Posted 9/3/2021
Upcoming Rideshare Drop-In Meetings
Thursday, September 9 from 10-10:30am
Zoom Info:
Topic: Ridesharing at Mason Q&A
Time: Sep 9, 2021 10:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://gmu.zoom.us/j/96147028780?pwd=T2tzamxUTExhZWJlU1JDb1hXMXI3dz09
Meeting ID: 961 4702 8780
Passcode: 049623
One tap mobile
+12678310333,,96147028780#,,,,*049623# US (Philadelphia)
+13017158592,,96147028780#,,,,*049623# US (Washington DC)
Tuesday, September 21 from 1:30-2pm
Zoom Info:
Topic: Ridesharing at Mason Q&A
Time: Sep 21, 2021 01:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://gmu.zoom.us/j/94821757542?pwd=SUlOc2k0RTZTUjZrYlFhdy94YkxzUT09
Meeting ID: 948 2175 7542
Passcode: 818759
One tap mobile
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+13017158592,,94821757542#,,,,*818759# US (Washington DC)
Posted 8/17/2021
Rideshare Drop-In meetings continue. Next session is Tuesday, August 31 from 1-1:30 (details below).
September Sessions (Zoom information coming soon)
- Thursday, September 9 from 10-10:30am
- Tuesday, September 21 from 1:30-2pm
Posted 8/14/2021
Join us for the next Rideshare Drop-In meeting on Tuesday, August 31 from 1-1:30pm
Parking and Transportation is continuing a series of informal drop-in sessions via Zoom to answer your carpool and vanpool questions. Learn about resources that are available in the region as well as Mason programs that support car and vanpooling.
Zoom Info:
Topic: Ridesharing at Mason Q&A
Time: Aug 31, 2021 01:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://gmu.zoom.us/j/96410470289?pwd=NXo3N1N0aE5mVG5WV1V1U1ZkdkpPdz09
Meeting ID: 964 1047 0289
Passcode: 800776
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,96410470289#,,,,*800776# US (Washington DC)
Posted 8/4/2021
Join us for our next Rideshare Drop-In meeting on Thursday, August 12 from 2-2:30pm
Thinking about a new way to get to campus? Consider Rideshare – carpooling or vanpooling. Parking and Transportation is holding informal drop-in sessions via Zoom to answer your carpool and vanpool questions. Learn about resources that are available in the region as well as Mason programs that support car and vanpooling.
Zoom Info:
Topic: Ridesharing at Mason Q&A
Time: Aug 12, 2021 02:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://gmu.zoom.us/j/91584123903?pwd=SElrVTBjbVZuUVBWYm1jQmVjS0xhdz09
Meeting ID: 915 8412 3903
Passcode: 437182
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,91584123903#,,,,*437182# US (Washington DC)
+12678310333,,91584123903#,,,,*437182# US (Philadelphia)
Posted 7/27/2021
A rideshare drop-in event was held on Zoom today, July 27. Mason Parking and Transportation, in collaboration with Commute 66, OmniRide, and Transform 66 were online to answer questions and share information about ridesharing in the region. If you couldn’t join us, below are some brief PowerPoint presentations for your review. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at transpo@gmu.edu or call us at 3-2828.
- Mason Parking and Transportation
- Commute 66 (Arlington)
- OmniRide (Prince William)
- Transform 66 (Outside the Beltway)
Posted 7/27/2021
Check out this video: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/mwR3VZr2AbCgmNCRdazeAc?
Mason and Commute66, and Vanpool Connect have teamed together to make sure you are ready for your commute for the fall semester. For many, it may be the first time commuting in over a year and your first thoughts may go to driving by yourself. There are many reasons to consider other modes, especially a ridesharing choice one which we will continue to tell you about leading up to the fall semester.
But why is now the best time for you to consider and choose how you will get to campus? While not a complicated process, especially when working with Mason’s Transportation Services, getting your commute sorted out now will ensure you are choosing the commute option that will optimize your time, save you money, and lower your stress. Let’s be honest, we all know that life can get away from us and you may have more pressing things to attend to, but before you know it, you will be heading back into the office and may be stuck with the expensive, stressful, and pollute and traffic heavy mode: driving alone.
Requesting a Personalized Commute Planner will provide you with which commute options are available to you and how you can utilize your benefits and Mason’s programs to formalize your commute. For instance, Mason’s Transportation team can assist in finding an appropriate carpool option while Commute66 can take one finding you a vanpool route. Plus, it’s always a good idea to have more than one way to get to and from work.
Reach out to Katie Thompson, your Commute66 rep, and you can have your commute figured out with little to no effort on your part.
Posted 6/29/2021
Mason Parking and Transportation is teaming up with Commute66
to share information on rideshare, i.e. carpool and vanpool, as commute options. Whether you are on campus or returning to campus, see if rideshare is an option for you!
From Commute 66:
Why Rideshare?
When choosing how you will return to campus, ridesharing is a reliable option that can help save you money. There are many other benefits you can experience when you choose to vanpool or carpool instead of driving alone.
Saving money
When choosing to vanpool or carpool you share the ride – and the cost – with the people you ride with, helping you to save money. At a 12-mile round trip commute you can save $1,000 a year. For those who are vanpooling, the recommended minimum 15-mile one-way commute will save you approximately $2,500. These savings come from a comparison of costs with vanpooling and costs of owning and operating a vehicle (fuel, maintenance, and depreciation).
It is possible to find additional savings through your car insurance. Some insurance companies offer reduced rates when you choose not to use your car to commute. Check with your insurance company to see if this is a possibility for you.
Additionally, full-time faculty and staff members at Mason can take advantage of complimentary parking permits for vanpools and students, faculty and staff can receive rebates for certain carpool programs to lower your parking budget and time spent looking for parking.
Saving time
When you choose to carpool or vanpool instead of driving alone, you are reducing traffic congestion, saving time not only for yourself but for those sharing the road with you. Several “casual carpooling studies” have reported that the time and money people save plus the convenience of ridesharing are the main reasons they chose to carpool or vanpool to work. As vanpools and carpools can use HOV lanes, they are able to save an average of 19 minutes for each one-way trip according to 2019 State of the Commute Report on the DC Metro Region.
Lowering carbon footprint
When you choose to carpool or vanpool, you split the fuel consumed thus reducing each person’s total consumption. Numerous studies have found that individual and community greenhouse gas emissions are reduced when people choose to rideshare:
- “individually carpoolers reduce personal commuter GHG emission by approximately 4% to 5% after joining an employer trip reduction program.” **
- “[approximately] 7.2 million tons of GHG emissions annually in the US, if one additional passenger were added to every 100 vehicles.” **
- “68 million tons of GHG emissions [reduced] in the US if one passenger were added to every 10 vehicles).” **
**Source: https://escholarship.org/content/qt7jx6z631/qt7jx6z631.pdf?t=ph07of
Which option is best for you?
But which one is the right option for you? The biggest difference in determining if you should choose to vanpool or carpool comes down to the distance of your commute. If your commute is 15 miles or more one-way, vanpooling is more viable option for you. That means if your commute one-way is less than 15 miles you should consider carpooling. And the only difference in benefit usage between carpooling and vanpooling is that full-time faculty and staff only can use Mason’s Commuter Choice Subsidy of up to $270/month on vanpooling only.
Besides these differences, vanpooling and carpooling both help to lower your carbon footprint and maintain a better work-life fit while saving you time and money.
Posted 5/28/2021
Whether it’s carpool or vanpool, see if ridesharing is a good commuting option for you using the infographic below. For more information on carpool and vanpool please visit Carpooling and Vanpooling
Sharing the ride reduces your commuting costs, the amount of time you have to be in the driver’s seat, and greenhouse gas emissions. It’s a win-win-win for everyone.
Questions? Reach out to us at transpo@gmu.edu.
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