Nearly 50 Manteca Unified School District office employees will be using pedal power to and from work on Friday. Some will be pounding the pavement with backpacks on their backs to get to their destinations that day.

They are among hundreds of people in three counties – San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Merced – who are taking part in Bike to Work Week which concludes on Friday, May 18. There are several community-based organizations that are supporting this effort to “help support an environmentally friendly transportation option and promote clean air.” The school district employees teamed up with Commute Connection, a regional rideshare agency and a program of the San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG) which serves the three counties.

If you happen to be driving through Louise Avenue at Airport Way on Friday between 7 and 8 a.m. and around 5 o’clock in the afternoon, chances are you will see on the side of the road several of the school district employees walking or riding their bikes with their helmets and backpacks. This will be the group that have agreed to meet at Stella Brockman School in the Villa Ticino Park area, and from there team-walk or bike-ride together to the district office.

Heather Armstrong who works in communications in the superintendent’s office said that since she does not live that far from work, “I will probably ride my bike from home.”

Since they will not be using car power to work, they will have to “get up extra early” in the morning that day, she said.

“Hopefully, it won’t be too hot,” she added.

The Bike to Work Week participants will be recognizable by their Commute Connection T-shirts and backpacks which are being supplied by the organization to all those who signed up.

This is the first year the district office is taking part in this annual eco-friendly event. Victoria Brunn, who is in charge of the district’s LOGIC program (Leadership on Green Initiatives Committee), coordinated the employees’ participation in the Bike to Work Week this year.

Various groups in Commute Connection’s three-county area have organized several Bike to Work Day events for the public to get involved. In Modesto, “secured bicycle parking” is offered all day today , March 17, to all participating bike commuters into downtown Modesto. They are also being treated to free continental breakfast and free T-shirts, among other incentives and rewards.

For more information about Bike to Work Week and how to participate in Commute Connection events during the weeklong celebration, visit www.commuteconnection.com.