Gerald Whittington and Elaine Durr cited in Business Officer article on campus transit

Elon University vice president Gerald Whittington and Elaine Durr, the university’s sustainability coordinator, were both cited extensively in a story on alternative transit options on college campuses in the April 2010 edition of Business Officer magazine.

The magazine is a publication of the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Whittington and Durr spoke with reporter Karla Hignite on several recent Elon initiatives to promote carpooling, to encourage the use of BioBuses, and to advertise ZipCar availability for students who want to rent a car for the day.

From the “Easy Riders” story:

… A 2008 commuter habit survey revealed that 35 percent of Elon’s students carpool at least once each week, versus 14 percent of faculty and 10 percent of staff. Beyond the car, 20 percent of students travel to campus by bus at least once a week, compared to less than 1 percent of both faculty and staff. “There is clearly an opportunity to decrease commuting emissions through increasing the use of alternative transportation,” says Whittington. “Right now we are looking at what we can do for those closest to campus.”

Durr points to Elon’s Zipcar program as having flourished with increased communication, including information sent in new summer mailings, discussions at student orientations, and coverage on the university’s Web page for parents. “The more students become aware of the program, the more likely they are to show up on campus car free,” says Durr.

To read the full story, click on the link to the right.