UNIQUE VOUCHER PROGRAMS TO INCREASE ALTERNATIVE COMMUTING

King County Metro Transit developed its Commuter Bonus voucher programs to provide employers and their employees with effective commute trip reduction tools. The program consists of Commuter Bonus, an incentive program to encourage employees to use transit agency services (bus, vanpool, and ferry); and a Commuter Bonus Plus incentive program to encourage employees to carpool, walk, bicycle, or telecommute. The Commuter Bonus voucher programs are unique for several reasons: the Commuter Bonus program is the only known transit voucher program administered entirely by a transit agency, and the Commuter Bonus Plus program is the only known carpool voucher program operated by a transit agency. In addition, program implementations required state-of-the-art anticounterfeiting strategies and the design and integration of off-the-shelf and proprietary software. A recent program evaluation indicated that the Commuter Bonus program generated 84,000 annual transit passenger trips and 440 vanpool riders who would otherwise not have used transit. Their use generated additional revenue for participating transit agencies. Commuter Bonus Plus resulted in a significant decrease in vehicle trips while generating revenue for local retailers. The evaluation demonstrated that a large-volume voucher program could be operated in-house from a single desktop computer.

• Record URL:
  • https://doi.org/10.3141/1669-17
• Summary URL:
  • http://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=UNIQUE+VOUCHER+PROGRAMS+TO+INCREASE+ALTERNATIVE+COMMUTING&author=G.+Allen&author=S.+Lipton&author=B.+Brooke&publication_year=1999
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/030907066X
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper appears in Transportation Research Record No. 1669, Public Transit Planning, Management and Performance, and Marketing and Fare Policy.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Allen, G Q
  • Lipton, S G
  • Brooke, B
• Publication Date: 1999

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 136-142
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 1669
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle commuting; Carpools; Commuters; Employers; Incentives; Public transit; Telecommuting; Travel demand management; Walking
• Uncontrolled Terms: Voucher programs
• Geographic Terms: Seattle (Washington)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Passenger Transportation; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Public Transportation; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00771135
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 030907066X
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Oct 11 1999 12:00AM