The city of Durango’s 2025 Clean Commute week kicked off Saturday and culminates on Friday at the 13th annual Winter Bike to Work Day taking place at six different stations around town in the morning and an early evening celebration at night.
Durango’s multimodal transportation department, who we have to thank for organizing the weeklong event, syncs up with International Bike to Work Day, held the second Friday in February, this year Valentine’s Day.
The Multimodal Division is overseen by three staff members who guide the city’s efforts to continue to move Durango toward an integrated multimodal transportation network with a focus on community connectivity, safety, equity (who has access to public transportation and at what cost, for example), sustainability, public health and the community-at-large.
The most recent Multimodal Transportation Plan, adopted by Durango’s City Council in December 2023, like its predecessors, focuses on moving people (vs. cars only) and projects that improve safety, and reduce collisions, injuries and fatalities. Clean Commute Week and Winter Bike to Work Day support these goals through education, outreach and fun.
In recent years, both winter and summer events have dispersed from one downtown location to six this year since not everyone works downtown. The northernmost station is at Rocky Mountain High on East 36th St. and the southern extent, the Axis Health Building at 150 East Mercury Drive just off the Animas River Trail.
The Herald’s editorial board supports this change that allows more businesses to gain exposure and community members to participate, as well as the ongoing investment the city is making in Durango becoming a more sustainable and livable community.
We’re pleased to learn all multimodal transportation projects are moving forward in 2025 and are either in the design or construction phase. These include College and 8th Traffic Calming, Junction Street Traffic Calming, Midtown Safety and Connectivity Improvement Design, Roosa Connect, North Main ADA Improvements, the Camino Crossing Design (including the long-awaited underpass), and others.
Additionally, the Fort Lewis College Environmental Center, Backcountry Experience and The Powerhouse, Durango Sustainable Goods, Durango Tool Library and Cafe Amor, and & Gallery are sponsors. Check the website below for station times that include free coffee and, if you are lucky, some commuting swag.
While it’s too late to sign up for Clean Commute Week, consider joining in the fun of a silent disco, free appetizers and community members fired up about sustainable transportation by joining the Winter Bike to Work Day celebration Friday at 7 p.m. at 11th Street Station.
We can all do our part to reduce the dominance of single occupancy vehicles by walking, cycling, rolling, riding public transit, or carpooling, and the Multimodal Division can help.
More information is available at https://bit.ly/4gFgS9J.
