Why Commutes Should Be Part of Your Benefits Package

commute should be part of your benefits package

Employee benefits and perks are a big deal and they can make all the difference in the competition for top talent. In fact, according to a 2018 survey from Glassdoor, 63 percent of job-seekers focus on benefits when reviewing job ads. When done right, those same benefits also help your existing team stay more engaged and productive, leading to higher levels of employee satisfaction and retention. If companies want to attract—and keep—employees in a tight job market, incorporating the right mix of benefits into the compensation package is essential.

Small benefits can make a big difference

A growing number of employers now offer portfolios of smaller, more targeted benefits to support individual employee needs on top of the standard packages for healthcare, financial planning, and paid time off. 

As one example, a 2020 survey from the Society for Human Resource Management found that during the pandemic, employers increased investments in wellness benefits—from financial health and family planning to meditation—all to help their teams bring their best selves to work. 

With many remote workers back in the office, and increasing traffic in urban areas, the employee commute is emerging as a key area of concern for employers. Rightfully so: commuting to work takes up a significant amount of time—just under an hour a day for the average worker, according to the United States Census Bureau. And, as it turns out, a stressful commute can be a deal breaker. In an often-cited 2018 survey by staffing firm Robert Half, nearly a quarter of respondents said they had left a job because of a bad commute. It’s more important than ever for employers to be considering benefits packages that include support for commuters. 

Employers and employees co-own the commute 

The last two or so years have forced widespread reflections on the way we work, how we prioritize our time, and our relationship with our employer. Along with that comes an increased recognition that commuting to a worksite is often an extension of the work itself. 

We are all more conscious of the burden that a commute can put on workers and, hopefully, grateful to those workers who make the journey to hospitals, grocery stores, manufacturing facilities, and other essential services that everyone relies on. Employees that are required to be physically present to perform their jobs are effectively giving that extra hour to their employer. With record-setting gas prices and steep inflation, that trip is also taking a larger chunk of their wages. Benefits packages should reflect this co-responsibility for the commute.

Commuting doesn’t have to be all bad. For knowledge workers using transit or riding in a carpool, the commute can provide time to respond to Slack messages, read industry reports and articles, scroll posts from thought-leaders on Twitter, and sort out their inboxes. For those who can’t accomplish work in a shared commute, the time traveling to and from work can be an important boundary, one in which they can catch up on personal reading or mentally prepare for or recover from the workday. And for those able and inclined to choose an active commute, multiple studies have shown activities like biking or walking to work are linked to higher commute satisfaction and physical and mental health benefits

There are other organizational benefits for companies that optimize the commute for employees, too, such as:

  • Furthering sustainability: For employers committed to sustainability, efforts to encourage commuters to opt for more environmentally friendly modes of transport are a big win. For employees who are values-driven (a trait growing more and more common in the modern workforce), tools that help them see the impact of their sustainable choices help reinforce their engagement with their company’s mission. Commuters using our apps in the Bay Area alone are saving around 25,000 tons of CO2 each year by choosing sustainable modes.
  • Promoting wellness: While more research is needed into the specifics, sitting too much is a real health problem. As the Mayo Clinic puts it, “it seems clear that less sitting and more moving overall contribute to better health.” Your organization may already have wellness programs that encourage employees to go to the gym or incentivize other healthy behaviors (like quitting smoking) – a commuting program that nudges people to consider riding a bicycle or walking to work fits into that same wellness framework. 
  • Saving on facilities expenses: The cost of renting space in parking lots—or building a parking lot—can be steep for employers. One company using RideAmigos apps saved $20,000 a month on parking leases by giving  commuter incentives to employees who switched to cycling to work instead of driving.

Empower better commutes with better tools

It’s obvious why programs that support commuters are getting more attention from employers than ever, but curating the right benefits and perks can take work.

Even just to implement small perks like snacks in the breakroom, someone has to be in charge of sourcing vendors, placing orders, maintaining supplies, adjusting the offerings based on feedback from employees, and ensuring equity for employees with dietary restrictions. Launching—and maintaining—a benefit to commuting employees can be far more complex. That’s where smart commute management tools come in.

Helping companies—and employees—rethink the commute and empowering them to choose more sustainable, cost-effective, and satisfying options inspires behavior change. In more than a decade working to empower commuters to make smarter choices, we have seen numerous tactics and strategies be effective in creating that change: 

  • Check your pro-car bias. Employers that provide free parking for cars but don’t provide secure bike storage and other facilities for active commuters—like showers and changing rooms—are not making it any easier to choose biking, walking, or running to work. Take a fresh look at how welcoming your workplace is for a variety of transportation choices (eg. what does the walk to the nearest transit stop look like?) and make adjustments where possible. 
  • Offer backup rides. Sometimes workers need the flexibility to get somewhere quickly in an emergency, or to work late when they’re in the flow; that shouldn’t stop them from choosing to carpool or ride transit. A simple, easy-to-claim credit to use for rideshare when they need it can eliminate this obstacle. 
    • Personalized support. Studies show that the more options we have, the harder it is to make a choice, and the less satisfied we ultimately feel with it. Plus the planning that comes along with trying a new commute option can be overwhelming. When you consider that someone has to weigh all the pros, cons, and unknowns about using transit or trying a new bike route—all before work—it’s no wonder that those who have cars often default to hopping in one to get to work. But when advised of their optimal mode, research shows people are likely to take it. Think of how Google Maps tells you when it has found a faster route. 
  • Reward behavior change. Commuters can earn rewards within an app for taking certain actions—like taking the recommendation to carpool instead of driving alone, or trying transit. The rewards can be redeemed for prizes or perks funded by the employer. This type of gamification is a proven strategy to engage users and help them form new—and hopefully sticky—habits. 

Large employers that already have world-class commuter programs and smaller companies that do not have dedicated transportation teams can both offer commute benefits for their employees and contractors. Including employee commute benefits in your total compensation packages can be good for your business and your team. 

We’ve been working with governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations for over a decade to change the way the world commutes. Get in touch with us to find out what kind of program fits your team’s needs.

Why #ACT2022 Might be the Best ACT International Conference Yet! 

   

Whether you’re packing for Chicago or not, here’s a pre-event cheat sheet for what’s happening next week. 

At RideAmigos, we have always been fans of virtual events because they are accessible for everyone and can have much less negative environmental impact. It bears mentioning that the Association for Commuter Transportation (ACT) put on some really high-quality virtual events over the last two years, and is taking steps to offset carbon emissions for this year’s in-person gatherings. Having said all that… we are SO EXCITED to see so many TDM leaders in person again! 

With four days of content and networking, including some really valuable pre-conference sessions, our delegation will be splitting up to see as much as we can and taking notes to share with colleagues around the world when we get home.  

Keynotes

ACT always pulls together an excellent lineup of speakers and this year is no exception. On Monday, the opening plenary session will feature a keynote presentation by Ryan McCarty of Culture of Good that is sure to remind us all of the purpose behind the important work of the TDM community. We’ll be listening in for inspiration and for Ryan’s practical insights into leading a movement of change before we dive into the rest of the conference programming.  

In Tuesday’s plenary session, we are pleased to be sponsoring a discussion of the future of TDM in Chicagoland, featuring four amazing transportation leaders. The panel, moderated by Matthew Meservy, Director of Long Range Planning Division, at the TennesseeDepartment of Transportation, includes Erin Aleman of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), Gia Biagi of the City of Chicago’s Department of Transportation (CDOT), Jesse Elam of Cook County’s Department of Transportation and Highways, and Roberto Requejo of Elevated Chicago, an organization working at the intersection of racial equity, health, climate, and art and culture to promote frameworks for equitable transit-oriented development (ETOD) in Chicago. Chicago has always been a planner’s city, and this keynote session is sure to highlight some ambitious and forward-looking approaches to TDM for the next several decades. 

Sessions

If you’re looking at the program on the conference website or in the Whova app, and wishing you could clone yourself to attend two sessions at once, we see you! There is way too much great content to mention in this post, but we polled our team to learn what they’re most excited about. 

Pre-conference workshops

This year, ACT lined up some really valuable pre-conference workshops that come with TDM-CP credit. Whether you’ve already aced your TDM-CP exam, or are just starting out in the field, these workshops before the main event are going to be well worth the additional fee. 

  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 101 and Understanding Implicit Bias (Sunday at 9:00am). This half-day workshop featuring David Sorrell, TDM-CP of University of California Berkeley, Kiki Dohman of Salem Area Mass Transit District, and Catherine Popowits of Diversity Training  & Consulting, Inc. will help participants gain awareness of the unconscious bias and misunderstanding that can impede our ability to have the equitable positive impact we intend with in our work. It will also focus on strategies to improve communication and inclusion for a diverse range of stakeholders. Work on this is never done, and we can’t think of a better way to reset your perspective ahead of the next three days of learning!
  • Shifting Traveler Behaviors with Motivational Interviewing (Sunday at 9:00am). Another excellent pre-conference workshop going on at the same time is focused on motivational interviewing strategies and their applications for TDM. Anton Cox of Capital Area Council of Governments and Kate Harrington of Movability Austin will discuss the technique and the science behind it. The team at Movability Austin has long been teaching and using these skills as part of their outreach, and these two Austin-area TDM leaders will help participants learn to use them too.

If you’re just getting to town on Sunday morning, you can still catch an expert-led workshop on grant writing or a session to prepare emerging leaders for larger roles in ACT chapter and council leadership; both in the afternoon.

Conference Sessions

The main course of TDM content really gets started after the opening plenary on Monday. If you’re attending with a group, do what we did and make a shared list of all the sessions your team wants to attend, and put names by each one to ensure it’s all covered. After an event like this, we always debrief with the whole team and have each attendee share important takeaways so everyone can benefit. 

Here are a few sessions on our must-see list: 

  • How TMAs Generate Value-add with Non-Traditional Groups (Monday at 1:30pm). Chris Bongorno, Allison Simmons, Michelle Reynolds, and Julia Wean are experts who lead and consult with TMAs around the country. In this unique session, they’ll discuss how TMAs they work with are developing partnerships and programs to serve hard-to-reach populations and address non-traditional TDM needs and add value for their communities.
  • Shaping ACT’s Policy Platform for the Future of TDM (Monday at 1:30pm). We’re looking forward to this presentation of ACT’s Public Policy Committee’s 2022 Policy Cornerstones. This is a pivotal time for investment in TDM and shared transportation and ACT has a key role to play. Presenters include Jessica Alba, TDM-CP, Stanford University’s Director of Policy & TDM, along with Rob Henry, TDM-CP of GVF, Andrew Glass Hastings of TransWest, and Dion Beuckman of Commute with Enterprise.
  • Employer-based TDM in a hybrid world (Monday at 3:15). Employers have powerful influence over employee commute choices, and research backs the idea that commuters that receive employer support are more likely to make sustainable transportation choices. Learn from leaders of the Denver region’s successful TDM programs how to launch a successful, employer-driven trip reduction program. Panelists include Nisha Mokshagundam and Kalie Fallon of the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG), and Sheryl Machado and Evan Gatseos, from Denver South TMA.
  • TDM-CP Information Session (Monday at 3:15pm ) Have you thought about working toward a Transportation Demand Management Certified Professional (TDM-CP) certification? Heather Salem, Aaron Buckley, and Jamila Owens (who have all earned the letters) explain the certification, its potential benefits for your career, and the process candidates follow to prepare and take the exam.
  • The Secret to Moving Employees to Shared Transit (Tuesday at 10:30am). The commute has become even more complicated for employees returning to campus after a long stretch of working remotely. The panelists leading transportation programs of three large employers in the San Francisco Bay Area will discuss how their organizations are rising to the occasion to manage the commute experience, leverage public transportation options, and incentivize employees to get out of single occupancy vehicles. With each enterprise offering a broad range of programs, this session will focus on the ways they incorporate on-demand technology to improve access. Krista Glotzbach of Via will moderate a discussion with panelists, Danielle Glaser, Global Transportation Manager at LinkedIn, Mandy Basile, Senior Transportation Program Manager at Genentech, and Sabrina Ruiz, Regional Transportation Program Manager at Google. Global Transportation Program Manager
  • Water Transit Is Making Waves In TDM (Tuesday at 10:30am) A boat is the best way to get to some workplaces! Where bridges are also an option, they might be filling up with traffic again. In this session, panelists will show you how their commuter ferry services create additional ways for commuters to move efficiently. Are you missing an opportunity to make use of water transportation to your campus or community?  Panelists include Heather Salem, TDM-CP of Genentech in South San Francisco, Patrick Sullivan, TDM-CP of Seaport TMA in Boston, and Andrew Sargis of Chicago Water Taxi.
  • How to Establish and Implement a TDM Ordinance (Tuesday at 10:30am). Washington D.C. area TDM leaders Samantha Huff (Foursquare ITP), Mariana Budimir (District Department of Transportation), and Michael Watts (DOES/Office of Wage-Hour) share invaluable experience with establishing the DC Commuter Benefits Law and the DC Parking Cashout Law, also known as the Transportation Benefits Equity Amendment Act of 2020. The presentation will cover goal setting, implementation, outreach and marketing strategies, and how to effectively monitor compliance with reductions of single-occupant vehicle travel to employer sites.

Wrapping up

Before we see who takes home the ACT National Awards for 2022 on Wednesday morning, we’re excited to host almost 200 TDM leaders at the return of the RideAmigos Closing Night Party on Tuesday evening. This year (perhaps inspired by the theme of water transit?) we’ll be celebrating a successful conference on Chicago’s Emerald Lady. This event will be oversubscribed – at the time we’re writing this we already have a waitlist and we’re working with the cruise operator to increase capacity – so we hope to see everyone who signed up! 

For those of you heading to Chicago, travel safely! We would love to connect while we’re there – contact us to set up a time or find us in the expo (we’ll be at Booth 102).

Make Commuter Engagement Your Business

The way YOUR people get to work is YOUR business. More and more senior executives are realizing the truth: if you have employees, the commute is an important business concern. The old ways of thinking about parking facilities, long, stressful commutes, and their impact on corporate sustainability are costing employers money and valuable employees.

Let’s start with the issue of employee parking. Whether the employer owns facilities or is providing spaces for employees in some other way, employee parking is not free. A 2012 report found the average cost across twelve U.S. cities to build a single above ground parking space to be $24,000. And, this does not account for the time wasted by employees searching for a good spot, tax liability for parking as a benefit, or the opportunity cost of using valuable land to build more and more parking to meet rising demand. Employers can’t afford to chalk this up to business as usual.

Then there’s employee retention. A 2018 survey by global human resource consulting firm, Robert Half found that more than one in five workers has left a job because of a bad commute and the problem is worsening in some of the country’s fastest-growing metropolitan areas. This is not just disruptive — when considering a variety of factors associated with losing and replacing an employee, this can cost businesses between 50-200% of the person’s salary depending on his or her role. Particularly in this labor market, employers have good reason to start paying attention to how the commute might be affecting morale, engagement and attrition.

Last but not least, corporate sustainability strategies that don’t include commuter engagement are missing a huge opportunity. Nearly 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States come from transportation, including commuting. Whether a business identifies being green is a key part of its brand or it simply has to meet the requirements of a development agreement or local regulations, there are real costs to missing the mark. On the other hand, making commuters part of the solution has tangible benefits to the corporate and employer brand, employee engagement, and community relations. Investors and shareholders care about sustainability and so does top talent.

Operations, human resources and corporate sustainability leaders each are already working to address these challenges. It’s time to break down the silos dividing parking management, human capital management and corporate sustainability. At the center of all of these mandates is a smart commuter engagement strategy. Forward-thinking employers that implement effective commuter engagement relieve pressure on facilities, increase employee engagement and retention, and boost corporate sustainability — differentiating themselves from the competition as an employer of choice for top talent.

Provide Access to Options and Information

The foundation of most successful commuter programs is understanding your employees — where do they live, what are their transportation options, and what are their commute preferences.

As with any other business decision, knowing the details helps employers better understand the problem and the full range of potential solutions. Employers that are serious about helping commuters make better choices begin by collecting data about how their employees get to work and what other options may be available to them.

In many cases, providing transit passes, carpool and vanpool programs, cyclist-friendly facilities, and even subsidizing high-occupancy shuttles are much more cost-effective solutions and provide better value to employees. And, when offered the choice, certain employees will prefer these options to sitting in traffic alone and searching for spaces in sprawling parking lots or level after level of an indoor garage.

Inspire Them to Try Something New

What if employees are not quick to adopt alternatives to driving alone? Offering an incentive to try something new is a great way to break through the natural bias toward sticking with familiar habits. Real monetary rewards work, and bigger incentives are more effective. But combining incentives with other strategies can make each dollar go further.

Paid time off is a highly valued employee benefit. The City of Austin — which has been listed among the Forbes Top Employers and Best Workplaces for Commuters — was able to reduce 1.33 Million employee drive alone trips in six months with an administrative leave incentive. This kind of incentive is a great option for organizations that want to incentivize employees with a meaningful benefit that doesn’t increase taxable income.

Of course, it is not helpful to simply pay someone to do something for a period of time if they’ll stop once the incentive is gone. Smartly designed incentives give commuters time to form new habits. Commute.org in San Mateo County, California had great success — increasing carpool trips fourfold — by offering a repeatable incentive, coupled with its ongoing rewards program.

Make Costs (and Benefits) More Personal

An even more effective strategy to change the way employees think about their commute is to actually show them the money and let them decide how to spend it. Employers can do this either by letting commuters keep the cost of their daily or monthly parking if they opt not to use it, or granting them the funds and deducting the cost of parking from their balance if they choose to use it.

These parking cash-out programs leverage the same feelings associated with paying for parking while still supporting it as an employee benefit. Daily cash-out options give employees flexibility to make daily decisions about how to get to work, while a monthly or quarterly cash-out structure plays to the concept of loss aversion by putting money in employees hands and letting them choose how to spend it. This results in employees thinking much differently about the value of parking versus other ways they could spend the money.

The most flexible programs — ones that offer daily and long-term options — are especially effective because they appeal to a broader range of employees. Sonos in Santa Barbara, California did just that, and reduced parking demand by 25%.

Engage Employees and Reinforce Smart Choices

Even parking cash-out and really attractive incentives may miss important keys to inspiring employees to adopt and maintain smarter commute habits. There are two major factors that employer commuter programs should not overlook: ongoing engagement and intrinsic motivation.

While a big incentive may motivate them to try something new, it is still important to give employees a reason to continue the habit. Allowing them to earn points toward smaller rewards over time, or even chances at larger ones, will ensure that they are motivated to make smart choices whenever possible.

Another way to continue driving participation is to challenge employees periodically. Challenges and gamification are proven to catalyze behavior change and there is evidence that, when done right they can create lasting change. Encouraging team participation increases the social aspect of a challenge — building community and helping employees make lasting connections — while allowing them to earn and track personal achievements and milestones leverages their own internal drive to succeed.

Finally, and often overlooked, is the good feeling employees get when they understand the positive impact of their smart commute choices. When you show them their unique carbon footprint reduction, health benefits and savings versus driving alone, you help make the commute a source of pride rather than a burden. In the big picture, showing employees that they are contributing not only to their own health and well-being but to the corporate sustainability mission and a better planet can increase engagement and productivity.

Just as transportation options, employee preferences and business objectives vary widely, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Identifying the right mix of programs for your workforce is the first step, and it can change over time and across the geographies in which you operate.

Running programs like these successfully doesn’t have to be daunting. At RideAmigos we see them work for hundreds of employers across the country – made possible when committed transportation heroes at all levels of an organization have the right tools and partners. To get started, consider reaching out to your local transportation management association (TMA) or regional commuter program, sign up for our Commuter Tips newsletter and, when you’re ready, contact us about the value of a future-proof hub for all of your commuter mobility programs.

3 Effective Ways to Solve Company Parking Issues

Company parking issues affect both the management and employee sides of a business, presenting significant challenges for both. Managing employee parking needs is costly, as companies must either own or rent enough space to cover the daily needs of their commuters. In some cases, they must even go to the expense of building new parking structures.

For employees, competition for limited space creates unsavory situations that can have a long list of negative impacts in the workplace.

Let’s examine the root cause of most company parking issues, then explore effective methods of solving them.

Common Parking Problems

Demand for limited parking is the single most common problem companies face. Traditional solutions include constructing new parking structures and renting more parking spots. However, these aren’t feasible from a cost-benefit standpoint, especially in places like the Bay Area where new parking lots cost about $38,000 per space and rented spots command upwards of $500 per month. Each. Yikes.

Three Proven Solutions to Company Parking Issues

In our experience, the best and most effective solutions to company parking issues stem from a simple concept: behavior change. This term describes a workplace culture in which people swap out old habits that contribute to problems for new ones that foster solutions.

Stimulating behavior change on an organizational level is something of an art form, but no matter how you approach it, the key to success is to offer transportation incentives.

Try these three strategies:

  • Encourage carpooling. Promote the cost savings and social benefits of sharing rides. Participants reduce fuel expenses and vehicle maintenance costs, all while strengthening their personal and professional networks. Among other benefits, rideshare-based employee commuting is also known to reduce stress and improve job satisfaction.
  • Offer public transportation benefits. People teams don’t need parking when they use public transportation to get to work. Employers can help employees purchase transit passes with pre-tax dollars or even offer free or subsidized transit passes. On a monthly basis, they’re much cheaper than maintaining or renting parking spots, and they also reduce traffic congestion while inspiring team members to carry over their positive new travel habits beyond their daily commutes.
  • Make it a game. Commuter challenges, points programs, and other gamification strategies engage team members and encourage them to think about employee transportation in different, healthier ways.

These tools are proven antidotes to company parking issues, and they have wider community benefits like reducing traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions. The RideAmigos platform supports these any many other solutions to parking constraints, so if you’d like to learn more, we invite you to get started today.

How to Make Transportation Incentives Work Better on Limited Budgets

Transportation incentives are programs local transportation and public transit authorities create to encourage people to choose alternatives to solo driving. They aim to achieve their objectives by giving commuters specific rewards for using smarter modes of transportation. Common examples include things like:

  • Free public transportation on certain days
  • Access to high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on highways
  • Rewards programs
  • Loyalty programs
  • Access to preferred parking
  • Free electric vehicle charging

While transportation incentives generally have a beneficial impact, default strategies have some noteworthy limitations. First, they tend to reward people who are already using smart alternatives to solo driving instead of encouraging single-occupancy vehicle operators to change to another mode. They also stagnate by failing to engage participants over the long term while offering financial rewards that do not provide enough motivation. Typically, this results from budgetary limitations.

So, how can you make transportation incentives more appealing without driving up their costs? We have identified four effective strategies:

  • Targeted campaigns: Data-driven insights offer a cost-effective way to determine who is already participating in the preferred behavior and what groups can be targeted for a behavior shift. Don’t go after those who are already using smart alternatives. Instead, save your resources for those who aren’t.
  • Randomness: Build participants’ anticipation for rewards through randomness: use techniques like raffles and draws for major prizes to get people excited about taking part. Randomness also helps fight program stagnation by introducing an element of excitement and uncertainty.
  • Normalization and framing: Create sustained marketing and public awareness campaigns that frame smart alternatives to solo driving as normal, popular, and increasing in popularity.
  • Self-image: People are motivated not only by financial rewards, but also by their identity. For example, cycling enthusiasts can often be convinced to start biking to work fairly easily. Knowing the identity characteristics of your target audience can give program effectiveness a big boost.

Our experts can suggest many other techniques and strategies to help make your transportation incentives that much more appealing while keeping your budget under control. If you would like a free assessment of your existing programs, the entire RideAmigos team is here to help you get started.

Why More Businesses Are Investing in Employee Transportation in 2019

It’s still early in the year, but employee transportation has already come into sharp focus as a key talent retention strategy in 2019. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that 2.4 percent of American workers quit their jobs in September 2018, with a further 2.3 percent saying goodbye to their bosses in October 2018. Those are enormous turnover rates, and forward-thinking companies are looking into new ways to position themselves as employers of choice and avoid the costs and competitive disadvantages that come with losing talent.

A recent CNBC article explained the results of a telling poll that queried 2,800 members of the American labor force in 28 major cities across the country. The survey, conducted by HR consulting firm Robert Half, found that 23% of American workers have quit a job they would otherwise have kept because the commute was unsustainable. Another key finding: more than one-third of employees in the 18 to 34 age range left a position because the commute was killing them.

The changing workforce

Members of the so-called millennial generation have entered the workforce in large numbers, and they’re having a major impact on talent retention and employee transportation policies. To become an employer of choice in this day and age, companies have to do more than offer competitive salary and benefits packages. They also need to implement policies that support a positive work-life balance, and employer rideshare and commuter programs do just that.

Millennials, and their younger counterparts in Generation Z, also prioritize working for organizations that have a meaningful mission and share their values. According to the Pew Research Center, these young workers now make up more than 40% of the labor force. They look for different kinds of benefits than the traditional offerings – and that is an important opportunity for employers.

More than a free parking space

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), a major human resources professional organization, emphasizes that employee transportation and parking benefits vastly increase worker engagement. This, in turn, leads to deeper levels of employee loyalty and boosts talent retention initiatives. Some particularly effective strategies include commuter rewards programs, along with company rideshare and carpooling networks, perks like subsidized transit passes, and guaranteed ride home programs for carpoolers and active commuters.

Leading companies are also making sustainability a key pillar of their employer brand. Businesses like Google and LinkedIn offer commuters a variety of options to get to and around their campuses, and they incentivize employees to use alternative modes. For many workers, the freedom to choose a sustainable commute and the ability to track their own positive impact take higher priority than free parking and routinely driving alone. Fortunately this can also mean a double win for your business when you cut parking costs and reduce the output of greenhouse gasses from cars.

Making commuter benefits work

Engaging commuters starts with understanding their preferences and offering the maximum number of options. If you’re looking for more employee transportation solutions to give your company an edge in talent recruitment and retention, we’re here to help. Talk to one of our experts to learn more.

3 Hospital Commuter Solutions that Reduce Solo Car Commutes and Save Money

Looking to reduce vehicle trips to and around your hospital? Transportation demand management (TDM) is a great way to improve access, reduce pollution, and ease the costs associated with increased parking. Implementing some simple but effective hospital commuter solutions can measurable reduce the number of solo drivers traveling to and from your facility each day.

Here are three winning strategies that healthcare administrators around the country are already using to great success:

Pay employees to leave their cars at home

Regardless of the type of workplace, employers have great success with a simple but effective program: incentivize employees not to drive to work. The most successful employers offer cash in exchange for taking an alternative mode and passing up on parking. From payroll incentives to gift cards, and even paid time off, the right incentives lead to significant numbers of employees choosing  smart alternatives to solo driving.

Raise the cost of parking

Another straightforward, high-impact strategy for the hospital mobility ecosystem: make it more expensive for employees to park. For example, if you currently offer employees a discounted monthly parking pass, instead charge solo drivers regular daily parking rates.

This is a very effective strategy, but to avoid a mutiny, you need to pair this kind of initiative with hospital commuter solutions that make it less expensive for employees to use other modes. Rideshare matching paired with a guaranteed ride home programs is a great option, as is public transportation. To that end:

Your hospital commuter solutions should encourage public transit use

Hospitals are usually situated so they’re easily accessible via public transportation. Take advantage of this by offering to subsidize or fully fund monthly transit passes so your commuters can save money by taking the bus or subway to work instead of driving.

If local transit routes don’t serve your hospital particularly well, consider shuttle service as an option. Running private shuttles between the hospital and major public transportation hubs in the nearby area is a cost-effective and easy way to bridge service gaps.

For more tips on reducing solo car commuting, and for expert insights into your current lineup of hospital commuter solutions, talk to our experts to get started with RideAmigos today.

Need to Recruit and Retain Top Talent? Don’t Ignore the Commute.

Employee commuter options are becoming increasingly important to members of the modern workforce.

For employers, the task to attract and retain the best available talent is becoming more and more complex. Members of the Millennial generation will make up three quarters of the workforce by 2025. So-called Generation Z is also entering the workforce in large numbers. Research consistently shows that these new workers hold a distinct set of values when it comes to what they look for in a job.

When it comes to choosing where to work, the new wave of professionals are interested in more than just money. They place high importance on achieving a positive work-life balance. They also strongly prefer organizations whose principles align with their own. For many workers, these principles include social and environmental responsibility. Millennials are particularly aware of ecological issues, and as such, they tend to take a positive view of organizations that are taking proactive steps to reduce their carbon footprints.

This growing trend extends beyond younger workers. A 2018 LinkedIn survey found that a whopping 85% of respondents said they would take a pay cut if it meant having a shorter daily commute. Job seekers are making increased use of tools that allow them to search for job opportunities that lie within their acceptable commuting time or distance range. These are clear signs that workers across age groups and demographics take the commute into consideration when weighing job offers. As an employer, looking to attract and retain top candidates, you can differentiate your organization by implementing programs to make life easier for commuters. Helping employees achieve a better balance between their work and off-the-clock lives are more productive and less likely to leave.

To that end, let’s take a look at some key employee commuter options that can give your organization a competitive edge.

Launch a commuter benefits program

Supporting commuters with a well-designed commuter benefits program is the single most effective measure your organization can take. These programs come in many forms and draw on a wide range of incentives and strategies to broaden their appeal. In general, the most effective strategies deliver meaningful rewards to commuters in a relatively compact time frame. This provides fast gratification while encouraging participants to adopt and maintain positive behavior changes.

One increasingly popular strategy is the points program. Points programs let commuters earn points when they track or log trips using a smart alternative to solo driving. They can redeem the points as they accrue over time for valuable rewards. City officials in Austin, Texas achieved high levels of participation when they introduced an innovative points program allowing municipal employees to cash in their points for paid time off – a highly meaningful reward. With that in mind, you should choose the rewards that appeal to your diverse workforce to help drive higher participation rates. Examples of possible benefits include:

  • Gift cards for online or local retailers
  • Tickets to sports or other events
  • Charitable contributions
  • Preferred parking
  • Vouchers for mobility service providers

In addition to incentive programs, you can also offer a range of other attractive commuter benefits, including:

Employers get the best results when they combine these offerings. So, instead of just setting up a points program, combine the points strategy with a few of the other options mentioned above to create a flexible program with wide appeal.

Offer flexible employee commuter options

In addition to commuter programs, employers can also appeal to job seekers by creating flexible options such as telecommuting and secure bicycle storage. Communications technology is making remote work a viable alternative in a growing number of jobs. Employers that continue to enforce rigid on-site participation policies increasingly risk losing their access to top talent.

While  biking to work is not always a faster option than driving, it can reduce stress and contribute to a healthier, happier workforce. Simple things like secure bike storage, shower access, and lockers to encourage cyclists can choose to leave their cars at home more often.

Learn from the mistakes and successes of others

Organizations that haven’t adapted to the changing workforce and mobility landscape are facing increasing negative productivity and recruiting impacts. Many are experiencing higher rates of lateness and absenteeism, lower employee engagement, and higher turnover. Furthermore, failure to adapt can negatively affect your employer brand, making it even harder to recruit and retain quality candidates.

RideAmigos helps businesses of all sizes implement more effective employee commuter options.

RideAmigos’ cloud-based platform and native mobile apps offer features that make it easy for organizations to manage commuter programs and simplify access to smart transportation alternatives. Our industry-leading transportation demand management (TDM) tools work for businesses of all sizes. Let us show you how commuter benefits can help build your employer brand while promoting better health, decreased traffic, and sustainability.

Get started today to learn how RideAmigos supports a complete range of appealing and successful employee commuter programs.

The #1 Commuter Parking Management Strategy

Use this proven method to boost the effectiveness of your commuter parking management

Parking demand can cause major problems in the workplace, especially if your commuter base is heavily reliant on single-occupancy vehicles. However, by implementing a single strategy, you can massively improve your approach to commuter parking management. This winning strategy is known as parking cash-out.

Here’s how these highly successful programs work:

Parking cash-out is an ideal option for businesses that provide employees with subsidized or no-cost parking. The business begins by calculating its daily per-vehicle parking rate. Then, offer employees who drive to work a choice: take a cash payout, or use your parking spot. The payouts can be calculated and distributed on a weekly or monthly basis, or processed along with payroll.

For businesses that rent their parking facilities, figuring out the daily per-vehicle rate is easy: just divide your total parking costs by the number of spots you rent, then compute down to a daily figure. Companies that own their own parking facilities can estimate daily costs by adding up construction, operation, and maintenance costs associated with their parking lots, then dividing by the number of parking spots it holds. That figure can then be annualized, or broken down into quarters, months, weeks, or days.

Studies have shown that if you’re going to use only one commuter parking management strategy, this is the one to try. Parking cash-out programs can reduce parking demand by as much as 45 percent.

This strategy works because it gives commuters an immediate, tangible incentive not to drive to work. Most commuters that have access to free or low-cost parking don’t think much about what it costs the company. Offering them a cash payout in exchange for their parking spot will make the commuter feel as though he or she stands to lose something by continuing to solo-drive to work.

Companies can achieve long-term savings by sharply reducing the amount of parking they need to rent, or earn additional revenues by renting unused spots to other individuals or businesses. It’s a classic win-win situation that is well worth a try if you’re a facilities manager for a business struggling to figure out how to manage steep employee demand for costly parking.

RideAmigos is the perfect commuter management platform for implementing a parking cash-out program. Empower your employees to make smarter transportation choices like ridesharing, biking, and transit. Track commuting patterns. Incentivize preferred behaviors. All within one powerful system.

Get started with the commuter management pros at RideAmigos to learn how you can implement a parking cash out program.

Commuter Tax Benefits

Tax benefits for smarter commuting benefit both employees and employers.

Most people would agree that smarter, more environmentally friendly modes of urban transportation are a good thing. However, a lot of commuters need a little extra incentive to adopt new habits. To that end, the federal government recognizes that one of the most effective ways to actively encourage change is to offer financial benefits to those who use smart commuting options. Updates to the U.S. tax codes, which were signed into law in 2015, create a win-win situation for commuters and companies alike.

Under the updated laws, employers can give their employees the option to use up to $255 per month in pre-tax income to cover qualified commuting expenses, including:

  • Municipal and regional transit passes
  • Vanpool fares
  • Parking expenses

This program allows commuters to pay for qualified costs using pre-tax income. In total, each commuter is eligible for a taxable income reduction of up to $3,060 per year. Employers also benefit from the program, since monies dedicated to these costs are exempted from payroll taxation.

Pre-tax Benefit Example

The Santa Rosa Widget Company* has 50 employees using their pre-tax commute program. Each person claims $200 per month in eligible transportation costs. Over the course of a year, their company pays $9,000 less in payroll taxes. That, in turn, easily finances a transportation demand management program. Their TDM program then stimulates even more savings by encouraging more employees to participate. Everyone wins!

These programs also have important trickle-down benefits, which aren’t to be overlooked. Commuters who use transportation other than single-occupancy vehicles report lower levels of stress, an improved sense of well-being, and boosted workplace productivity. Enterprises that are looking for a way to kick-start beneficial changes to company culture would do well to consider the many advantages of these commuter tax benefit programs, many of which are also available on the state level.

Learn more about commuter tax benefits, and add RideAmigos to your smart commuting toolbox.

There are a lot of particular details involved with the commuter tax benefit program. If you’re looking to learn more, this comprehensive document from the Internal Revenue Service is an excellent resource, as is the National Center for Transit Research page on the tax benefits program. Remember, too, that tools like the RideAmigos software platform are excellent for helping commuters connect with a wealth of local transportation options and commute planning resources.

Our software can quickly provide you with positive return on investment in employee commuter programs. Make your smart commuting programs as beneficial as possible – contact the RideAmigos team today.

*Fictional example company. As far as we know, there’s not actually a widget company in Santa Rosa. If you’ve heard of one before, just know we’re not talking about that Santa Rosa Widget Company. 🙂