Public Transit

Social and technological changes have transformed the needs of commuters. Many employees now work remotely, while others have moved from cities to more affordable suburban and rural areas. With an increasing number of businesses calling workers back to the office, many communities are now feeling the impact of transportation systems that are not optimized for the new normal – longer commutes, more varied schedules, and lower ridership on core transit. As a result, communities are looking for ways to ensure effective commuting solutions are available for their residents and employers.

Many public transit systems are committed to facing these challenges by offering an extended range of mobility solutions for commuters to satisfy their evolving needs. By implementing new, and further reaching, mobility strategies, they're addressing not only the needs of workers facing a return to the office but also the ALICE (asset-limited, income-constrained, employed) population, who might not have a reliable vehicle or the means to own and maintain one.

_{A multimodal approach}

As the need for long-distance commutes and flexible transportation options increases, and with transit systems constrained by rising operating costs, vanpooling offers a cost-effective solution that benefits all parties.

Integrating vanpool services with existing transit networks offers flexible, market-driven solutions, while filling the gaps that other modes of transit cannot effectively serve. Like bus and rail, transit agencies typically provide funding to reduce the cost for vanpool riders, making it an affordable and convenient alternative to driving alone and an integral part of the transportation system.

"There is an increasing need to support people with long-distance commutes and those seeking flexible transportation options to get to their workplaces," says Dion Beuckman, Director of Operations at Commute with Enterprise. “At the same time, transit systems have never been more constrained in terms of their resources to provide much-needed services. Through our partnerships with over 100 transit systems throughout the U.S., we've been able to implement cost-efficient vanpooling options that expand service, benefit commuters and improve the connectivity of communities.”

Collaborating with communities

Commute with Enterprise’s partnership with Reno, Nevada, has enabled the Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County (RTC) to unlock $7 million in federal funding for transit initiatives while effectively moving commuters to remote manufacturing jobs that are inaccessible by many other modes. All told, RTC’s vanpool program provides ~25M passenger miles of service per year while costing RTC less than 5% of their annual operating budget.

Beyond its partnerships with transit systems, Commute also works closely with departments of transportation across the country to fill service gaps for rural communities. For example, Commute has partnered with the Florida DOT to provide job-access transportation to the 34 underserved rural counties throughout the state.

Commute also partners with employers to solve their transportation challenges. Its partnership with R.W. Beckett helped address the challenge of limited public transportation options for early shift workers. After starting with four vanpools, R.W. Beckett saw improved attendance, increasingly engaged staff, and cost savings. The program's initial success has led to an expansion that includes co-op students and a second worksite.

Paying it forward

The public transit funding that vanpool programs help generate can be fed back into transit initiatives that meet present and future needs of the community while filling critical budget shortfalls. “Forward planning and collaboration with our public transit partners is essential for securing future service. Using public funding effectively to expand the reach of transit, fill gaps in service, and provide critical job-access to employers and workers creates a real impact in the community,” Beuckman says. “Combine this with the fact that vanpools provide service 10 times more cost-effectively on average than other modes of transit and you have a winning combination to move our communities effectively now and in the future. This collective effort is crucial for addressing the evolving commuting needs of all communities.”

Commute with Enterprise provides further value by presenting comprehensive service and financial data to municipal partners, aiding informed funding decisions. This includes illustrating commute patterns, vehicle usage, passenger trips, miles traveled, and operational costs to optimize program investments and funding generation. “We're proud to use our expertise to help reduce the reporting burden transit agencies so often face while directly benefiting the riders who use these services,” says Cheryl O’Connor, who leads public sector business development for Commute with Enterprise. “We're here to provide smooth operations from start to finish and do as much of the heavy lifting for our partners as possible. That might take shape in navigating funding sources and compliance, reporting needs or updating our partners with fresh insights as conditions and trends shift in the industry. We want to make sure that our partners have the tools to tell the story of how we collectively impact and provide change in the communities where we work.”

Interested in bringing a better commute to the people in your community? Talk to a Commute with Enterprise expert to get started.