MINNEAPOLIS – Center for Energy and Environment (CEE) is working with artist Arlene Birt, an information designer and visual storyteller, to launch Bicycling Counts, a traveling animated bicycle counter that will be installed on Minneapolis bike paths during Bike Walk Week June 2-10, 2012. Created to celebrate and demonstrate the collective impact of cyclists, the project visually translates a real-time count of passing bicyclists into social, ecological and financial savings. Bicycling Counts is a creative and engaging strategy to educate the Twin Cities community about how each individual action contributes to a healthier environment. Each day during Bike Walk Week the counter will be installed at a surprise location along a popular Minneapolis bike route. During the day, the counter will track all passing cyclists. Then each evening from 9-10 p.m., CEE will set up an artistic projection on site to display a real-time count of each person. The counts will translate the cumulative impact of individual financial savings, gasoline saved and environmental benefits to society through improved air quality and reduced healthcare dollars. The first installation will be set up on Saturday June 2nd at 9am on the West River Parkway bike path across from the Mill City Museum located at 704 South 2nd Street Minneapolis 55401. Clues will be posted via Twitter (#bicyclingcounts) and other social media to reveal the counter’s next location and announce each day’s results. CEE will encourage participants to share their experiences with the project via social media. “Bicycling counts in Minneapolis, and we can prove it,” says Neely Crane-Smith, Communications Coordinator, CEE. “I think most people understand that it’s healthier to ride a bike than to drive, but we want to show that the personal benefits that cyclists enjoy extend to larger, measurable benefits to society, including financial advantages. We hope our data will support existing cyclists in their day to day choices and encourage more Twin Cities residents to get on their bikes.” Read more information about the project