With flu season already in full swing, experts are suggesting a possible "cure" to keep your business running smoothly in spite of employee absences, and it s one you may already have (or want to have) among your commute strategies: telework. Full story California Rideshare Week is Oct. 5-9 International Day of Climate Action is Oct. 24 More Events California Rideshare Week is Oct. 5-9, and it s not too late for you to be among the hundreds of employers that will participate. Here, we give you 10 last-minute ways to get involved: Full story How to get long-term results from your Rideshare Week efforts. Full story Can you get from Anaheim to downtown LA in 20 minutes?...rebates and incentives such as $2-a-day rewards, vanpool subsidies & more for your rideshare program "Hot" web sites combat global warming Southern California ACT is now on facebook And the rideshare award goes to... Get news geared to commuters that you can forward to employees or incorporate into your own rideshare newsletter.
With flu season already in full swing, experts are suggesting a possible "cure to keep your business running smoothly in spite of employee absences, and it s one you may already have (or want to have) among your commute strategies: telework. "Companies that have solid telework programs in place are in good shape," says Chuck Wilsker, president and CEO of The Telework Coalition in Washington, DC. Those that aren't prepared to have employees work offsite, he warns, may find operations at a standstill if the H1N1 flu threat escalates to the point of widespread absenteeism, building closures, or quarantines. "This is a really lousy economic time for businesses to have to go 'cold turkey' and not be able to carry on," he adds. Many employers have addressed the issue by recommending that employees stay home if they re experiencing flu-like symptoms, which, while sensible, has its limitations. "Social distancing to avoid the spread of illness is a great strategy, but in reality, employees will only stay home if they can," says Elham Shirazi, principal of eplanning. "If they fear falling behind at work, or they simply don t have the sick time to spare, they ll oftentimes drag themselves in to work, even if that means disguising their symptoms. That puts all your employees at risk." Even if you currently have a telework program in place, experts suggest that you review it to see if it can handle this particular threat of flu. Because H1N1 targets mostly young people, your telework policies may need to be tweaked to accommodate parents who need to stay home with a sick child. According to the Center for Disease Control, while adults are typically contagious 24 hours after a fever from flu goes away, children may be at risk to spread illness for a week postsymptom. "It can be a hardship on your employees that are parents if they need to stay home with a child but can t," adds Shirazi. "Allowing them to work at home even on a short-term basis can help bridge the gap." Is Your Company s Telework Policy Ready for Flu Season? Some things to consider: 1. If you don't have a telework program, is it possible to at least add it as an option on an "as-needed" basis only? 2. Are potential teleworkers and their managers trained on telework procedures and expectations...even if telework isn t currently offered? 3. Does your current policy allow employees to work at home only on scheduled days or is it flexible enough to accommodate someone who d need to be home several days? 4. What if employees go home or must stay home unexpectedly can they access work files remotely? 5. Are employees allowed to work at home less than a full eight-hour day (to balance time caring for a child with keeping up with work responsibilities)? For more information and a free copy of "Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to the 2009-2010 Influenza Season" and an associated tool kit, visit flu.gov
California Rideshare Week is Oct. 5-9, and it s not too late for you to be among the hundreds of employers that will participate. Here, we give you 10 last-minute ways to get involved: 1. Send an email. Let employees know about Rideshare Week and encourage them to carpool, vanpool, ride bus or rail, bike or walk to work. 2. Hang posters and distribute flyers. Your county rideshare agency offers campaign materials that you can download and print out (see inset box, right) or get creative and make your own. 3. Distribute pledge cards/entry forms in staff in-boxes, via email, or both. Pledge cards qualify your employees to win prizes, and all they need to do is fill them out and turn them in and then share the ride at least once during Rideshare Week. In Orange County, employees fill out entry forms that record how they traveled to work each day during Rideshare Week - the more days they share the ride, the higher value prize they can win. 4. Hold an extra prize drawing. If you can, before sending in pledge cards/entry forms to your county rideshare agency, let employees know they ll qualify for an extra prize drawing at the office. "When you have an in-house raffle, employees believe their chances are better to win and they're more likely to enter," says ETC Thomas Pellegrino with City of Hope. Prizes don t have to be costly: tshirts, mugs, $10 or $20 gift cards or lunch at a local restaurant can all be enough of a lure. 5. Greet employees as they arrive at the office. Offer bagels, donuts and coffee, along with your thanks to those who rideshare. 6. Throw an impromptu party. Granted, it's too late to pull together a rideshare fair with presentations, vendors, etc. but everybody loves a party, and they can be easy to plan. A few decorations and refreshments are often enough to get people to come. 7. Convince your CEO or upper management to rideshare on Monday of Rideshare Week to set a good example and kick off the event. Help & Promotional Materials for Rideshare Week Get information on Rideshare Week including posters, pledge cards and more that can be downloaded or emailed to you by contacting the rideshare agency in the county where your work site is located: Los Angeles County: metro.net/rideshareweek Orange County: octa.net/rsweek09 Riverside and San Bernardino Counties: Call 1.866.IECS4HELP to request campaign materials via email Ventura County: goventura.org, you can also get Twitter updates at twitter.com/vcapc 8. Decorate your workspace. If your corporate culture allows it, let your office or workspace look like New Orleans at Mardi Gras: that is, put up enough decorations to draw attention to the campaign from anyone who passes by. 9.0ffer a special perk for your ridesharers during the week. For example, bring in a team to wash their cars and vanpools during lunchtime... or even get rideshare staff and or management to take on the job to show how much you appreciate your ridesharers. 10. Distribute CommuteSmart News newsletter for employees. This month's issue includes a story about Rideshare Week. Just click on the button on the home page of this newsletter (lower right corner) to get a pdf that can be emailed or printed out and posted or handed out.
Can you get from Anaheim to downtown LA in 20 minutes? The drive often takes an hour or more, but with plans continuing to move ahead for a high-speed rail line a faster trip between Los Angeles and Orange counties could soon be a reality. The rail project is one of 11 federally designated high-speed rail corridors in the nation eligible for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It would ultimately connect Union Station with an Orange County transportation hub adjacent to Angel Stadium, the Honda Center, Disneyland and other popular destinations. Money is expected to be awarded by the end of the year. For more information, go to cahighspeedrail.ca.gov "Hot" web sites combat global warming There are a lot of web sites that offer advice for ways you can reduce your carbon footprint. Here are two worth checking out: earth911.com It aims to "make every day earth day," and offers tips on recycling as well as an entire section on environmentally-friendly transportation options. epa.gov/pick5 This interactive site lists 10 changes you can make to go green and encourages you to pick five that you ll start on in the coming year. Among the choices: "Use public transportation, carpool, walk, or bike whenever possible to reduce air pollution and save on fuel costs." Southern California ACT is now on facebook Get the latest rideshare information and post your own news by joining the Association for Commuter Transportation group at facebook.com. To join, go to facebook.com, search "ACT Southern California Chapter," and then click to join. (If you re not already a facebook member, you ll need to sign up, which is free.) And the rideshare award goes to... Step aside Emmys and Oscars rideshare award season is underway, and several local programs have earned well-deserved pats on the back. Among them: Inland Empire Commuter Services' 2008 Rideshare Week campaign took home a "Creative Excellence" award at the Association for Commuter Transportation national conference. The campaign played off the popular TV show The Amazing Race by showing commuters "teaming up" to rideshare and "take the rideshare challenge." Metro won a Clean Air Award from the South Coast Air Quality Management District for its Planmaker CD, which puts important rideshare forms, programs, services, marketing literature and more all in one place. For details or a copy of the CD, contact blanchardd@metro.net Omnitrans received an award from the American Public Transportation Association for its recent bus and billboard campaign that featured catchy pro-transit slogans such as "To us, 'cheap and easy' is a compliment."
With the promise of prizes as well as parties, fairs and other activities, you ll often see more people ridesharing during Rideshare Week (which this year is Oct. 5-9). How can you keep the momentum going? Here, the marketing experts at CommuteSmart.info offer some simple steps: Step 1: During Rideshare Week, take lots of photos and videos at your rideshare fair, when giving out awards, during parties, as ridesharers arrive at the office, etc. Even if you re not sure what you ll use them for, to paraphrase an old camera company slogan, "you only have the moment once." Step 2: Before you send off pledge cards/entry forms to your county rideshare agency, peruse them to identify people ridesharing for the first time or who aren t among your regular program participants. They may have tried ridesharing during Rideshare Week so they could win prizes, but with the right encouragement, they could be willing to continue. Step 3: Talk one-on-one to any new ridesharers. "Do an interview to find out what their experience was," advises Metro s Donna Blanchard. "What was the motivating factor that got them to try it? What mode did they choose? How did it compare to driving alone? If it was a good experience, you can tell them about any benefits your company offers to ridesharers so they ll continue. If they encountered any problems, you can work with them to find solutions." Step 4: Feature Rideshare Week participants in post-event coverage. Remember those photos and videos you took in Step 1? Now is the time to make use of them. Include plenty of photos in your newsletter, create a bulletin board or post videos on your internal web site. Include any "success stories" such as showcasing the names and photos of anyone who won prizes (whether as part of an in-house raffle or the county-wide prize drawings) as well as write-ups of the experiences of those who tried ridesharing and liked it. Step 5: Evaluate your Rideshare Week campaign.while it s still fresh in your memory, take a look at what worked and what didn t. Did people show up for your events? Did you collect more or fewer pledge cards than in previous years? Did you reach new ridesharers or were most of your participants existing ridesharers? Did those who currently rideshare feel like they gained something from the event? Adds Blanchard, "Talk to employees to get their opinion on the campaign. It will not only help you improve your Rideshare Week efforts next year, but this sort of feedback can help you shape the program you offer year-round." For more information about Rideshare Week, go to CommuteSmart.info
EVENTS California Rideshare Week is Oct. 5-9; details are at CommuteSmart.info International Day of Climate Action is Oct. 24 and is sponsored by the environmental group 350.org; for details on how to participate, go to 350.org/oct24 California Transit Association 44th Annual Fall Conference & Expo is Oct. 27-29 at the Pasadena Convention Center, caltransit.org Metro marketing workshop is Oct. 27 at Metro offices in downtown Los Angeles; this is a marketing certificate class, to RSVP, email blanchardd@metro.net NETWORK MEETINGS Coachella Valley ETC Network meets biannually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP. Glendale TMA meets regularly; call 818.543.7641. Orange County Network meets regularly; call 714.560.5358 or email commuterconnection@octa.net Pasadena TMA meets every other month; call John Miranda at 818.354.7433. Riverside County ETC Network meets tri-annually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP. NETWORK MEETINGS (cont'd) San Bernardino County ETC Network meets tri-annually; call 1.866.IECS4HELP. Santa Monica ETC Network meets regularly; call 310.458.8956. South Bay/Westside TMA meets monthly; contact Christina Corrales at 310.642.0066, email christina_corrales@equityoffice.com Torrance Transportation Network meets regularly; call Kim Fuentes at 310.784.7902. Warner Center TMO meets monthly; call 818.716.5520. TRAINING Metro Commute Services requires employers to attend a briefing 60 days prior to their AQMD submittal date. Upcoming briefings are Nov. 4 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. and Dec. 9 from 1-3 p.m. For more information or to reserve a space, email blanchardd@metro.net South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) offers one-day ETC training for $154.81. Upcoming sessions are Oct. 7, Nov. 18 and Dec. 3 at AQMD offices in Diamond Bar; Oct. 21 in Riverside; Oct. 29 in Burbank and Nov. 5 in Orange. Contact the AQMD's training program at etctraining@aqmd.gov or visit the AQMD at aqmd.gov COMMUTESMART NEWS Editor/Writer: Jill Smolinski Art Director: Harlan West For subscription information or to change your COMMUTESMART NEWS e-mail address, contact your representative at the rideshare office nearest you. Metro Commute Services One Gateway Plaza MS 99-19-05 Los Angeles, CA 90012-2952 Business: 213.922.2811 OCTA s Commuter Solutions 550 S. Main St., Orange, CA 92868 Mailing address: PO Box 14184 Orange, CA 92863 Business: 714.560.5358 Ventura County Transportation Commission 950 County Square Dr., Ste. 207, Ventura, CA 93003 Business: 805.642.1591, ext. 119 Inland Empire Commuter Services Office location: 7355 Magnolia Ave. Riverside, CA 92504 Mailing address: PO Box 51540 Riverside, CA 92517-2540 Business: 1.866.IECS4HELP (1.866.432.7443) Commuter Information 1.800.COMMUTE (266.6883) commutesmart.info HWDS1630-9/09