VITAL COMMUNITIES
Smart Commute Home Edition
Our Smart Commute Home Edition program worked with towns to lower residents’ transportation costs. Modeled after our successful workplace-based program, Home Edition followed a simple process to evaluate opportunities and develop tailored recommendations like new park-and-ride lots, improved marketing of carpool and bus resources, better telecommuting opportunities, electric vehicle charging stations, and more.
Smart Commute created a tailored commuting program designed to meet the needs of participating towns. Starting with a short survey of town residents, we established baseline data on commuting habits, developed a sustainable commuting plan, and worked with town officials and volunteers to implement it.
Participating Towns
2014 Smart Commute Bradford Action Plan
2014 Smart Commute Hartford Action Plan
2015 Smart Commute Hartland Action Plan
2014 Smart Commute Norwich Action Plan
2015 Smart Commute Royalton Action Plan
2015 Smart Commute Sharon Action Plan
2014 Smart Commute Windsor Action Plan
2016 Smart Commute Action Plan for Sustainable Woodstock
A Dozen Strategies from Vital Communities’ Smart Commute Home Edition
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Promote Go! Vermont, New Hampshire Rideshare & Your Local Transit Company
A lot of people simply don’t know about these resources. Use social media, town “listserv” or Front Porch Forum, newspapers to get the word out and build enthusiasm. Table at sports games, the dump, town meeting, etc. Don’t forget about the emergency ride home programs available to Upper Valley residents.
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Explore feasibility of vanpool and host a community vanpool informational party to form vanpools in your area (this works best at a large workplace)
Enterprise Rideshare provides vanpools in Vermont and New Hampshire. See their website to sign up and check for vanpools in your area.Go! Vermont offers a $700 per month subsidy for vans serving Vermont residents and workers. For more information, contact Ross MacDonald at the Go! Vermont Program of the Vermont Agency of Transportation at Ross.MacDonald@state.vt.us.
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Improve Park-and-Ride
Possible improvements: improve walk/bike access, waiting helter, lighting and safety, add EV stations. If improvements have been made recently, make sure there is adequate signage and information about transit and carpool options. Publicize any improvements so people know about them!
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Promote Way to Go! at district schools (Vermont)
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Organize Bike, Walk, and Roll Day at district schools
Use our toolkit, with the goal of making the event ongoing.
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Sign up for a consultation with vBike (Vermont)
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Include specifics about multi-modal transportation in town plan update
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Familiarize your local planners and developers with the Mobility Checklist
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Coordinate with regional efforts to improve volunteer driver programs
Check with transit company, senior centers, community centers, faith groups.
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Install level II electric vehicle charging stations
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Apply for a grant!
E-mail Bethany@VitalCommunities.org to learn about how towns in Vermont qualify for $500 mini grants from VTrans.
Winner of the Planning Project of the Year Award from the NH Planners Association in 2008! This checklist helps developers, planners, and town boards understand how to “think beyond the car” and integrate biking, walking, and transit into their plan development. It was created with the help of the Upper Valley’s professional planning community and revised in 2014.
Resources for Towns
White River Junction Downtown Parking Study Final Report (2017)
This study for the Town of Hartford, Vermont, was produced by Vital Communities and RSG to examine parking constraints and options in the town’s burgeoning historic downtown.
A Look at the Municipal Vehicle Registration Fee (2015)
This study examines an optional $5 vehicle registration fee used by over a dozen New Hampshire municipalities to build local transportation improvement funds. Authorized under RSA 261:153 VI, the optional fee allows municipalities to establish local transportation improvement funds for projects as diverse as basic road maintenance, sidewalk construction, and public transit. The study concludes that many towns are seeing significant benefits from the optional fee and more are interested in adopting the optional program.
Mobility Checklist (2014)
Winner of the Planning Project of the Year Award from the NH Planners Association in 2008! This checklist helps developers, planners, and town boards understand how to “think beyond the car” and integrate biking, walking, and transit into their plan development. It was created with the help of the Upper Valley’s professional planning community and revised in 2014.
Managing Transportation Demand in the NH Route 120 Corridor: Policy, Finance, and Governance Options (2012)
This study examines how a commute trip reduction ordinance, parking revenue, and a corridor management authority could improve transportation options in the Route 120 corridor.
A Widening Gap (2007)
This study advocates for increased funding for transit services in New Hampshire and Vermont.
Operational Impact Study of Advance Transit Fixed-Route Bus Network (2005)
The “Operational Impact Study” examines the positive contribution of Advance Transit to maintaining clean air in the Upper Valley.
East Central Vermont Sustainability Consortium
Vital Communities is proud to be part of the East Central Vermont Sustainability Consortium, a three-year effort to plan for the future needs of Orange and Windsor Counties, Vermont.
Success Stories
Your Bus in Real-Time.
Not sure when and where to catch Advance Transit or if the bus is on time? Download the Advance Transit Real Time App or check the Where’s My Bus? f [...]
Bike to Work Day at Dartmouth College
Bethany and I arrived bright and early at the Hop at Dartmouth College Friday, May 19, to greet employees and students who arrived that morning on two [...]
Dirty Hands, Clean Bikes
I had a lot of fun teaching a Basic Bike Maintenance workshop at the Upper Valley Haven on April 29, ably assisted by Lisa from the Haven!
A doze [...]
Spring Into Bike Riding Season…
...with practical skills training to get you riding more!
What is Everyday Bicycling?
It’s using your bike for those everyday trips that we all ma [...]
Survey Says: Parking and Transportation in White River Junction Are…
Thank you to the more than 500 downtown White River Junction residents, employees, business owners, and visitors who took our survey about parkin [...]
Start a Vanpool in Woodstock!
Looking for a better way to get to work? If you have at least 5 people who share a similar commute and schedule, you can create a vanpool!
Va [...]
Planning the Parking Future of White River Junction
Hartford Awards Grant for White River Junction Parking and Transportation Plan; Vital Communities and RSG to Lead Project
Vital Communities and nei [...]
Advance Transit Releases Real-Time App
An increasingly common tool in urban areas, a real-time transit app has come to the Upper Valley. You can now use an iPhone or Android to see wher [...]
More Bus Service for the Bradford Area and I-91
Exciting new bus service improvements from our partner, Stagecoach Transportation Services!
Expanded RIVER ROUTE (Wells River-Newbury-Bradford-Fa [...]
New Study on Funding Local Transportation
Vital Communities is pleased to release a new study that examines an optional vehicle registration fee used by over a dozen New Hampshire municipaliti [...]
Vital Communities Program News
Apply for a Farm to School Mini-Grant!
We are excited to announce the 2019 mini-grant program from Vital Communities' Upper Valley Farm to School Network! Funding is available to both Vermont and New Hampshire schools. Start dreaming up your farm-to-school projects—we want ...more
Thinking Local First
Shop or Buy Local First is a common call to action. The threat to local businesses with competition from online commerce is real and growing, so it is important to patronize local businesses if we ...more
Flavors of the Valley - Call for Vendors!
Vend at Flavors of the Valley! Registration is open for the 18th annual Flavors of the Valley, the Upper Valley’s premier local food tasting expo. With 50+ vendors and more than 1000 attendees, Flavors is a valuable marketing opportunity for ...more
Flavors of the Valley 2019 - Call for Vendors!
Vend at Flavors of the Valley! Registration is open for the 18th annual Flavors of the Valley, the Upper Valley’s premier local food tasting expo. With 50+ vendors and more than 1000 attendees, Flavors is a valuable marketing opportunity for ...more
The Housing Shortage Affects All of Us
It is no secret that there is a shortage of homes to buy or rent in the Upper Valley. That shortage affects all of us. Read more in this Valley News op-ed from Vital Communities' Corporate ...more
Food Hub Forum for Farmers February 6!
Join Vital Communities and Food Connects Wednesday February 6 from 4-6 pm at Piecemeal Pie in White River Junction for a forum to learn about how you can expand your market access with a food hub. This forum is free ...more
Join Vital Communities at Northern Stage!
Looking for a fun way to spend a January evening? Join Vital Communities for a pre-show reception at Northern Stage on January 31 from 5:30 to 6:30pm in advance of Venus Rising. Local playwright Marisa ...more
Local First Members Give Back!
Locally owned businesses are rooted in the Upper Valley and donate time and money to the community every month of the year as they support nonprofits, schools, and communities. Keep your dollars where your heart and support ...more
Think Local First & SAVE this Season!
Local and independent businesses bring value to our communities in many ways: preserving community character, creating stable jobs, supporting area organizations and nonprofits, and strengthening our local economy by keeping our dollars in the Upper ...more
Seeking Bids from Solar Installers by Nov. 30
Vital Communities is teaming up with Kearsarge Climate Action to launch a Solarize Kearsarge campaign in spring 2019, following on the tails of the upcoming Weatherize Kearsarge campaign launching in January 2019. We are seeking proposals ...more
Thank you, Ben!
This summer we had the privilege of working with Ben Fletcher, pictured second from left. Ben brought an incredibly well suited array of skills to Vital Communities and was a boon to the Valley Quest ...more
Lebanon Area Businesses - Join us on Sept. 27
So many small businesses in the Upper Valley are burdened with high energy costs. And not enough time to do anything about it! We've got some good news for you. A group of Lebanon residents are ...more
Bird and Quest
The Vermont Center for Ecostudies lists 382 species of bird that occur in Vermont, whether year-long resident or migratory visitor. The VCE’s Vermont Atlas of Life citizen science operation has recorded sightings of 332 of ...more
Subbasin Spotlight!
This year's Aquatic Adventure Super Quest showcases the 5 subbasins that make up the Upper Connecticut River Valley, or, more fondly, the Upper Valley. A subbasin is a term used to describe a watershed within a ...more
A Lot Lighter with More Hands: Leadership Upper Valley
On the bright, sunny morning of June 13, Cobb Hill was waking up, and the soon-to-be graduating 2018 Leadership Upper Valley class was just arriving for their final meeting. Before the ceremony at Harpoon Brewery, ...more
Longevity & Commitment: Keynote Remarks from Heroes & Leaders 2018
Editor's Note: Many thanks to Kevin Peterson, Director of Economic Development for the New Hampshire Community Development Finance Authority, who offered the keynote speech at our May 3 Heroes & Leaders celebration. Read his complete remarks ...more
Long-Standing Stewards: Heroes & Leaders 2018
Every spring, Leadership Upper Valley, a program of Vital Communities, hosts a Heroes & Leaders celebration to recognize individuals who make significant contributions to the greater Upper Valley region. This year, Heroes & Leaders is ...more
Get Stoked on Automated Wood Heat!
Boiler on its last legs? Looking to opt out of fossil fuels? Come learn about today's self-stoking automated wood heat! Opt out of oil with delivery of local wood pellets and whole home wood heating ...more
Staff
Bethany Fleishman
Transportation Program Manager
Transportation
Transportation
— Bethany Fleishman, Transportation Program Manager
Bethany Fleishman was born at the old Mary Hitchcock hospital in Hanover, N.H., grew up in West Hartford, Vt., and now lives in Hartford Village, where she can see the White River and the trains from her window. She has a biology degree from St. Lawrence University and has worked in public health outreach, as a line cook in San Francisco, a pastry chef in Hanover, and as a member of the Town of Hartford Selectboard. She serves on the board of directors for both Advance Transit and Upper Valley CarShare and is a lifelong bike commuter.
Paige Heverly
Energy and Transportation Project Coordinator
Transportation, Energy
Transportation, Energy
— Paige Heverly, Energy and Transportation Project Coordinator
Paige Heverly joined Vital Communities in 2017 as the Energy and Transportation Project Coordinator. Hailing from the suburbs of Philadelphia, she moved to Vermont in 2011 and earned a joint BA in Renewable Energy and Ecological Design and Environmental Studies from Green Mountain College. After completing her Master of Energy Regulation and Law from Vermont Law School, Paige worked in energy efficiency consulting in Portland, Oregon. Her love of local food systems, the White River, and the Green Mountains brought her back to the Upper Valley to work on regional issues with localized solutions. Paige is passionate about closing ecological loops and treating waste as food. In her free time, she enjoys baking homemade English muffins, weeding her garden, and writing letters to her pen pals.
