Dump the Pump. Ride Transit!
Posted on by Isabelle Brown
There are so many reasons why companies should be incentivizing their employees to take transit:
- Meeting air quality mitigation requirements or other environmental ordinances such as Southern California’s Rule 2202 requirements
- Making the commute to your workplace less stressful
- Saving both the organization and employees money
- Gaining recognition with national agencies such as Best Workplace for Commuters
For individuals, even if your workplace doesn’t have a commute program like ours to incentivize people to try alternate forms of commuting, now is the perfect time to try public transit on Friday, June 17th, National Dump the Pump Day!
How Do I Start?
It’s easy to say, “Dump the pump!” but in reality, a lot goes into changing your lifestyle and commute mode. Here are the steps to figuring out if you can realistically dump the pump and switch to public transportation:
- Look into your local area’s public transit agency.
- Search for a public transit trip planner. If your starting point and destination give you a realistic and manageable commute trip, then you’re off to a great start!
- On your transit agency’s website, plan your first commute by looking up the bus schedules. Or, try the transit app that functions in 175 metro areas around the US.
- Once you know the bus schedule you’ll be riding on, look into the fare purchasing process and costs. A one-day pass through Metro, for example, is $3.50, but prices vary based on transit agency. In our state of Connecticut, for example, bus fares are free until December 1.
With all of this done, you’ve done the basics of preparing to take your first public transportation commute trip. Once you take your first ride, you’re on the road to adjusting nicely to your new commute.
Why Dump the Pump?
It seems like National Dump the Pump Day this year has already been a topic widely discussed. With gas prices continuing to rise, reaching upwards of $6.97 in California, many people are looking for a new way to get from place to place.
With our commute being such a crucial and unavoidable part of our daily lives, it’s a very impactful place to start when thinking about reducing how much you’re spending on gas. Compare a Metro day-pass for $3.50. That’s half of a gallon of gas!
You deserve a commute that doesn’t leave you anxiously dreading your next trip to the gas station. When you depend solely on your single-occupancy vehicle, you feel trapped by gas prices. Taking a step and dumping the pump can be an extreme relief on your personal finances and stress levels.
Let’s Do It!
The average household spends 18 cents of every dollar on transportation, and 96% of this goes to buying, maintaining, and operating cars. This makes transportation the largest expenditure after housing.
You can see how much you could be saving on your commute by checking out our Commuter Savings Calculator.
Let’s lighten the load, even one day a week. Let’s Dump the Pump!