Looking for a great perk for both employees and your organization? METRO Star Vanpool is a rideshare service that offers a flexible and reliable ride to work. Benefits include:
Our successful vanpool program has been nationally recognized for its outstanding public-private partnership, earning the 2024 Association for Commuter Transportation (ACT) National Award.
The 1998 amendment to the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) created financial incentives related to commuter benefits for employers and employees. Pick one incentive or a combination, up to a limit of $315 per employee per month. Be sure to contact an attorney or accountant for specific tax guidance.
Your company covers employee transportation costs when they commute via mass transit (bus or vanpool). Employees don't pay taxes on the value of this benefit.
Your company shares transit commuting costs with employees and everyone can receive valuable tax savings. Employers can provide a portion of the cost of taking transit or vanpooling as a tax-free benefit and allow the employee to exchange taxable salary for a tax-free bus or vanpool benefit.
It's when you offer employees the option to “cash out” of their existing parking space. In other words, you can offer your employees their parking space cost in the form of taxable salary or tax-free transportation benefits.
No. When employees exchange taxable salary for a tax-free bus or vanpool benefit, the amount exchanged isn't subject to payroll taxes. Employees save money because this reduces their amount of taxable income.
Our team analyzes your firm’s current transportation situation through zip code density maps and employee transportation surveys. Based on the data, we then match employees to new or existing vanpool routes, conduct transportation workshops and fairs and offer discounts to qualified riders. Email us at Star@RideMETRO.org or engage with us in any of the following ways:
Schedule 15 minutes with us so we can learn about your organization's commute needs.
Submit a brief form with your contact information and how we can help.
Subscribe for free to our monthly Vanpool Vibe e-newsletter.
Incentivizing your workforce to commute together offers a variety of benefits for both employees and your company, according to data from Enterprise and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
| Number of Employees | Parking Spots Saved | Employee Savings | Carbon Emissions Reduced |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | 41 | $454,422 per year | 736,567 lbs. per year |
| 750 | 62 | $681,633 per year | 1,113,834 lbs. per year |
| 1,000 | 83 | $908,845 per year | 1,491,100 lbs. per year |
| 1,500 | 125 | $1,363,267 per year | 2,245,633 lbs. per year |
| 2,000 | 167 | $1,817,690 per year | 3,000,166 lbs. per year |
| 2,500 | 209 | $2,272,112 per year | 3,754,699 lbs. per year |
| 3,000 | 251 | $2,726,535 per year | 4,509,231 lbs. per year |
| 4,000 | 335 | $3,635,380 per year | 6,018,297 lbs. per year |
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