The Issues:
- Traffic congestion in the Washington, D.C. region is among the worst in the United States and is the number one issue affecting the lives of adults in the Washington region. (Source: 1999 Survey of 1,000 adults, Potomac Inc. Survey Research)
Road funding and construction cannot keep pace with traffic volume. Even with the area's road improvements (I-95 Springfield Interchange, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Project, etc.) traffic is increasing four times faster than road system capacity in the Washington region (Source: National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board). Building more roads alone cannot solve traffic congestion problems.- More commuters are driving alone. They take more daily trips per person, and they're traveling farther.
- Increasing truck traffic is competing for the same roads, threatening commerce.
- Sprawling development is making commutes even less efficient.
- Job growth is occurring increasingly farther from residential neighborhoods. Restricted mobility for workers who cannot drive to jobs reduces the business labor pool and limits employability of thousands of workers.
- Traffic congestion can have serious impacts on business, including:
- Workforce access
- Recruitment
- Morale
- Productivity
- Goods movement
The solution to the region's traffic congestion issues is much easier than you might think: changing commuting habits to better use commuting alternatives for driving alone.
As an employer, you have a unique opportunity to significantly influence your employees' commuting habits by offering commuter benefits, such as carpooling, vanpooling, teleworking, alternative work schedules, bicycling, and walking.
Through offering commuter benefits as part of your benefits package, your business can enjoy happier, more productive workers, while also doing its part to help the larger community. Reduced traffic helps the economy and improves the quality of life for everyone.
Listed below are just a few of the commuter benefits you can offer to help improve traffic congestion:
- Design a formal or informal telework program. Employees can avoid long, stressful commutes by working from the comfort of their home or from a nearby telework center.
- Provide information and ridematching services for carpools and vanpools. More people sharing rides equals less cars on the road.
- Provide tax-free transit benefits to help your employees cover the cost of commuting on Metrorail, VRE, MARC, local and commuter buses, and vanpools. Tax-free transit benefits save you money in payroll taxes, and encourage your employees to use forms of transportation other than driving alone.