Two NGOs have teamed up to offer commuters rewards in exchange for ditching their private cars in favour of public transport or other means of transportation.

The initiative is being spearheaded by the Project Aegle Foundation (PAF), an NGO dedicated to improving quality of life through traffic reduction, and Green Roads Malta, which operates ‘breeze’, an app that facilitates the search for alternative transport solutions in Malta.

Greentrips, as the initiative is called, challenges people to walk, cycle or use alternative means of transport, such as public transport or carpooling. That use of alternative transportation is transferred into points which can then be redeemed for rewards, including cash prizes.

The NGOs are convinced 40% of commuters could be persuaded to change their habits through rewards, so they challenge users to get out of their comfort zone and accumulate as many trips or kilometres as they can.

Among the prizes up for grabs, participants could be in the running to receive products and discounts from The Cyclist and Dr Juice, among others, as well as a cash reward of up to $350.

A call to action that would promote sustainable mobility

“If you’ve been in Malta for more than a day, then I guarantee that you’ve been sitting in traffic,” Nicole Klaesener-Metzner, who manages PAF, told attendees at the Malta Sustainability Forum last week.

“We need to advance sustainable mobility in order to improve the Maltese traffic situation and, along with it, the general quality of life,” she added.

Ms Klaesener-Metzner said that providing a choice of transportation that can accommodate everyone and working to reduce emissions was crucial, given the enormity of the car-to-person ratio on the island.

“We wanted to create a call to action that would promote sustainable mobility and reward commuters for their positive mobility behaviour,” Ms Klaesener-Metzner said.

For more information, visit greentrips.eu.