CMT GREAT RACE win for TRANSIT & the REGION

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WebWhether a supporter for Team East or Team West for the 2016 CMT Great Race; Linking the Last Mile, the event was a win for the region with the number of partnerships, local media participation and overall community wide advocacy and awareness building for multi-modal options in St. Louis. While Team West took home the win for 2016 and the bragging rights for  the next year, the region won with a fun and exciting way to promote the regional asset we have in our transit system, the seamless connection commuters can make in this region for multi-modal travel, and the importance of activating the last mile.

CMT’s Great Race 2016: Linking the Last Mile  integrated biking, carsharing, and MetroLink and MetroBus as the teams raced to the final destination at the Cortex Commons, 4240 Duncan Ave in Midtown St. Louis. This approach helped to raise awareness about the viable  transportation options that exist, demonstrate how seamlessly these modes can be integrated together, and highlight the future site of the newest MetroLink Station, the Boyle Street Station in Midtown. The competition placed two teams against one another. One team biked, rode transit to the Grand MetroLink, where they all carshared to the Finish Line destination. The other team utilized biking and MetroBus to  the Forest Park MetroLink station, where they  took the train to the CWE Station and then walked or biked the last half mile. The amount of celebrity participation in this year’s race exceeded all expectations Team EASTwith representatives from print, radio and tv on board for the event including:

  • Guy Phillips, Host of the “Phillips & Company Morning Show” on Y98;
  • Rizzuto, Host of “The Rizzuto Show” on 105.7 The Point;
  • Brady Hempen, The Big 550 KTRS Show Director;
  • Don Corrigan, Editor of the Webster-Kirkwood Times, the South County Times and West End Word newspapers;
  • Chris King, Editor of The St. Louis American;
  • Mariah Stewart, Ferguson Fellow for the Huffington Post and The St. Louis American;
  • Gary Seith from KSDK Newschannel 5;
  • Darian Wigfall, NineLAB Assistant Manager and Director of Artist Team WESTManagement and Development at Farfetched
  • Tony Patrico, Co-host of “The Rizzuto Show” on 105.7 The Point;
  • Meghan O, On-Air Talent with Radio One’s Hot 104.1;
  • Angela Hutti, Fox 2 Meteorologist;
  • Matt Chambers, Meteorologist and Host/Producer of “Great Day St. Louis” on KMOV Ch. 4;
  • Jill Moon, Lifestyles editor and assistant content editor of The Alton Telegraph;
  • Wiley Price, Staff Photojournalist of The St. Louis American;
  • Palmer Alexander III, Sports Columnist for of The St. Louis American;
  •  and representatives from Great Rivers Greenway, Enterprise, CMT, Metro and the Clean Air Partnership.

 

“One of our goals of this event was to showcase that workday commuters have options on both sides of the river that extend beyond sitting in traffic, alongside others who are also driving solo in their own personal vehicles.  We were able to achieve this goal and much more through the significant partnerships created around the event to promote many of the transportation alternatives in the region, the benefits of utilizing these modes including the implications to our air quality, health, and economic benefits. Not to mention this fun and exciting event helps demonstrate the benefits the region derives with its world class transit system, greenways and more,” said Kim Cella, executive director of CMT.

Thanks to Cortex CEO and President Dennis Lower and 17th Ward Alderman Joe Roddy for naming the winners for the Great Race 2016.

Thanks to our local partners who made this event possible:  Clean Air Partnership; Enterprise Carshare; Metro; Great Rivers Greenway; Central States Bus Sales; Cortex Innovation Community; Musick Construction Company; St. Louis Regional Chamber; AECOM; BJC Healthcare; Washington University; AARP in St. Louis and HNTB. Thank you!

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