COMMUTING champion Gary Atkins has been rewarded for the "green" way he gets to work.

The Royal Mail worker from Whitefield is the winner of this year's Commuter Challenge, organised by Healthstart on behalf of Bury Council.

The challenge was held over a fortnight in June and awarded people points for travelling by bus, tram, cycle or their own two feet!

Gary notched up 650 points through walking and using the bus, and was presented with £40 worth of shopping vouchers.

He said: "I thoroughly enjoyed participating in the challenge. It is an excellent way to encourage environmentally-friendly travel and cut down on road congestion."

Other participants in the challenge were Andrew and Mel Stephens from Bury, who take the Metrolink to Manchester.

Their children walk to school, and although the family has a car, it is used only rarely for trips.

Mel said: "The challenge is a great idea and I hope it has encouraged even a small part of the population to think a bit more about the effects modern transport has on their environment."

Councillor Stella Smith, executive member for environment and transport, said: "Anything which encourages people to leave their vehicles at home has got to be good, for our borough and the country."