Meet Beck, GRTMA’s Q2 Commute Champion winner. We picked Beck because she is a genuine transit enthusiast. Not only is she into saving the environment, she really loves this stuff. 

As a Boston Area transplant, Beck has been lucky enough to always have access to good transit systems and has never had a reason to trade in a transit pass for for a driver’s license. She once had a learner’s permit, but with the cost of maintaining a vehicle, parking, and licensing fees… she didn’t see enough value in a personal vehicle to outweigh the high cost of owning a car. 

On the rare occasion she can’t get somewhere on the bus or under her own power she has access to a car: carpooling with her husband. When he’s not available to share the ride she utilizes services like Uber or Lyft. And now, the availability of mobility apps like Scoop and Waze Carpooling offer even more ways to get around.

Beck has it all figured out, and while she is still subject to the “whims of rush hour” like the rest of us, it never phases her. While drivers are experiencing road rage, aggression, and the other poor behavior that can be witnessed when traffic slows to a crawl, Beck is reading, knitting or making friends. 

While others are sitting alone in traffic, Beck is using her extra time on the bus to read Tolstoy’s War and Peace; a totally appropriate piece of literature for someone working for Echo Services Inc. as a Microsoft Librarian. 

Beck has become a recognizable fixture on some of her regular routes. One bus driver that she befriended rotated to another route and told her replacement to “Watch for the lady with the curly hair and the knitting,” and naturally, Beck has befriended the new bus driver. 

Beck is no transit convert, but she will happily chat with you if you are lucky enough to be her seatmate on your next commute. If you are so lucky, maybe she’ll even share a few transit memes with you. 

 

Greater Redmond TMA is happy to award Beck for being a transit evangelist and her commitment to smart commute options. She has been awarded a Brewery Tour for two by Road Dogs and has a chance to win a grand prize worth $1000 at the end of 2018. 

To submit yourself or your own COMMUTE CHAMPION, fill out this questionnaire. 

* Winners for Q3 2018 will be selected in October. All submissions will remain valid for the duration of the 2018 season. There is no need to submit multiple times.