Ridesharing/Vanpooling
Ridesharing/Vanpooling Benefits
- To the environment - reductions in rush-hour congestion, vehicle emissions and fuel consumption while improving air quality
- To employers - reduced parking needs, increased employee productivity, improves morale and provides tax benefits
- To employees - less wear and tear on vehicle, save money and time on commute, improve quality of life (more time with family/friends), sense that they are helping the environment
Getting started on Rideshare/Carpooling program
- Survey employees to determine interest in carpool benefits, making sure to accurately represent potential savings to employees. This survey should include what kinds of incentives would make them more likely to carpool. These incentives can include things such as preferential parking, or reduced cost or free parking. The Association for Commuter Transportation (ACT) provides a Commuter Mode Survey in their Transportation Demand Tool Kit, which can be ordered at www.actweb.org.
- Contact UTA Rideshare (www.utarideshare.com) to take advantage of their carpool matching software.
- Consider vanpooling options. UTA's Rideshare operates a vanpool program where employees form a commuting group using a UTA Rideshare vehicle. Tax benefits are available to employers who contribute up to $115/month to employees' transit benefits tax free.
- Offer employees a Guaranteed Ride Home benefit. This can be accomplished relatively inexpensively by simply paying for cab fare when an emergency or sickness arises. In reality, Guaranteed Rides Home are not often used by employees and the cost of providing this security is minimal.
For case studies of successful rideshare programs for employers click here.
Helpful Links
www.bestworkplaces.org/pdf/carpool_June07.pdf - Carpool Incentive Programs
www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm34.htm - Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Ridesharing: Car and Van Pooling
There are many carpool matching websites on the internet. The State of Utah and the Utah Department of Transportation do not endorse any of the following sites:
ntlsearch.bts.gov/tris/record/tris/00134671.html - An evaluation of carpool matching software systems