Date:
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Contact:
Keith Cotton, Urban Programs Manager, (360) 705-7910
Michele Villnave, WSDOT Communications, (360) 705-7875
OLYMPIA – With gas prices jumping to $4.25 a gallon, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) wants commuters to know there are many ways to save money at the gas pump. WSDOT is helping to keep Washington moving by providing commuters with options for getting to work. WSDOT invests in and promotes a variety of commute options as alternatives to driving alone, including the use of carpools, vanpools, buses, bicycling, walking, compressed work hours, and working from home.
"There are many choices available to commuters across the state that will help them save money and energy while reducing pollution and congestion," said Katy Taylor, WSDOT Public Transportation director.
To learn about the programs below and other programs please visit the WSDOT Web site.
Public Transportation
WSDOT has links to the 28 transit systems throughout the state to make riding the bus easier, find your transit choices online at www.wsdot.wa.gov/choices/statewide.
Carpools and Vanpools
WSDOT works with transit systems throughout the state to promote carpooling and vanpooling through a statewide ridematching system called Rideshare Online. This system provides free computerized carpool and vanpool matching services and a commute cost calculator.
- Carpooling is one of the easiest choices to help save money at the pump. Get your free ridematch at rideshareonline.com and find your carpool partner. Share the ride one day per week or every weekday and start saving money by sharing the cost.
- Commuters can save money on gasoline and wear and tear on their vehicles by getting into a vanpool. WSDOT provides vans to local transit agencies through the Vanpool Investment Program. There are 2,433 vans on the road in Washington, the largest public vanpool fleet in North America. Vanpools provide more than 665,000 passenger trips a month.
Park and Ride Lots
WSDOT provides information on park and ride lots located throughout the state. Washington has 350 park and ride lots with approximately 45,000 parking spaces for use by commuters.
Bicycling and Walking
Bicycling and walking to work is a good way to get exercise while saving on commute costs. Bicycle commuting in Washington has increased by more than 75 percent in the last 10 years. More people are choosing to bike to work and more people are even doing their after work shopping and errands by bicycle. For those who live within a few miles of their job, walking is an ideal form of commuting. If you live too far to walk, try walking to the bus stop or walk to meet your carpool partner.
Employer Services
WSDOT’s Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) program works with local jurisdictions and employers to develop commuter programs designed to reduce single-occupant vehicle trips to worksites. Employers may offer benefits such as subsidies for transit fares, flexible work schedules, telework opportunities, and more.
Employees participating in the CTR program made nearly 26,000 fewer vehicle trips each weekday morning in 2007 than they did when they entered the program. The absence of these vehicles on the state's road each weekday morning reduced gas consumption by about 7.9 million gallons, saving commuters about $23 million. It also helped to address climate change by reducing pollutants by nearly 4,000 tons and the emissions of carbon dioxide-equivalent gases by nearly 85,600 tons.
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