By Donald Gilpin

Complete with circus acts, a fashion show on bikes, street savvy cycling sessions, music, games, eBike test rides, and more, Sustainable Princeton will be hosting its annual low-carbon eCommuter Fest in the Princeton Shopping Center on Saturday, September 14 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (rescheduled from September 7).

The focus of this year’s event is walking, biking, public transit, and family fun, but electric vehicles will still be an important part of the festivities.

“eCommuter Fest was an evolution of our Electric Evening event, where we offered EV test drives and EV owner showcases when electric vehicles were novel,” said Sustainable Princeton Executive Director Christine Symington, as quoted in a press release. “Now that the adoption of electric vehicles is well underway, we want to celebrate and inspire our community about the benefits of walking, biking, and using public transportation to get around. Attendees will still have the chance to check out some EV models and learn about EV incentives and how to install a home charger.”

The festival will take place in the interior courtyard of the shopping center and will include music from DJ Darius, performances by the Trenton Circus Squad, sustainable second-hand fashion on wheels, a bike safety session, educational tables, and prizes. In the back parking lot there will be a safe eBike test area organized by local bike shops and tours of the all-electric Princeton University TigerTransit buses, which are free and open to the public to use all year round. The University runs a fleet of 17 electric buses, and is working towards net zero carbon emissions by the time of its 300th anniversary in 2046.

“We’ll be there to show off our electric bikes,” said Wendy Reilley, new owner of Pedego Princeton at Kopp’s. “We also hope to participate in the fashion show.”

Symington emphasized the importance of choosing sustainable transportation. “Transportation-related emissions are one of the largest contributors to Princeton’s overall carbon footprint,” she said. “The more people choose walking, biking, or public transportation, the faster we achieve our town’s Climate Action Plan goals. Building enthusiasm around and providing information about low-carbon ways to get where you need to go is an important part of the equation. We aim to do that at eCommuter Fest.”

Sponsored by EDENS, AvalonBay, WinnCompanies, and McCaffrey’s Food Markets, the eCommuter Fest is free and open to the public.

Also at Saturday’s event, Sustainable Princeton will be announcing the winners of their Step Up Challenge. More than 100 people signed up and through the month of August tallied their total steps each day — to work, meetings, shopping, dinner and beyond. “The benefits of walking are numerous: exercise, fresh air, less traffic, and savings on gasoline,” the Challenge website stated. “With a walk, you can lower your stress and your carbon footprint.”

Prizes include an outfitting experience with complimentary shoes and insoles ($225 value from Fleet Feet Princeton), a walking safety kit, and a pair of goodr sunglasses.

Sustainable Princeton reports that final results are still being counted, but participants reported 23,851,405 steps, with a 10,000 average daily step total. The aggregate distance covered by the group was 10,841.55 miles.

Another event on the horizon for Sustainable Princeton and interested supporters is a discussion of “15-Minute Neighborhoods,” which will take place on September 11 at 7 p.m. in the Community Room of the Princeton Public Library.

Planner Jon Carnegie, executive director of the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University, and Alex Ambrose, a policy analyst at New Jersey Policy Perspective, will discuss the concept of the 15-minute neighborhood and how it could make Princeton a more convenient and sustainable place to live.

Visit sustainableprinceton.org for more information on these events and to register for the “15-Minute Neighborhoods” presentation.