We're nearing the end of another year, atime to reflect back on some of the great (&even not so great) memories of 2008. So weasked ETCs: "In terms of your rideshareprogram, what are you going to remembermost about 2008?" Here’s what they had tosay.

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• Orange County ETC

Meeting—Dec. 9

• Toy and canned food "drives"More Events

Keep your AVR high by avoidingrideshare "drop outs"

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Southern California Rail—Learn thedifference betweenMetrolink and Metro Rail.

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Get news geared to commuters that youcan forward to employees or incorporateinto your own rideshare newsletter.

   We’ve compiled some of the best web sites for employeetransportation coordinators to help you with your rideshareprograms.

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   What’s your traffic IQ?  Take the test at Huell Howser’s blog atCommuteSmart.info

• IRS raises the cap on vanpool and transit fringebenefits

• Los Angeles County voters approve half-cent salestax

• California economy loses $28 billion yearly due topollution

• Gas prices go down but OCTA ridership is up

• CHP offers foul-weather driving tips

   We're nearing the end of another year, a time toreflect back on some of the great (& even not so great)memories of 2008. So we asked ETCs: "In terms of yourrideshare program, what are you going to remembermost about 2008?" Here’s what they had to say:

   "What I’m going to remember most is how great itwas the first time I saw all of our reserved carpoolspaces full."—Bonnie J. Oakleaf, Automobile Club of SouthernCalifornia

   "My best memory was the rideshare event we had inOctober, my first one here at IKEA. I put up a big mapof LA County—the one with all the bus and rail routes onit—and had people put a stickpin where they lived.Everyone wanted to see what was going on. It was verysuccessful."—L. Sue Clemons, IKEA

  "For me, it was watching as many of our employeesbegan to consider transit for the first time in their lives.And to hear back from them how pleasantly surprisedthey were. Even now as gas prices drop they choose tostay with transit. In a way the gas crunch was thepivotal force behind their interest...but it was the goodexperiences that kept them coming back."—Rhonda L. Wilkinson, DIRECTV

   "We were finally able to meet the AVR (first time I believe)."—Mary Anne Rubio, OPI Products Inc.

   "I was very happy that one of our carpooler's won an 'Amazing' prize from the Rideshare Challenge this year! Both he and I werethrilled and I took his picture and posted an announcement through our Intranet for all employees to see."—Tami Martinez, Eastern Municipal Water District

   "...The rise in gas prices—for the month of July ADP had 30 associates register in our rideshare program!"—Gail Allen, ADP – San Dimas

   "The most memorable moment was the excitement created by Rideshare Week. We gave away $500 to oneof our employees, and he was just jazzed."—Ray Miranda, Southern California Orthopedic Institute

   "In 2008, we switched from conducting our survey using paper to conducting our survey electronically. Withover 600 employees, this made my job in collecting all the information, gathering up-to-date status reports,and sharing our progress on the survey with our staff so much easier."—Angelica Loftin, California Department of Justice

   "The best part was helping employees save time, money, stress, and wear and tear on their vehicles.The worst part was seeing a potential vanpool slip away because nobody wanted to be the lead driver."—Leo A. Maunu, Olive View-UCLA Medical Center

   "The increase in the number of electric vehicles on city streets and on major freeways and requestscoming in to the city for charging stations."—Judi Masuda, City of Pasadena

   "Handing out Metro Reward envelopes and seeing the look on the employee's face when they open the envelope andsee that it's a Target gift card. They immediately start telling me that the gift card couldn't have arrived at a bettertime because they could really use that money to buy detergent, milk, etc., that their family needed. I've heard this alot this past year - financial times have been hard for a lot of folks."—Iris Norsworthy, Kaiser Permanente

Photos of bus riders and cyclist—©Farmers Ins. Group/Filet

Here we’ve compiled some of the best web sites for employee transportation coordinators to help you with your rideshare programs.Save this list or bookmark your favorite sites.

Rideshare Agencies• Rideshare help for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, SanBernardino and Ventura counties, commutesmart.info• Metro Commute Services, metro.net• Orange County Transportation Authority Commuter     Solutions, octa.net/rideshare• Riverside County Transportation Commission (Inland  Empire Commuter Services), rctc.org/commuter_services• San Bernardino Associated Governments (Inland EmpireCommuter Services), sanbag.ca.gov/commuter/rideshare• Ventura County Transportation Commission, goventura.org

Air Districts• South Coast Air Quality Management District (Rule 2202),aqmd.gov• Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (Rule 211),vcapcd.org

Associations & ProfessionalDevelopment• Association for Commuter Transportation (national),actweb.org• ACT Southern California chapter, act-southernca.org• National Transportation Demand Management (TDM)Clearinghouse, post your question to more than 1,000TDM specialists, nctr.usf.edu/clearinghouse• Women’s Transportation Seminar, wtsinternational.orgWorkshops, listing at  commutesmart.info/employerservices/training

Agencies & Organizations• Automobile Club of Southern California (includes gasprice info), aaa-calif.com• California Air Resources Board, arb.ca.gov• Caltrans, dot.ca.gov• Department of Motor Vehicles, dmv.ca.gov

Commuter Choice• Links and information for commuter tax benefits,commuterchoice.com

Events• Bike to Work Day (May), californiabikecommute.com• California Rideshare Week (October), see RideshareAgencies above• Earth Day, April 22, earthday.org• National Employee Health & Fitness Day (May),physicalfitness.org• National Transportation Week (May), ntweek.org• World Environment Day, June 7, unep.org

Transit• American Public Transportation Association, apta.com• Antelope Valley Transit Authority, avta.com• Foothill Transit, foothilltransit.org• Los Angeles Department of Transportation, ladottransit.com• Metro, metro.net• Metrolink, metrolinktrains.com• OCTA, octa.net• Omnitrans, omnitrans.org• Riverside Transit Agency, riversidetransit.com• Southern California regional transit routing, commutesmart.info• VCTC, goventura.org

Carpooling• Caltrans HOV reports and maps, dot.ca.gov/dist07/resources/hov• Carpool ridematching, commutesmart.info/mycommute/findaride• Rideshare bulletin board (temporary rides),commutesmart.info/rideexchange

Vanpooling• Enterprise Vanpool, vanpool.com• VPSI Commuter Vanpool, vpsiinc.com• Metro Vanpool Program Seat Finder (LA County),gometrovanpool.net/seatfinder• Vanpool Seat Finder (Southern California),commutesmart.info/mycommute/findaride

Telecommuting• American Telecommuting Association, yourata.com• Telework Advisory Group of WorldatWork, workingfromanywhere.org• Telework Coalition, telcoa.org

Bicycling• Bike routing, bikemetro.com• California Bicycle Coalition, calbike.org• League of American Bicyclists, bikeleague.org• Rules for bikes on Metro, metro.net/riding%5Fmetro/bikes

• IRS raises the cap on vanpool and transitfringe benefits   As of Jan. 1, 2009, employers will be able to offer their commuters transit andvanpool benefits tax-free up to $120—up from the current $110 cap (per IRS rule132(f)). The monthly limitation for qualified parking will be $230. For details,see irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-08-66.pdf

• Los Angeles County voters approve half-cent sales tax   On Nov. 4, voters approved Measure R, a half-cent sales tax in Los Angeles County that willfinance transportation improvement projects—everything from fixing potholes to major highwayconstruction. It will take effect July 2009 and is expected to generate $40 billion over 30 years.For more information, including a list of planned projects, go to metro.net.

• California economy loses $28 billion yearlydue to pollution   The California economy loses about $28 billion each year due to premature deaths andillnesses linked to poor air quality, according to a recent study by Cal Sate Fullerton. In theSouth Coast Air Basin, the cost of air pollution is more than $1,250 per person per year, whichalone would translate into almost $22 billion in savings if federal ozone and fine particlestandards were met, the study claims. You can download the full study at aqmd.gov

• Gas prices go down but OCTA ridership is up   Gas prices may have dropped but bus and Metrolink ridership continued to soar inOrange County. The Orange County Transportation Authority recently experienced amilestone with 6.3 million boardings in October – the highest in the agency’s 36-yearhistory. Metrolink service also saw an increase in ridership with an 11% jump compared tolast year. According to an analysis from the American Public Transportation Association,commuters in Orange County can save an average of nearly $650 a month by takingOCTA’s bus system—or more than $7,500 a year. For more information, go to octa.net

• CHP offers foul-weather driving tips   Winter is around the corner, and that means rain, sleet, high winds and perhaps snowand fog. The California Highway Patrol offers these tips for staying safe on the road inbad weather:

— Many crashes are caused by driving too fast for current conditions, so slow down.

— Stay aware of weather and road condition reports through your local media(CommuteSmart.info posts both real-time traffic and weather condition updates).

— Check to see that your windshield wipers are in good condition—and don’t forgetthe law that requires you to have your headlights on any time your windshieldwipers are on continuously.

— If you encounter fog, again, slow down, and drive with your lights on low beam.

For more tips, go to chp.ca.gov

  It sometimes happens: Thanks to your hard work, you've signed on a lot of newridesharers—only to see your average vehicle ridership (AVR) rate stay the same or even dropbecause so many current ridesharers quit. "The truth is, a certain number of drop-outs isinevitable," says Judy Leon with Orange County Transportation Commission CommuterSolutions. "But there are things you can do to retain as many ridesharers as possible."   Here, the experts at CommuteSmart.info offer these tips:

1. Offer rewards and prizes. Set up a points systemwhere they earn rewards based on how often theyrideshare or hold regular prize raffles for programparticipants.

2. Enroll in clubs. Depending on where your work siteand/or employees are located, your employees mayqualify to join special clubs that offer discounts and giftcards to regular ridesharers—details are atcommutesmart.info/employerservices/incentives

3. Hold special events for ridesharers only. While some of your outreach will be geared to recruit new riders, occasionally holda special event just for people that already rideshare. It serves as a reminder you appreciate all they do—plus while they’regathered in one place, you can talk about any program updates.

4. Offer perks. Those little "extras" like preferential parking and days off with payfor ridesharers have a big impact on encouraging people to continue.

5. Give recognition. Hand out awards, such as "Carpooler of the Month" or awardsbased on greenhouse gases or miles reduced. If possible, present them in front ofsenior management so staff knows that their bosses will hear about theircontributions to the company.

6. Help fill seats. When one person quits carpooling, you lose two carpoolers if thepartner doesn't find someone else. Make sure staff knows that you'll help them finda new carpool partner if they need one—and same goes for vanpools, which cansometimes fold if too many empty seats drive fares up.

7. Don't let a temporary break become permanent. Be especially watchful during peak "drop out" times. Holidays, back toschool time, office relocations—any time that employees' regular schedules are uprooted there's a risk that they'll revert todriving alone. Refer carpoolers and vanpoolers to the Ride Exchange at CommuteSmart.info where they can post temporaryvacancies or find a seat if their regular carpool partner is traveling or on vacation.

8. Stay informed when staffers move. Coordinate with human resources tomake sure you hear about any changes in home location. That way, you canmatch ridesharers up with a new arrangement if their old one no longer works.

9. Remind ridesharers of the benefits.Once ridesharing becomes routine, it’s easyto forget how much better it is than drivingalone. Send out regular reminders aboutthe benefits, including less stress, gassavings, and so on.

10. Tell them you’re grateful. Neverunderestimate the power of the words "thank you."

   Many people think they’re the same thing, but they’re not—each serves a unique need for commuters. Here, we compare and contrastthese two Southern California rail lines:

Metro Rail  Metrolink

Metro Rail services Los Angeles County and includes the MetroRed, Blue, Green, Purple Orange, Gold and upcoming Expolines.

 Metrolink is regional rail service serving Los Angeles, Orange,Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura and north San Diego counties.

Operated by: Metro  Operated by: The Southern California Regional Rail Authority

Metro Rail runs on electrical lines attached to each car. MetroRail lines traverse city streets, highways and include subway,making frequent stops to accommodate shorter distancecommuters as well as reaching as far as the San FernandoValley, Pasadena, South Bay, Long Beach and points inbetween.

 Metrolink runs locomotive trains on existing tracks, traveling atspeeds up to 90 miles per hour. The double-decked rail cars, whicheach carry more than 300 people, are designed to accommodatelonger-distance commuters and include amenities like bathroomsand tables where riders can put their laptops.

Fares: Metro Rail fares are $1.25 one-way (per line with anadditional fee required to transfer between Metro Rail lines), $5for an unlimited day pass, or are included as part of the Metromonthly transit pass that also includes bus.

 Fares: Metrolink fares are calculated with a distance-based formula– the shorter the distance, the less the fare. For example, a regular,weekday one-way ticket from Sylmar to Glendale is $6.50; to go allthe way from Sylmar to Oceanside would be $13.50.

Metro fares do not transfer to Metrolink, but certain forms ofMetro fare (such as EZ pass) can allow for unlimited travel onbus.

 In Los Angeles County, Metrolink ticket holders can transfer at nocharge to Metro bus and rail, as well as 25 transit providersparticipating in EZ Pass.

Ticket types: One-way fare, Metro Day Pass, TAP electronicfare card, EZ monthly transit pass that provides service onMetro Bus as well as other participating providers

 Ticket types: one-way, round-trip, 10-trip, monthly pass

Trains run regularly 4 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily, with more frequentservice during weekday peak hours; Metro also offers a “12minute map” showing lines that run every 12 minutes.

 Metrolink operates on a schedule primarily geared to handlecommuter traffic; Metrolink typically does not operate on majorholidays.

Specials: Metro riders can get discounts at participating venueswhen they show a Metro ticket or pass (“destination discounts”listed at metro.net).

 Specials: There is discounted weekend service on some lines andspecial trains to events such as the LA County Fair. Ventura CountyFair and Poppy Festival.

Contact: 1.800.COMMUTE, metro.net  Contact: 1.800.371.LINK, metrolinktrains.com

COMMUTESMART NEWSEditor/Writer: Jill SmolinskiArt Director: Harlan West

For subscription information orto change your COMMUTESMARTNEWS e-mail address, contactyour representative at therideshare office nearest you.

Metro Commute ServicesOne Gateway PlazaMS 99-19-05Los Angeles, CA 90012-2952Business: 213.922.2811

OCTA’s Commuter Solutions550 S. Main St.,Orange, CA 92868Mailing address:PO Box 14184Orange, CA 92863Business: 714.560.5358

Ventura CountyTransportation Commission950 County Square Dr.,Ste. 207,Ventura, CA 93003Business: 805.642.1591,ext. 119

Inland EmpireCommuter ServicesOffice location:7355 Magnolia Ave.Riverside, CA 92504Mailing address:PO Box 51540Riverside, CA 92517-2540Business: 1.866.IECS4HELP(1.866.432.7443)

Commuter Infomation1.800.COMMUTE (266.6883)commutesmart.info

HWDS1603-10/08

 

Photo of Metro rider above,©Farmers Ins. Group/Filet

EVENTSOrange County ETC Network Meeting andBreakfast: Developing Your Green BusinessStrategy-Rideshare Week Wrap-Up andTelecommute Presentation at Original Mike's inSanta Ana is Dec. 9, 8:30 - 11:30 a.m. Fordetails, contact Judy Leon at OCTA at714.560.5358, jleon@octa.net

Free Rides on Metro and OCTA—Rides onMetro Rail and buses will be free Christmas Eve,Dec. 24, from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. (Dec. 25), andNew Year’s Eve, Dec. 31 from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m.(Jan. 1); Orange County TransportationAuthority (OCTA) will also offer free rides NewYear's Eve (contact OCTA for specific hours). Fordetails, call 1.800.COMMUTE

Festival of Lights & Shopping—RiversideTransit Agency express bus to Festival of Lightsruns Dec. 6, 13 and 20 for $4 round-trip, and afree trolley to area shopping centers runs Dec.13-14 and Dec. 20-21. Call 1.800.800.7821 orgo to riversidetransit.com

Toy and canned food "drives" continue thismonth, including:

● Antelope Valley "Stuff a Bus,"661.945.9445, avta.com

● Metrolink Toy Express, 1.800.371.LINK,metrolinktrains.com

● Norwalk Transit "Stuff a Bus," 562.929.5550,norwalk.ca.us

● Omnitrans Spark of Love Toy Drive,omnitrans.org

● Santa Monica Big Blue Bus food drive,310.451.5444, bigbluebus.com

NETWORK MEETINGSCoachella Valley ETC Networkmeets bi-annually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP.

Glendale TMA meets regularly;call 818.543.7641.

Orange County Network meets regularly;call 714.560.5358 or emailcommuterconnection@octa.net

Pasadena TMA meets Dec. 9; call John Mirandaat 818.354.7433.

Riverside County ETC Network meetstri-annually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP.

San Bernardino County ETC Network meetstri-annually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP.

Santa Monica ETC Network meets regularly;call 310.458.8956.

South Bay/Westside TMA meets monthly;contact Christina Corrales at 310.642.0066, emailchristina_corrales@equityoffice.com

Torrance Transportation Network meetsregularly; call Kim Fuentes at 310.784.7902.

Warner Center TMO meets monthly;call 818.716.5520. 

TRAINING

• Metro Commute Services requires employersto attend a briefing 60 days prior to their AQMDsubmittal date. Upcoming briefings are Jan. 14,9:30-11:30 a.m. and Feb. 11, 1-3 p.m. For moreinformation or to reserve a space, emailblanchardd@metro.net

• South Coast Air Quality ManagementDistrict (AQMD) offers one-day ETC training for$61.70. Upcoming session is Dec. 4 at AQMDoffices in Diamond Bar. Contact Lisa VanSornsen, vansornsen@aqmd.gov or the AQMD'straining program at etctraining@aqmd.gov orvisit AQMD aqmd.gov