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Vanpool
programs are used widely throughout the country as an
alternative means of transportation for the single occupancy
vehicle commuter. Vanpools simply can be a large carpool,
carrying as many as 15 commuters on each trip. Vanpools
can help an area reduce the amount of cars on the road each day,
which leads to a reduction of harmful automobile emissions. In
1999, residents of metro Atlanta drove more miles each day (35)
than did residents of any of the 30 largest metro areas.
Vanpools work well as a transportation alternative and
complement existing public commute costs in areas that may not
offer an alternative form of public transportation. What
is a Vanpool?
A vanpool is a group of 7-15 people who have a similar commute
pattern and agrees to commute together in a van and share the
costs of the commute. Vanpools are a flexible form of
transit, allowing the occupants to determine whether to pick up
participants from a park-and-ride lot, from residences, a common
meeting point or a combination. Vanpools are typically
organized with a volunteer driver operating the vanpool and
receiving a free commute. The fares paid by the riders normally
covers depreciation of the van, vehicle maintenance and
insurance. Generally, a driver make s a month-to-month
commitment to participate in the vanpool. What
is the GRTA Plan?
GRTA proposes to purchase 40 vans to begin initial operations in
the summer of 2002, leading to 350 vanpools in metro Atlanta by
2005 and 500 vanpools by 2010, which would provide 10 vanpools
per 100,000 persons. The vanpool program, using 15
passenger vans will cut a half ton of nitrogen oxides, a key
element in forming smog, from metro Atlanta's air pollution. These
vanpools would operate in addition to the 122 vanpools currently
in operation in metro Atlanta. The GRTA vanpool program
would not compete with private vendors but would, in fact,
provide incentives and other enhancements to help expand the
private fleets. The GRTA Vanpool Program Partnership will
establish a new lower priced regional vanpool service while
enhancing the current collaboration of public agencies, private
employers and the private, for-profit vanpool provider. Who
will Benefit from the Vanpool Program?
The distance between the region's job centers and affordable
housing for people who work in these centers contributes to the
high level of driving in the region. Vanpools can provide
commuters a transportation alternative and can help employers
recruit workers from a wider geographic area. The Clean
Air Campaign, a non-profit organization in Georgia that targets
improving air quality and reducing vehicle traffic in metro
Atlanta, will help market the vanpool program and work with
transportation management associations in the region to provide
employer outreach for the vanpool program. The GRTA
program will also make a special effort to provide vanpools to
transit-underserved communities. For
more information, please send
email, or call 404-463-3053.
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