By all accounts, 2019 was a successful year for Commuteride. Not only did we execute all our services and exceed our goals, we stayed under budget and maintained a commitment to the high quality of life in the Treasure Valley. We faced many challenges in 2019, including a vacant job position, an outdated rideshare platform, a limited understanding of how Transportation Demand Management (TDM) strategies can benefit the region, and a growing concern regarding financial sustainability.
The Commuteride team tackled those challenges and came out ahead. We added a new team member – Michelle Tang – to manage our Club Red vanpool and park/ride programs. We also updated our rideshare platform with minimal disruption to existing commuters. This new platform, Share the Ride Idaho, enabled us to help our partners in more creative ways, including a "Rideboard" for one-time trip matching. We are proud to share that Bogus Basin Mountain recreation Area is already taking advantage of the Rideboard to promote their new carpool program. We also “spread the word” on TDM benefits by creating the “Let’s Talk Transportation” educational series. By partnering with other organizations we were able to increase the knowledge base in the valley. Finally, we are proud that our initiative to start reporting ridership data to the National Transit Database helped increase the federal dollars coming to this region by more than $1.5M.
Although just a few months into the new year, Commuteride has already strengthened its vanpool program, improved the park and ride program with improved data, marketing, and partnerships, initiated a study to determine future park and ride needs and opportunities, and began work on a pilot schoolpool program. I look forward to 2020 and leading Commuteride up and over new challenges by keeping on mission, focusing on quality of life, and collaborating with our partners.
Please take a moment to browse our accomplishments in the 2019 Annual Report. It is an honor to work with commuters, employers, and our community on smart commute options.