Airport Jobs e-UDPATE: Feature story

AIRPORT JOBS e-UPDATE:
News for employers | November 12, 2004

VanShare makes it easy for employees to get to work on time

Many airport employers – especially those businesses with extended hours or round-the-clock schedules – face a real challenge finding employees who can reliably and easily get to work. Bus schedules often favor the 9-5 workday schedule, so workers without reliable personal transportation can find it hard to get to work on time.

Luckily, Metro has a low-cost commuting option to solve this very problem: VanShare. VanShare is great for people who want to take the bus, Sounder Train, or ferries, but don’t have realistic transfer options (or don’t want to have to worry about transfers). It costs only $50 per month for a van plus fuel.

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VanShare complements the transit system by providing a van for groups of three or more commuters to use to connect to buses, trains, or ferries, to either complete or begin a commute. Employees just park the van at a transportation hub or terminal and the van is there ready to use to bridge the gap in their commute trip.

"VanShare has made it possible for me and others in my group to ride [the] Sounder [train] and leave our cars at home. It's the way to go!" says Wesley H., who commutes from Puyallup to the SODO area in south Seattle.

How VanShare Works
To finish a commute: King County Metro places a van at a destination, such as a Transit Center, Park & Ride, Sounder Station, or Ferry Terminal. Once those who share the van arrive, someone in the group drives the van to the destination. No more worries about timely layovers, or whether the bus is running late. Not everybody that shares the van must have the exact same destination, as long as they are all in the same general area.

After work, the driver picks up all of the people sharing the van and travels back to the common destination (bus/train station or ferry terminal). The van is left in the designated parking stall, ready and waiting for the next day’s commute.

To start a commute: This option works well where there is little local transit service. An employee parks the van at their home, and picks up their fellow commuters on the way to the Transit Center, Park & Ride, Sounder station, or ferry terminal. After work, everybody meets at the van and heads back home.

Getting Started
Employers who want to help their employees take advantage of VanShare can:

Have HR or administrative staff coordinate transportation needs with shift information.
Post flyers or make brochures available in a breakroom. Email Jim Greenwald at Metro (jim.greenwald@metrokc.gov) for information or brochures. (See a sample brochure here.)
Contact Metro for a presentation to their employees.

It's also easy for employees to set up VanShare – Metro will even take care of finding people with which to share the van. Just call 1-888-814-1300 or visit www.rideshareonline.com.

For general information about VanShare, email vanshare@metrokc.gov, call 206-625-4500, or go online to: http://transit.metrokc.gov/tops/van-car/vanshare.html.

About Airport Jobs
Airport Jobs is a complete job listing and employment information center serving over 100 Sea-Tac Airport and related employers. We have the tools to help you handle your company’s recruitment, selection, training and other human resource needs. Best of all, most of our services are free.

Airport Jobs staff are ready to help your organization with current and future recruitment needs. Contact Ruth Westerbeck (phone: 206-835-7506, email: westerbeck.r@portseattle.org) to take advantage of Airport Jobs Employer Services. Learn more by visiting www.airportjobs.org.