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If you pay for a transit pass to get to work or pay for onsite parking, you may already be taking advantage of a section in the tax code that allows for payment with pre-tax dollars.  Currently employers can subsidize up to $120 per month on transit and up to $230 per month on parking. 

If that imbalance seems odd to you your not alone, at least not on this blog.  We were heartened to hear that the incoming administration has stated their intent to equalize these benefits and create additional incentives to get people out of their cars. 

Does your employer cover the cost of onsite parking?  How about transit?  If you are a non-parker do you receive any additional compensation for choosing not to take up a space?  With onsite parking potentially adding almost $3,000 in tax free comp it's not a trivial issue. 

I had the pleasure of attending the California Clean Tech Open awards gala last night at the Center for the Performing Arts in San Francisco.  It is billed as the 'Oscars of Clean Tech' and we were thrilled to make the podium, winning the runner-up award in the highly competitive transportation category. 

There were some great companies involved in the competition and it was fun to meet and mingle with the other contestants.  Check here to learn more about the Clean Tech Open.  If you are running or thinking about starting a company that fits one of their five categories give strong consideration to entering the competition in 2009.  The support and resources they provide to finalist companies is phenomenal.  Last night at the awards event they announced the launch of the Rocky Mountain Clean Tech Open in 2009.  Hopefully a Northwest version will be in the works before too long.   

Our friends at the Sightline Institute posted some analysis today on the number of work hours required to fill a 15 gallon gas tank.  Take a look. 

 

Over the past week, average gas prices dropped below $3 in several midwest states.  Gas is now below $3.50 per gallon (on average) everywhere but Alaska and Hawaii.  The Associated Press published an article on the likely trend for gas prices in the months to come.  Below is the trailing 12 month price average from AAA. 

While prices should stay low for the next couple of months they are likely to trend back up in the Spring.  Coupled with a period of general belt-tightening due to the broader slowdown in the economy, demand is likely to stay high for cost effective alternatives to driving alone.  Here is the 12 month moving average for vehicle miles traveled going back to 1983. 

There have been a slew of recent articles about the dilemma facing public transit agencies.  With ridership increasing in lock step with fuel costs many agencies face record ridership and record deficits. 

The New York Times has an article today about Rochester NY and how the Rochester Regional Transit Service is breaking a nationwide trend and lowering bus fares.  Is there a blueprint here for other cities?  Not exactly.  The details of Rochester's transit turnaround make comparisons to larger cities misleading. 

The article explains that Rochester Transit received over 50% of their $62m budget in state aid.  Rochester runs just 265 buses compared to over 4,500 along with 6,200 subway cars in New York.  Rochester Transit also receives $10m per year from the local school district which provides city buses passes to all it's students at a rate of more than 2x the published fare. 

Transit agencies tend to cover about 25-40% of their operating costs with fares.  Seems Rochester is pretty typical after all. 

We were excited to get the news this week that Goose has been selected as a finalist in the California Clean Tech Open in the transportation category.  Check the Clean Tech Open site to learn more and to see a complete list of selected companies. 

In the “no commute at all” category, the New York Times has a good high-level survey of teleconferencing technology today.  Predictably, the cost of high-end systems from Cisco and HP is dropping quickly and lower cost solutions like WebEx are becoming ubiquitous.  The article quotes a customer service trainer at Subaru who estimates she now reaches 2,500 people every six months instead of 220 at a cost of $.75 per person instead of $300.

It’s a bit facetious to state, but ‘not going’ is by far the cheapest form of transportation and it’s an increasingly valid choice for a lot of business travel, whether by air or road. 

As employee commuting programs have begun to gain the attention of business leaders and others concerned with environmental sustainability and greenhouse gas emissions, a few companies rise above the pack for their programs.

Genentech's gRide program has been cited as a best-in-class program by organizations such as the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, ACTERA, and the International Associating of Business Communications.  We at Goose Networks wish to congratulate our partners at Genentech for their leadership in addressing transportation as an important part of corporate social responsibility.