COVERING TAMPA BAY AND ITS WATERSHED |
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More Commuters Considering Choices
Auto emissions have become a major source of pollution in Tampa Bay, and commuting can be expensive, time-consuming and stressful. Still, the vast majority of Tampa Bay residents drive to work alone, spending an average of nearly $4,000 a year and 52 minutes a day crawling along in bumper-to-bumper traffic at a not-so-speedy average of 35 miles per hour. Alternatives aren't as effortless as just getting in your car every morning, but more and more workers - and employers - are signing up for options like telework programs and vanpools, along with electronic "match-making" for potential carpoolers. The newest initiative is Telework Tampa Bay, a program that focuses on working with employers to explain the benefits of teleworking. "The biggest problem is getting top managers on board, but once we address their fears, we get a very positive response," says Jessica White, a senior planner with the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council and Telework Tampa Bay coordinator. The primary concern, she adds, is how do managers know an employee really is working if they're at home instead of in an office? "We explain the principles of management by objective, and then point out that there's no way a manager can know that someone isn't sitting in their cubicle surfing the net all day if they're not managing by objective." A federal grant covers the cost for ongoing workshops held in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties as well as personalized assistance for companies setting up telework programs. Pilot programs are underway at the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County, Tampa Bay Estuary Program, Stirling Research Group, Tampa General Hospital and the TBPRC, with intensive follow-up surveys planned to address specific concerns from both employees and managers. Another growing effort to get single-occupancy vehicles off the road is vanpools, with nearly 20 vehicles taking up to eight people each to and from work each day. Subsidized through HARTline for vanpools that begin or end in Hillsborough County, riders split a $415 monthly charge for the van (which includes insurance and maintenance) plus the cost of gas and tolls, if any. The average cost for a vanpool rider works out to be about $125 per month, much less than the cost of driving if you count wear and tear on your auto, notes David Bannar, Tampa Bay project manager for VPSI, a national vanpool service. Vanpooling is similar to recycling - only better, adds Jack Merriam, an environmental manager for Hillsborough County who began vanpooling seven years ago. "It takes a little extra time, but you get the environmental advantages plus substantial economic advantages for yourself," he said. Vanpools most often find riders through an electronic match-making service offered through Bay Area Commuter Services -which also provides a high-tech twist for old-fashioned carpoolers that brings riders and drivers together based on their home and work locations and work schedules. BACS also offers the Guaranteed Ride Home program, which provides up to eight free taxi rides per year in emergencies for commuters who register in advance and use any commute option at least two days a week. Learn more about commuter choices by calling Bay Area Commuter Services or visit at www.tampabayrideshare.org. For information on Telework Tampa Bay, contact White at 727-570-5151, ext. 38 or visit www.teleworktampabay.org.
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© 2004 Bay Soundings
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Next time you're stuck in a typical Tampa Bay traffic jam, stop and consider the choices.
