You can coordinate with several different parties to reduce the amount of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions generated by transportation associated with your event. (Plus, these idle reduction tips will save companies and drivers money on fuel and vehicle maintenance—and potential fines for violating idling laws!)

• Delivery vehicles and semi-trucks: Event planners (or the general service contractors who organize event set up and break down) can schedule drop off/pick up times with transportation vendors and supply a staging yard with parking spaces for vehicles that arrive early to eliminate unnecessary idling onsite while trucks are waiting to load or unload or pick up deliveries. Do not allow trucks to idle onsite.
• Charter buses and school buses: One of the toughest parties to convince to turn their engines off is bus drivers because they are concerned with maintaining a comfortable cabin temperature. Event planners can share the event schedule with bus drivers, so that they can arrive closer to when participants will need rides. Do not allow buses to idle onsite. Except on very hot days, turning a bus off for five minutes will not affect the cabin temperature. Be sure to also create a comfortable waiting lounge inside in the lobby for passengers, so they don't have to wait on the bus.
• Taxis, limos and shuttles: Just like bus drivers, taxi, limo, and shuttle drivers also idle their vehicles while waiting for passengers to maintain a comfortable temperature. Event planners can share the event schedule and transportation plan with taxi, limo, and shuttle companies, so that they can arrive closer to when participants will need rides, only if needed. Do not allow car service and shuttle vehicles to idle onsite. Consider arranging airport shuttle service for attendees to reduce the number of individual vehicles rented or hired.
• If participants from an event are coming from nearby, event planners can share contact information to encourage or coordinate carpooling to the event and reduce the number of vehicles used for event transportation.
• Read the US EPA's Green Meeting resources for more tips, tools and resources to make environmentally responsible choices.
• Check out the NEW Convention Industry Council's standards focused on sustainability called the Accepted Practices Exchange (APEX) Green Meeting Standard.

You may not be directly responsible for the individual event decisions, but you can provide resources for various types of drivers associated with traffic at your site. You can share these tips to reduce the amount of air pollution generated directly with companies and drivers, through event planners and general contractors, and on your website. (Plus, these idle reduction tips will save companies and drivers money on fuel and vehicle maintenance—and potential fines for violating idling laws!)

• Transit buses: Bus drivers typically idle to keep a comfortable temperature inside the bus. Venues can share the event schedule with bus drivers, so that they can arrive closer to when participants will need rides. Do not allow buses to idle onsite.
• Taxis, limos and shuttles: Just like bus drivers, taxi, limo, and shuttle drivers also idle their vehicles while waiting for passengers to maintain a comfortable temperature. Venues can share the event schedule and transportation plan with taxi, limo, and shuttle companies, so that they can arrive closer to when participants will need rides, only if needed. Do not allow car service and shuttle vehicles to idle onsite. Venues can also provide event planners with contact information for local airport shuttle companies when out-of-town travelers are scheduled so they can arrange shuttle service for attendees to reduce the number of individual vehicles rented or hired.
• As a venue, you can set a no idling policy and post signs around the property to notify visitors of the rule and consequences. Event staff should all be trained on the policy to be able to explain it to guests and enforce it, when necessary.
• If your venue is in a community with an idling ordinance, request that your local government give your security staff authority to write tickets to violators onsite to assist with enforcement of the law.
• Before you begin an idle reduction campaign at your venue, read the Lessons Learned from the Colorado Convention Center.
• Read the US EPA's Green Meeting resources for more tips, tools and resources to make environmentally responsible choices.
• Check out the NEW Convention Industry Council's standards focused on sustainability called the Accepted Practices Exchange (APEX) Green Meeting Standard.

You can make a few choices to reduce the amount of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions you generate from your travel to, at, and from an event.

• If you are flying to an event, reserve an airport shuttle or carpool with other participants rather than renting a personal vehicle or taking a taxi to and from the airports on both ends of your travel to reduce the number of vehicles used for event-related transportation.
• If you drive to an event, try to avoid arriving or leaving the venue during the major rush times to prevent unnecessary idling and wasting of fuel in line to enter or exit the parking areas.
• Do not idle your vehicle while waiting for all of your passengers to return after the event.
• Read the US EPA's Green Meeting resources for more tips, tools and resources to make environmentally responsible choices.
• Check out the NEW Convention Industry Council's standards focused on sustainability called the Accepted Practices Exchange (APEX) Green Meeting Standard.