Gormley’s story shows that a suburban mother going to college and raising two sons active in Boy Scouts can get around without a car.

She said she never liked the stress and hassle of driving, and often commuted by public transit. Five years ago, she dumped the car.

Perhaps not coincidentally, on page 4 of the same paper a story entitled “Walking, biking to work linked with better fitness” offered some additional insights into why commuters should at least consider leaving the car at home on the way to and from the office.

Those active commuters did better on treadmill tests of fitness, even when researchers accounted for their leisure-time physical activity levels, suggesting commuter choices do make a difference.

For men in the study, but not women, the active commuters also had healthier numbers for body mass index, blood pressure, insulin and blood fats called triglycerides. Women walked or biked shorter distances and they may have done so less vigorously, the authors speculated.

With 78 Challengers from Alameda County, Oakland was at the epicenter of the Car-Free Challenge.  WOBO contributed to the Car-Free Challenge with a team of car-free avengers blogging about their Oaktown transit and bicycling adventures.  WOBO Challenger Lauren L noticed the positive side of walking and biking during her challenge:

My friend Ann and I were talking today about how when you walk and bike things happen that you would have missed if you had driven.  Sometimes it’s small–today I had someone I don’t know say “how are you?” from across the street. Two days ago I had a nice conversation with an older women who was watering her garden.

You can still support the Car-Free Challenge and WOBO by donating online at the WOBO Team Website – but don’t waste any time, the deadline is tomorrow!  Your contribution will be shared between TransForm and Walk Oakland Bike Oakland to advocate for better transportation choices in Oakland and beyond.  Click here to donate now!