How Commuting Impacts the Environment

Transportation is a major source of CO2 emissions contributing to climate change and, in case it doesn’t go without saying, personal vehicles emit more harmful CO2 mile-for-mile than shared transportation. Emissions standards for cars and trucks help. In fact, in the United States, CO2 emissions from vehicles were down 6% in 2021 compared to 2005 levels, in spite of an increase in overall numbers of vehicles on the road. Unfortunately, the United Nations Environmental Program has called for at least a 45% decrease in emissions to prevent global temperature increases above 1.5 degrees Celcius. 

As more and more remote workers return to the office, the percentage of people who drive to work in a single-occupancy vehicle remains high. A Statista survey found that, even with high rates of telecommuting, a majority (63% of workers) commute to a job by car.

Climate awareness and interest in climate-action are on the rise, and corporate sustainability practices factor into employment decisions for many workers. Employers, government agencies, and individuals all have an interest in reducing the impact our commutes have on the planet. Fortunately, while commuter behavior is one of the hardest habits to change, some employers and communities are having success using strategies grounded in behavioral science.

The impact of driving to work

Commuting to work accounts for nearly all of an individual employee’s job-related carbon footprint. A look at the CO2 emissions resulting from commuting by car shows that individual choices can have a big impact.

The average American commute is around 15 miles each way. Here’s how that translates into CO2 emissions in each year in different types of personal vehicles: 

  • Small car (35 MPG fuel economy): 2.1 tons
  • Midsize car (20 MPG fuel economy): 3.9 tons
  • Full-size car/SUV (14 MPG fuel economy): 5.7 tons

While the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is introducing policies to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles, the transition will not happen overnight. A New York Times report found that in 2021, fewer than 1% of the 250 million cars on U.S. roads were electricSo, getting even a small percentage of commuters out of cars and into cleaner, smarter modes of transportation can have a measurable positive impact on air quality. 

Small changes can have big positive impacts

If just 5% of the 106.4 million American workers who currently commute by single-occupancy vehicle shifted to another mode they could save nearly 21 million tons of CO2 per year. 

At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes by empowering everyone to make smarter transportation choices. 

Commute management can make a difference

Implementing commuter programs at a community or organizational level can be a big help. Businesses, schools, government agencies, and universities all have a role to play in reducing carbon emissions from commuting. Fortunately, trip reduction programs also have other benefits to people and organizations!

Here are some examples of organizational transportation demand management strategies that work to encourage transportation sustainability:

  • Flexible daily choice parking: When parking is free as a benefit, or paid by commuters on monthly or annual basis, the effect is a feeling of being “locked-in.” Not using a parking pass that is already paid for might feel like a waste, especially if they’d have to pay for a transit ticket on top of that. By transitioning to a daily option, communities and organizations can provide commuters more flexibility to make the best choice each day — so perhaps they can drive on days they need a car for school drop-off or other errands, but bike or ride transit on other days. Automate payment each time an employee reserves a parking space. Or when parking is already provided, allowing people the option to “cash-out” the benefit on days they don’t need it is a highly effective way to do this.
  • Subsidies and incentives: When parking is free and driving is the default, many people don’t see the downside of commuting by car. To help shift the calculus, organizations that can’t or aren’t ready to charge for parking can similarly subsidize other modes by offering free transit passes, providing a guaranteed ride program for carpoolers, offering micro-mobility options and, of course, offering great facilities for cyclists like bike lockers and showers.
  • A personalized approach to carpooling: Carpooling can be an excellent option for commuters who are not well-served by public transit. So why is it so hard to convince people to try it? New group-based pooling programs that automatically connect commuters based on schedule and preferences are revolutionizing ridesharing. Apps like Pave Commute automate this tried-and-true transportation demand management tactic and dynamically personalize for everyone in a community or organization, with real-time chat and other nudges.
  • Gamification: Some people might find a perfect commute and just stick to it. But the reality is that schedules are not always the same, weather changes, transit delays happen, and construction projects snarl traffic. An app-based program that keeps commuters engaged with ongoing gamification can ensure that whenever things change, commuters have help to make a sustainable choice — instead of just hopping in the car.

These strategies work at all levels — from individual employers to entire regions. In addition to reducing reliance on single-occupancy vehicles, these programs can improve the commute experience and give every participant the opportunity to contribute to critical sustainable development goals (SDGs). Regardless of the type and size of an organization, or the complexity of its transportation needs, technology can help scale and automate these proven commute management strategies.

Empower employees to make more sustainable commute choices

Organizations that implement the right commute management programs see real modeshift results and improved commuter experience. RideAmigos apps and programs are designed by experts, based on behavioral science to scale effective strategies. Commuters using our apps avoided over 61 million vehicle miles traveled and reduced over 40 million pounds of CO2 in 2022. Join us to start making your impact today. Contact us to get started. 

Make commuting part of your ESG strategy

Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) teams are popping up in all kinds of organizations as companies continue to embrace higher levels of social responsibility. These teams play a large and growing role in compliance, employer branding, community engagement, and corporate sustainability initiatives. Many new ESG teams are also making commuting part of a comprehensive ESG strategy.

ESG managers are often tasked with making high-impact, high-profile improvements on limited budgets. At the same time, there is usually a high degree of scrutiny on ESG program results.

When it comes to objectives like helping the fight against climate change and reducing carbon emissions, the commute is an easy win. Improving employee commutes gives everyone a chance to contribute to ESG initiatives, and reinforces a corporate culture of sustainability. For employees who don’t work from home, the commute may account for as much as 98% of their work-related carbon footprint. While this likely represents a much smaller share of the organization’s overall carbon emissions, too many ESG teams overlook simple solutions to this very addressable problem. But it turns out, there is no better way to combine sustainability with employee engagement.

Commuter-focused sustainability programs increase employee engagement

New surveys reveal that top talent expects greater alignment of their organization’s values with their own ideals. As more businesses are pushing for remote workers to return to the office, and stories of super-commuters are everywhere, more businesses are starting to consider commuter programs that mitigate environmental impact, save money, and reduce stress.

A growing number of organizations are recognizing the importance of providing tangible ways for employees to take climate action at work because it correlates with higher levels of job satisfaction. Creating an internal culture of sustainability drives higher levels of engagement, especially since commuters themselves stand to benefit. It’s a triple win.

Businesses can measure the impact of commute programs in real time

Businesses should always track the impact of investments in new programs to make sure spending is in line with priorities. But when it comes to ESG initiatives, there is an even greater level of scrutiny on results. To avoid the appearance of “greenwashing,” a term that means exaggerating or making misleading claims about sustainable practices for marketing purposes, organizations need to accurately measure the environmental benefits of any sustainability program closely. Fortunately, when it comes to commuting, technology allows employers to automate commuter behavior change programs and measure their direct impact over time.

To achieve ambitious sustainability goals, organizations can’t afford to ignore low-hanging fruit like the daily commute. The right program can create meaningful carbon reductions with very low operating costs.

Employees can help make commuting part of your ESG strategy

Most people are happy to buy into programs that fight climate change and promote environmental responsibility, but these initiatives take on greater relevance when they also measurably improve a person’s life. With high gas prices, worsening traffic, and greater awareness of the impacts of climate change, programs that making commuting easier and incentivize sustainable choices are great boosts for employee engagement. People participate in these programs at robust rates, giving ESG teams valuable data and insights to present to management.

A good commute management strategy can improve commuter experience and measurably reduce CO2 emissions from employee transportation. Our team works with leading employers around the world to power commuter programs that boost engagement, reduce parking demand and environmental impact, and help everyone improve their trip to work.

Connect with our experts to learn how you can make commuting part of our ESG strategy. Get started today!

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.

RideAmigos Proudly Announces its Participation in the Shared Mobility Action Network

RideAmigos is pleased to confirm its official participation in the Shared Mobility Action Agenda, a project headed by Chicago’s Shared-Use Mobility Center. Thus far, the Agenda has drawn in more than 50 partners from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

The Agenda’s broad goal is to make shared modes of transportation more accessible, reliable, and affordable than driving a car by 2030. It plans to achieve that core objective through focused, policy-based advocacy efforts centered on:

  • Shared mobility infrastructure investments
  • Household-focused incentive programs designed to stimulate mode shift
  • Reducing the carbon lifecycle emissions of shared-use vehicles
  • Developing sustainable funding models for shared mobility action
  • Inspiring institutional change

RideAmigos shares the Shared-Use Mobility Center’s view that we are currently in a critical and pivotal moment for the future of sustainable transportation. Reshaping our urban spaces and road networks to prioritize people over cars has the potential to address a long list of pressing and persistent problems, from climate change to racial inequality.

The success of the Shared Mobility Action Agenda depends on the robust and committed participation of government, private industry, and nonprofit advocacy groups.

Why Is Action on Shared Mobility So Critical?

Several eye-opening statistics point to the pressing need for targeted and effective shared mobility action:

  • About 30% of all U.S. carbon emissions come from the transportation sector. Even a mass-scale shift to electric vehicles will not do enough to address this issue — after all, that electricity has to come from somewhere, and many legacy power generation methods still depend on fossil fuels.
  • The lowest-income households in the United States spend 37% of their gross income on transportation. Affordable shared solutions are desperately needed to connect members of these households to educational and employment opportunities that support their upward economic mobility.
  • More than 35,000 people die in traffic accidents each year in the United States. Members of racialized communities, including Black and Native Americans, lose their lives at two to four times the rate of non-Hispanic white Americans.

By taking cars off the road and putting people in shared modes, we could make major steps toward solving these and many other transportation-related problems.

Projected Impacts of the Shared Mobility Action Agenda

Making even partial progress on the Shared Mobility Action Agenda’s goals by 2030 will result in dramatic improvements in multiple critical areas:

  • Families and households, especially those in lower income brackets, will benefit from easier and more direct access to low-cost, reliable, and efficient shared modes of transportation.
  • All levels of government will make a deeper, more meaningful commitment to reducing the carbonization consequences of the transportation sector.
  • Our transportation infrastructure will more directly support socioeconomic and racial equality.
  • Advocacy organizations and nonprofit groups will have a high-impact, far-reaching platform for voicing community-based concerns and addressing unique community needs.

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda will also make our streets safer and less vulnerable to traffic accidents and fatalities, all while bringing an expanded suite of mobility options to millions of Americans living in rural destinations.

RideAmigos Reinforces Shared Mobility Objectives Through Its TDM Platform and Commuter Programs

RideAmigos redoubles its commitment to improving shared mobility access through a powerful transportation demand management platform and insightful, science-driven commuter programs.

The RideAmigos platform provides employers and commuters with powerful tools they can use to launch and manage effective TDM programs. Its capabilities include strong and complete support for shared mobility solutions, including public transportation, company rideshare programs, and community-wide transportation initiatives.

RideAmigos also helps clients design, refine, and launch effective commuter programs that draw heavily on proven insights from the field of behavioral science. As a result of our scientific focus, our programs tend to generate higher participation rates and succeed more readily at inspiring commuters to make long-term changes to their transportation habits.

To learn more, please contact RideAmigos.

RideAmigos Awarded US Department of Transportation Funding for its Blockchain-Based Commuter Incentive System

The project is one of only 12 to receive the agency’s coveted Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards in 2022.

SANTA MONICA, August 2, 2022 Commute management technology leader RideAmigos received Phase I funding by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for research and development of a novel incentivization system designed to optimize utilization of transit and other transportation infrastructure.

The SBIR Program, managed by USDOT’s innovation-focused Volpe Center, incentivizes small businesses to pursue innovative research and development work that has the potential for broad commercialization and adoption. According to the USDOT, the highly selective program funds projects that “address advanced innovative concepts from [small businesses] with strong capabilities in applied science or engineering.” Funding awards are made in two phases, with the possibility of a third phase leading to commercialization and special federal procurement status.

“We are honored to receive the support of the USDOT for this moonshot project that we believe has the potential to change the way the public and private sectors work together to transform commuter transportation for a sustainable future,” RideAmigos CEO Soren Eilertsen said. “It is encouraging to see the USDOT pursuing this kind of research and development in its work to advance a more equitable, accessible, and inclusive transportation system.”

The project will complement Pave Commute, RideAmigos’ personal commute app for employees that uses sophisticated algorithms to recommend the best commute option based on individual needs and preferences, match commuters doing similar things, and reward them for making sustainable choices. The design combines an intuitive user experience with proven principles of behavioral science — including findings from cutting edge studies with researchers from Duke University’s Center for Advanced Hindsight — as well as social elements, gamification, and advanced multimodal routing technology.

Among the goals of the blockchain project are the development of an innovative system for collecting mobility data and establishment of a market for public and private stakeholders to invest in managing demand for existing transportation infrastructure. This will enable players in the mobility supply chain — employers, local governments, transit agencies, and micromobility providers — to reward commuters, based on reliable data, for transportation choices that reduce congestion, emissions, and parking costs. Furthermore, insights from this data can also guide planning efforts to optimize new development and service decisions.

“With Pave Commute, we can meet every commuter where they are, and empower them to adopt new, more sustainable options. Organizations can increase the impact of the program by providing incentives, which the app distributes automatically to optimize use of available infrastructure,” said Corey Tucker, RideAmigos Director of Innovation and lead of the SBIR-funded project. “By leveraging blockchain technology to establish a secure, decentralized market, we can enable the full range of public and private stakeholders – including mobility providers and planning organizations – to participate.”

This year, other projects to receive SBIR Phase I funding from the agency focus on artificial intelligence, intelligent road systems, material safety, equity, and climate change.

The Pave Commute app is available to download in the Apple App Store and Google Play store and requires an employer subscription to sign up. Interested organizations can learn more at pavecommute.app.

About RideAmigos:

RideAmigos is a technology company on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds. (http://www.rideamigos.com)

User Research and Behavioral Science: Insights to Help Change Commuters’ Behavior

Pave Commute’s Austria-based head of technical research, Florian Daniel, recently appeared on the Product by Design podcast to discuss user research, behavioral science, and how they can be used to change commuters’ behavior. The podcast focused on behavioral science’s ability to generate insights that help solve difficult problems, and its growing set of applications in the transportation demand management (TDM) space.

The Motivation to Change Commuters’ Behavior

Florian lives in the mid-size Austrian city of Linz. He became motivated to help change commuters’ behavior by a combination of personal experience and a desire to improve his community.

Car-based commuting remains a leading default mode in the Linz area, particularly for people who live outside the city proper and need to travel in for work. Congestion is a major problem on weekdays: traffic snarls are commonplace, and it negatively impacts commuters’ quality of life. People in Linz also regularly use cars to travel distances that could easily be covered on a bicycle.

These two factors prompted Florian to focus his efforts on improving rideshare rates in the city and encouraging commuters to shift to active transportation modes.

Behavioral Psychology and Changing Commuters’ Behavior

Car-centric commuter culture is a deeply ingrained phenomenon, with many people continuing to engage in it out of a combination of habit and convenience. Florian notes that the key to success is not to get commuters to try a different mode, but to get them to stick with a new, more sustainable way of getting to work over the long term.

To that end, Florian emphasizes that commuter apps like the Pave Commute platform are capable of giving users the “nudge” they many need to make their mode shifts permanent. One key reason is that Pave Commute allows end users to see the quantifiable impact they are having by using alternatives to solo driving. This helps reinforce positive feelings about more sustainable commuting choices, which can go a long way toward driving lasting ways of changing commuters’ behavior.

Emphasizing the Positive Impacts of Mode Shift

Florian also touched on the multiple ways in which encouraging employees to shift modes stands to create both individual and organizational benefits. He used the example of a mid-size company, in which 90% of employees commute by car.

Encouraging even 10% of those commuters to change modes would create a dramatic reduction in the company’s parking requirements. This, in turn, would enable the business to repurpose unused parking spots into a green space for team members to enjoy during meal and break times. Employees would have a more enjoyable work environment, which stands to have a positive effect on their overall mindset and job satisfaction.

A similar principle applies to individual commuters. As anyone who regularly drives to work through a congested area knows, it isn’t much fun to be stuck in a car sitting in traffic. Walking and cycling are much more fun, and they’re also healthier. Shared modes allow commuters to shift their attention from driving onto other tasks, which could improve their productivity or allow them to create a more meaningful mental “buffer zone” between their work and personal lives.

The Value of Research in TDM Product Development

Florian characterizes his technical research role as a kind of bridge between the software development and business development sides of Pave Commute. Interestingly, he notes that research plays a critical role in securing the necessary funding to develop next-generation TDM products.

Building a business case for carrying out user research in the interests of getting cars off the road is a straightforward proposition. Funding grants also enable TDM product developers to liaise with academic experts at universities and other institutions, which generates more authoritative and valuable results.

The Ongoing Need for Continued Product Adaptation

Florian’s experiences also point to the necessity of looking at TDM platforms as dynamic creations that need to change and grow over time. Sometimes, he notes, the development team will be excited about a new software feature or integration, only to see it not perform as intended when actual users engage with it. The accompanying learning process reinforces the idea that TDM is an ever-changing field that requires constant revisiting of core concepts and established methods of achieving results.

Where Things May Be Headed

Florian also weighs in on the established and emerging dynamics that stand to impact both transportation policy and the commuter experience in North America, Europe, and beyond. One major such factor is the increased regulatory activity focused on mitigating the negative impacts of climate change.

In Florian’s opinion, policy efforts should focus primarily on employers, who should be tasked with providing their team members with a flexible set of more sustainable commuting options. Approaches that use the proverbial “stick” to punish individual commuters based on their transportation choices are, in his opinion, divisive and therefore less desirable.

Autonomous vehicles could also prove to be a game-changer in the not-too-distant future. They hold the impact to dramatically reduce the number of user-operated vehicles on the road, especially during peak commuting times.

Get Engaged and Help Change Commuters’ Behavior with Pave Commute

RideAmigos solutions like Pave Commute help organizations build happier, more sustainable, and more productive work environments with user-friendly and effective commuter management products. Commuter benefits are a low-cost, high-impact perk that make a meaningful difference in the everyday lives of team members.

Our platform can help change commuters’ behavior through an innovative combination of applied behavioral science, artificial intelligence, and advanced mobile technology. To learn more, or to discover our platform’s potential to benefit your workplace, please contact us to get started.

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).

Exploring Links Between Health and Wellness, Commuting, and the Employee Experience

The COVID-19 pandemic jolted the world into greater and more immediate awareness of issues related to physical and mental health and wellness. As the ongoing return to office continues, employers are paying increased attention to how commuting affects their team members’ health as well as their broader employee experience.

In 2022, Get There Oregon commissioned a survey of 225 senior human resources (HR) administrators working throughout the state. The survey results relayed some interesting findings with major implications for commuting and the employee experience:

  • 96% of respondents cited recruiting and retaining qualified employees as a top concern
  • 93% sought to improve employee morale and job satisfaction
  • 92% wanted to better protect employee health and wellness
  • 83% seek to make progress toward organizational sustainability goals

On the surface, these concerns might not appear related. However, upon digging more deeply into trends affecting the post-pandemic labor market, it becomes apparent that the issues are more interconnected than they might seem.

The Effects of a Difficult Commute on Employee Health and Wellness

Long and stressful commutes often exact a negative toll on both physical and mental health. The University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine explored the ways commuting affects physical health in a 2019 blog post. The post cited multiple issues:

  • Extended commutes to and from work often leave people without enough time to get adequate exercise
  • Studies have found that people with long commutes tend to get less sleep, and a lack of sleep is a contributing factor to many serious health problems
  • Long commutes expose people to greater concentrations of air pollutants, which can take a toll on their respiratory health
  • Commuting raises stress levels, especially for drivers, which can also contribute to a host of health problems including heart disease

The Keck School also noted that the demands of the daily grind often leave commuters feeling antisocial, potentially leading to feelings of loneliness, isolation, and depression. These observations speak to a well-established body of research noting links between arduous commutes, anxiety, and depression.

The relentless need to commute day in and day out can also lead to a cycle of dread directly related to the quotidian journey. According to experts, this can actually cause long-term cognitive changes that rewire the brain to generate negative responses and mood changes.

Notably, researchers report that active commuting has strong positive effects on both the physical and mental health of commuters. Cycling and walking may not be an option for every commuter. However, transportation demand management (TDM) experts stress the importance of improved employer support for active commuting, given the many associated wellness benefits.

How Commuting Can Impact Employee Morale and Job Satisfaction

Unsurprisingly, the long-term mental toll of commuting taints the employee experience by lowering morale and reducing job satisfaction. Eye-opening research from the United Kingdom found that adding 20 extra minutes of travel time onto a commuter’s work day had the same impact on their job satisfaction as a 19% reduction in pay. The study included more than 26,000 workforce members over a five-year period.

As with physical health, travel modes directly impact employee morale and productivity. Improvements are associated with active commuting and shared modes of transportation such as carpooling, while negative impacts on morale and productivity are primarily linked with solo driving.

A Better Employee Experience Leads to Greater Talent Recruitment and Retention Success

The concept of the employee experience took on added urgency as millions of U.S. workers quit their jobs in 2021 and 2022. This so-called Big Quit or Great Resignation put a spotlight on shortcomings employers need to address to improve their talent recruitment and retention efforts in the most challenging labor market in recent memory.

In 2022, leading online career portal Indeed published a deep dive into what job-seekers are looking for in an employee experience. Key findings include:

  • Job candidates expect more from their employers and are less likely to settle for the pre-pandemic status quo
  • Enhanced support for hybrid and offsite work is emerging as an inflexible expectation for job-seekers
  • Employees want more flexible schedules that promote a better work-life balance

Commuting factors into these dynamics in multiple ways. Employers can no longer realistically expect employees to “suck it up” and deal with a long or difficult commute: workers are opting out of those arrangements at unprecedented rates.

Instead, TDM experts suggest that businesses think about remote work as akin to an alternative form of transportation. This type of policy shift prompts employers to integrate telecommuting into their commuter programs more effectively, creating a superior employee experience with direct positive impacts on recruitment and retention.

Commuter Programs that Support Wellness and Improve Morale Also Boost Sustainability

Remote work is not the only option when it comes to improving the employee experience. Ridesharing is linked with lower stress and improved productivity, while researchers established links between choosing public transportation as a commuting option and better health a long time ago.

Modes like ridesharing, public transportation, and active commuting do more than support health, wellness, and productivity. They also help organizations make meaningful progress toward their sustainability goals, which was a major priority for 83% of Get There Oregon’s 2022 survey respondents.

Tying It All Together: How RideAmigos Can Help Partners Build Better Employee Experiences

Talent recruitment and retention, employee morale, job satisfaction, and sustainability are not issues that exist in vacuums. They all form an integral part of the kind of positive employee experience job-seekers want from the post-pandemic return to office. Given the ongoing struggles of many employers to fill critical vacancies, companies that make decisive, forward-thinking moves in these directions have the potential to realize significant competitive advantages in the post-pandemic economic landscape.

At RideAmigos, we have been working with leading employers and public-facing commuter programs for over a decade to make commuting easier and more environmentally sustainable. Whether you are just getting started with commute management or already have robust TDM and commuter benefits programs, we have solutions to empower your organization. Talk to our commute experts now.

Get There Oregon 2022 Survey: Key Takeaways for Commuter Programs and the Employee Experience

The employee experience has emerged as a critical topic of focus among enterprises in recent months. Over the course of 2021 and into 2022, U.S. workers voluntarily left their jobs at never-before-seen rates. The phenomenon, dubbed the Big Quit or the Great Resignation, triggered alarm bells in boardrooms across the country. Executives and human resource professionals began digging into the reasons for the trend, with many finding their own shortcomings as employers a key driver of the exodus. It will come as no surprise to those in the transportation demand management (TDM) industry that subsequent discussions surrounding strategies for improving employee job satisfaction and retention rates came to include commuter programs.

A widely cited 2018 survey found that 23% of U.S. workers had quit a job at least once because of a difficult or stressful commute. Daily commuting woes are a common experience for members of the workforce, something the COVID-19 pandemic only intensified. As COVID-19 spread, commuting moved past being an inconvenient hassle to a potential health risk.

Surveys aiming to take the proverbial temperature of post-pandemic U.S. commuters have yielded interesting results from a TDM perspective. One such effort, carried out on behalf of the rideshare organization Get There Oregon in 2022, queried more than 200 human resources professionals around the state about their priorities and their perception of trends affecting the workforce. The collected data put a bright spotlight on important role commuter programs stand to play in an age of heightened awareness of the importance and value of the employee experience.

Key Findings of the Get There Oregon 2022 Commuter Survey

Solving Recruitment and Employee Retention Problems Is a Top Priority for Businesses

While U.S. workers walking out of their jobs in mass numbers was one of the most consequential business stories of 2021, there’s more to the Big Quit than resignations. Companies have also struggled to recruit new employees to replace those who have left their jobs, creating a unique situation with no easy answers.

Employee Priorities Are Changing

Companies used to address recruitment and retention challenges mainly by throwing money at their problems. However, employee priorities are shifting in new directions in the post-pandemic landscape. For many workers, the employee experience has emerged as a more powerful motivator than money. Get There Oregon’s 2022 survey data reveals that companies have responded by placing more emphasis than ever on job satisfaction, mood and morale, and employee health and wellness.

Employees Want Effective Commuter Programs

Businesses seeking to improve the employee experience can focus on two areas identified by survey respondents as ranking among employees’ top concerns. Get There Oregon’s 2022 polling found that employees want effective relief from their daily commute-related struggles. In a related finding, researchers also found that people teams expect businesses to provide ongoing opportunities to split time between on-site and offsite work.

Long-Term Remote Work Seems Likely

Get There Oregon reports that 81% of polled HR representatives expected their organizations to allow team members to work remotely some or all of the time on a long-term or permanent basis. This could signal a generational shift in the commuting landscape.

Allowing Remote Work Could Ease Recruitment Troubles

In addition to adjusting their recruitment and retention efforts for the post-pandemic landscape, Get There Oregon’s 2022 survey also found that allowing remote work on a long-term basis stands to benefit their people teams in many other ways. A majority of the HR professionals who participated in the survey said that hybrid and remote work generally offers employees a better work-life balance. This, in turn, improves their job satisfaction and makes it more likely that they will make a long-term commitment to the employer.

What Does the Get There Oregon 2022 Survey Reveal About Commuter Programs?

Get There Oregon’s 2022 survey has profound implications for commuter programs. It demonstrates how businesses that make meaningful investments in an improved employee experience stand to navigate ongoing recruitment and retention challenges with greater ease, and at a lesser cost. The survey also reveals the crucial importance of making support for hybrid and offsite work a central focus of modified post-pandemic commuter programs.

At the same time, businesses should still focus on providing meaningful commuter supports to their on-site team members. There are many ways companies can make life easier for their commuters, and [[RIDEAMIGOS/PAVE COMMUTE]] assists clients by providing advanced analytical insights and high-performing technology tools.

Turbocharge Your Post-Pandemic Commuter Programs with [RideAmigos/Pave Commute]

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RideAmigos Named Finalist for Workplace in Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas Awards

Santa Monica-based RideAmigos was a finalist for its World Changing Ideas for the Workplace and received honorable mentions from Fast Company in AI, Apps, and Corporate Social Responsibility categories for apps that leverage behavioral science to help everyone find a better commute. 

SANTA MONICA, May 10, 2022 RideAmigos announced that its Commute Hub platform has been recognized by Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas Awards as a finalist in the Workplace category. Winners and finalists were revealed this month, honoring clean technology, innovative corporate initiatives, new designs for cities and buildings, and other creative works that support the growth of positive social innovation, tackling social inequality, climate change, and public health crises.

Commute Hub is a professional transportation demand management (TDM) platform with an experience tailored to the workplace. It enables employers like LinkedIn, Patagonia, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and the State of Arizona to optimize the employee commute experience with diverse parking, transportation and incentive programs across large campuses or multiple worksites. 

In 2021, employers used RideAmigos’ Commute Hub to administer over a million dollars in incentives and parking cash-outs, issue thousands of parking permits, and avoid 2.5 million drive alone trips.

Now in its sixth year, the World Changing Ideas Awards showcase some of the world’s most innovative entrepreneurs and companies tackling global challenges. A panel of eminent Fast Company editors and reporters selected winners and finalists from among more than 2,997 entries across dozens of industries. The workplace category is new in 2022 and honors projects that improve our lives in the office, increase employees’ rights, or make work safer, smarter, or more meaningful.

Commute Hub  also earned honorable mention in the Corporate Social Responsibility category. 

The honor for Commute Hub comes at a time when many employers are prioritizing programs to support commuters and complement hybrid work arrangements and other new realities that are emerging from the pandemic and an evolving talent market. 

“The enterprise has a renewed and larger role in the employee commute,” said Soren Eilertsen, CEO of RideAmigos. “We partner with our customers to navigate this paradigm shift and work to empower everyone to evolve the consciousness around everyday mobility choices.”

 “We are consistently inspired by the novelty and creativity that people are applying to solve some of our society’s most pressing problems, from shelter to the climate crisis. Fast Company relishes its role in amplifying important, innovative work to address big challenges,” said David Lidsky, interim editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “Our journalists have identified some of the most ingenious initiatives to launch since the start of 2021, which we hope will both have a meaningful impact and lead others to join in being part of the solution.”

RideAmigos personalized commute app, Pave Commute, launched in 2021, also earned honorable mention in three categories. Pave Commute is a fully automated, science-based commute management app for employees that provides personalized recommendations, groups users with others who can share trips, and rewards them for making smart choices. Fast Company recognized Pave Commute in the AI & Data, Apps, and Corporate Social Responsibility categories.

RideAmigos is featured in Fast Company’s Summer 2022 issue released May 10, 2022 and at fastcompany.com. 

About RideAmigos: At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds.

About the World Changing Ideas Awards: World Changing Ideas is one of Fast Company’s major annual awards programs and is focused on social good, seeking to elevate finished products and brave concepts that make the world better. A panel of judges from across sectors choose winners, finalists, and honorable mentions based on feasibility and the potential for impact. With the goals of awarding ingenuity and fostering innovation, Fast Company draws attention to ideas with great potential and helps them expand their reach to inspire more people to start working on solving the problems that affect us all.