RideAmigos Partners with Inspira Financial to Revolutionize Commuter Benefits

The collaboration will enhance commuter benefits, helping employees save money while boosting office attendance, corporate sustainability, and employee engagement initiatives.

Santa Monica, California – July 16, 2024RideAmigos, a technology company that uses innovative, behavioral science-backed solutions to empower smarter transportation choices, has partnered with Inspira Financial, a leading provider of health, wealth, retirement, and benefits solutions, to personalize the commute experience. 

The collaboration will deliver a best-in-class, user-friendly commute management system that helps employees easily understand and manage their pre-tax dollars and employer subsidies available to pay for commute-related expenses. This partnership will also support improved employee engagement in commuter benefits and services offerings, ultimately supporting employers’ return to office, corporate sustainability, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals.

The daily commute plays an important role in employee experience and engagement, both of which directly impact workforce productivity and talent retention. Numerous surveys show that workers are looking for more flexibility, and a growing number of employees are willing to change jobs to prioritize a better commuting experience. A pre-pandemic study by staffing firm Robert Half found that nearly a quarter of employees have quit their jobs because of a stressful commute.

Employers can use the RideAmigos Commute Hub to simplify and personalize the commute experience for each employee, influence more sustainable choices using behavioral science, and manage complex workplace parking transportation programs more efficiently. The new collaboration with Inspira will ensure that pre-tax benefits are considered in every commute decision and included in the personalized recommendations that employees receive through the platform.  

“Working with RideAmigos will help Inspira draw attention to the long-existing employee pre-tax commuter benefit with an exciting, modern, and technology-enabled enhancement that has not existed or been introduced previously,” said Jeff Thoms, managing director, head of sales, at Inspira. “The RideAmigos Commute Hub platform and services will build awareness and breathe new life into the commuter benefit and shows our commitment to utilizing technology to make things easier.”

As more employers are offering programs and services to address the impact of commuting on overall corporate sustainability and their local communities, personalized commute management tools like the Commute Hub from RideAmigos can help employees understand the advantages of incorporating these benefit options into their daily mobility choices to create a triple win for themselves, the organization, and the planet. A study by Duke University’s Center for Advanced Hindsight found that personalized recommendations powered by RideAmigos technology drove a 5-10% shift from driving alone to more sustainable modes of transportation.

“Pre-tax benefits and mobility subsidies can be a powerful way for employers to support employees who commute,” said Soren Eilertsen, CEO at RideAmigos. “We’re excited to connect with Inspira to help Commute Hub customers to engage many more employees in these programs by connecting a mobility wallet to other key services and incentives within a personalized commuter experience.”

The collaboration reflects RideAmigos’ commitment to change the way the world commutes. By joining forces with Inspira, RideAmigos is well-positioned to deliver unparalleled value to organizations of any size and address the rapidly evolving needs of the modern workplace.

About RideAmigos

RideAmigos is a technology company on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our commuter engagement apps combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities, and government agencies use our solutions to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and offset hundreds of millions of pounds of CO2 emissions. Learn more at rideamigos.com.

About Inspira Financial
Inspira Financial provides health, wealth, retirement, and benefits solutions that strengthen and simplify the health and wealth journey. With more than 7 million clients holding over $62 billion in assets under custody, Inspira works with thousands of employers, plan sponsors, recordkeepers, TPAs, and other institutional partners — helping the people they care about plan, save, and invest for a brighter future. Inspira relentlessly pursues better outcomes for all with our automatic rollover services, health savings accounts, custody services, and more. Learn more at inspirafinancial.com.

Pave Commute named Best Emerging or Innovative Tech Solution in Employee Experience in the 2023 HR Tech Awards

SANTA MONICA, May 24, 2023 — Pave Commute by RideAmigos, the AI-powered benefit app for commuters, has been named by the 2023 HR Tech Awards as “Best Innovative or Emerging Tech Solution” for Employee Experience. This award recognizes Pave Commute as one of the HR technology industry’s most innovative solutions in its category, being selected after rigorous judging by a panel of independent practitioners, consultants, and industry educators. 

Each year, the HR Tech Awards program presented by Lighthouse Research & Advisory, provides peer-reviewed feedback and inputs on technologies purpose-built to serve employers and the workforce. According to Lighthouse Research & Advisory data, HR Tech Awards winners represent about 1% of the more than 5,000 solution providers across the HR technology landscape. Each of the tools is being used by employers right now to help them hire, develop, and retain their people, and the technologies are amazing in their ability to support intelligent decisions, personalized actions, and more. 

Commenting on why the Pave Commute program stands out as an innovative solution for employee experience, judges pointed to the way it helps employees align their personal values with those of their organization. 

“This turnkey program uses behavioral science and AI to provide personalized commute recommendations, gamification, and group-based ride-sharing, resulting in a more sustainable and engaging employee experience,” said George Rogers, Chief Culture Officer at Lighthouse Research and Advisory about Pave Commute. “With robust reporting, companies can easily track the impact of their transportation benefits program. Pave Commute is leading the movement towards smarter, more sustainable commuting.”

“The employers we work with are excited to be able to provide a benefit that empowers people to align their commute choices with their values,” said Corey Tucker, Head of Innovation at RideAmigos, the team behind Pave Commute. “Pave Commute is designed to make smart choices easier and more fun by creating a personalized experience based on behavioral science.”  

“Our team is passionate about making commuting less stressful and more sustainable for everyone, no matter the size of their company,” said Kathryn Hagerman Medina, RideAmigos Head of Customer Success and Marketing. “It’s a huge honor to be recognized by the HR Tech Awards and we’re thrilled to see more HR leaders focusing on improving the commuter experience.” 

The Pave Commute app is free in the Apple App Store and Google Play store and requires an employer subscription to access programs and rewards. Interested employers can learn more at pavecommute.app.

About RideAmigos

At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our commuter engagement apps combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities, and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and offset hundreds of millions of pounds of CO2 emissions.

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda for 2030: Core Objectives

The car-centric culture that developed during the 20th century has well-documented negative impacts on communities, the economy, air quality, and climate. As part of our continued commitment to driving sustainable changes in the mobility landscape, RideAmigos has joined the Shared Mobility Action Network in support of its ambitious agenda for shared mobility in 2030.

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda is a project spearheaded by the Shared-Use Mobility Center. More than 50 high-profile businesses, public-sector organizations, and nonprofit groups have already pledged their participation. The primary objective is to advocate for dramatic, mass-scale improvements in access to sustainable and shared modes of transportation by 2030.

However, the Shared-Use Mobility Center and its partner organizations are not relying on passive approaches to achieve the agenda’s objectives. Instead, the Shared Mobility Action Agenda is built around seven tangible, action-oriented steps to realize its foundational goal.

These include:

Infrastructure Investments

Sustainable mobility has emerged as an increasingly high-profile public issue in recent years while also making inroads among policymakers. However, investments in shared mobility and other forms of sustainable transportation continue to lag behind. As a consequence, privately owned low-occupancy vehicles continue to persist as a default choice, to the detriment of both the environment and to the physical and mental health of those who rely on them.

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda seeks to make investments in sustainable infrastructure a compulsory component of all publicly funded transportation projects. Over time, such a policy would significantly expand sustainable transportation’s footprint and lead to dramatic improvements in its accessibility, practicality, and performance.

Technology Investments

Many shared forms of mobility depend on information technologies, and especially on mobile technologies. A clear example can be seen in the dramatic rise in enterprise and organizational ridesharing programs since the dawn of the smartphone age.

Technology-driven information systems are critical tools for an inclusive, equitable, accessible, and high-functioning shared mobility network. The Shared Mobility Action Agenda advocates for strong, targeted investments in the technological and informational infrastructure needed to bring sustainable transportation solutions into the communities where they are most needed.

Incentives and Support Structures for Shared Mobility

It isn’t easy to get people to make the switch from the perceived convenience of their privately owned vehicles to more sustainable and shared alternatives. Policymakers typically use one of two general approaches to prompt commuters and citizens to make changes: “the stick” and “the carrot.”

Strategies built around “the stick” penalize people for choosing solo driving when alternatives are available. Examples include congestion fees, route tolls, and increased parking costs.

Conversely, approaches based on “the carrot” do the opposite by offering perks and rewards to those who voluntarily choose to ditch the solo drive. As a driver of long-term behavior change, transportation demand management experts generally consider “the carrot” to be the more effective of the two strategic paradigms.

To this end, the Shared Mobility Action Agenda seeks to create incentive programs and distribute access products that will connect households with sustainable transportation options. The underlying theory is that such efforts will reduce and remove the barriers that impede people from shifting modes, thus encouraging higher participation levels in shared and sustainable alternatives.

Metrics and Measurement Standards

A relative lack of standardized metrics for quantifying the community-based impacts of shared mobility programs is one of the main reasons why public investment in these programs continues to lag. In order to justify meaningful investments in sustainable transportation infrastructure, policymakers need to convince the public that investments and expenditures will generate positive returns. Such justifications cannot be made without metrics that specifically measure those returns.

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda seeks to create standards for statistically tracking the ways in which sustainable transportation investments make communities more inclusive. The project also seeks to scale up the use of these statistical metrics so that their positive impacts can be extended beyond the local level.

Reducing Lifecycle Carbon Emissions

On the topic of metrics and measurements, the project also seeks to establish standardized methods for quantifying the carbon emissions reductions achieved by shared mobility vehicles, programs, and technologies. The Shared-Use Mobility Center and its partners believe this will best be done by directly comparing shared modes with legacy modes. This will create “apples to apples” and “oranges to oranges” comparisons, which will more effectively illustrate shared mobility’s positive and quantifiable benefits.

Another positive application of this agenda item relates to its ability to track the emissions levels generated by shared modes and systems in a standardized manner. This, in turn, will facilitate the future development of initiatives and technologies that can further reduce their lifecycle carbon emissions.

Innovative Shared Mobility Funding Models

As with many policy issues, funding and financial feasibility play a major role in deciding which programs receive strong support and which do not. To reflect this reality, the Shared Mobility Action Agenda also seeks to identify and develop novel financing models for building and expanding access to sustainable transportation alternatives.

Expert observers note that many different stakeholders can play a meaningful role in the creation and operation of shared mobility networks. Examples include not only governments and employers, but also transportation authorities, transit operators, land developers, investors, and providers of information technology infrastructure, among others.

The Agenda seeks to find new ways to encourage collaboration among these and other actors, which will hopefully lead to sustained improvements in financing access and funding availability.

Institutional Realignment

The seventh and final action item on the Agenda’s list covers institutional change. Without a foundational commitment to shared mobility and transportation equity at the institutional level, meaningful and long-lasting change cannot be realized.

For this reason, the Shared Mobility Action Agenda considers changing institutional perspectives and processes to be a critical key to the initiative’s success. The Agenda therefore seeks to engage public- and private-sector institutions as part of a broader program to make sustainable mobility alternatives an economically viable and affordable option for people of all income levels and socioeconomic brackets.

Projected Results

The Shared Mobility Action Agenda has instituted a timeline of 2030 for achieving these objectives. By making progress in each of the seven aforementioned areas, shared mobility has the potential to become:

  • More available and reliable
  • More accessible and equitable
  • More economically and environmentally sustainable

The program’s general vision is to make shared and sustainable mobility options better and easier than driving a car.

Members of the Shared Mobility Action Network gather at the National Shared Mobility Summit in Chicago, May 2023.

RideAmigos Is One of More Than 50 Participants in the Shared Mobility Action Agenda for 2030

As of the date of this post’s publications, more than 50 high-profile public, private, and nonprofit organizations have made formal partnership commitments to the Shared Mobility Action Agenda. Members include:

  • Mobility providers
  • Rideshare companies
  • Nonprofits
  • Municipal governments like Grand Rapids, MI; Arlington, VA; Boston, MA; and Denver, CO
  • Transit agencies
  • Technology companies
  • Planning firms

RideAmigos is proud to participate in the Agenda’s important work, which reflects our organization’s shared values and objectives. To learn more about the Shared Mobility Action Agenda, please visit the Shared-Use Mobility Center or visit the Agenda’s official website.

About RideAmigos

At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our commuter engagement apps combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities, and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and offset hundreds of millions of pounds of CO2 emissions. Connect with our experts here.

RideAmigos Awarded US Department of Transportation Funding for its Blockchain-Based Commuter Incentive System

The project is one of only 12 to receive the agency’s coveted Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards in 2022.

SANTA MONICA, August 2, 2022 Commute management technology leader RideAmigos received Phase I funding by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for research and development of a novel incentivization system designed to optimize utilization of transit and other transportation infrastructure.

The SBIR Program, managed by USDOT’s innovation-focused Volpe Center, incentivizes small businesses to pursue innovative research and development work that has the potential for broad commercialization and adoption. According to the USDOT, the highly selective program funds projects that “address advanced innovative concepts from [small businesses] with strong capabilities in applied science or engineering.” Funding awards are made in two phases, with the possibility of a third phase leading to commercialization and special federal procurement status.

“We are honored to receive the support of the USDOT for this moonshot project that we believe has the potential to change the way the public and private sectors work together to transform commuter transportation for a sustainable future,” RideAmigos CEO Soren Eilertsen said. “It is encouraging to see the USDOT pursuing this kind of research and development in its work to advance a more equitable, accessible, and inclusive transportation system.”

The project will complement Pave Commute, RideAmigos’ personal commute app for employees that uses sophisticated algorithms to recommend the best commute option based on individual needs and preferences, match commuters doing similar things, and reward them for making sustainable choices. The design combines an intuitive user experience with proven principles of behavioral science — including findings from cutting edge studies with researchers from Duke University’s Center for Advanced Hindsight — as well as social elements, gamification, and advanced multimodal routing technology.

Among the goals of the blockchain project are the development of an innovative system for collecting mobility data and establishment of a market for public and private stakeholders to invest in managing demand for existing transportation infrastructure. This will enable players in the mobility supply chain — employers, local governments, transit agencies, and micromobility providers — to reward commuters, based on reliable data, for transportation choices that reduce congestion, emissions, and parking costs. Furthermore, insights from this data can also guide planning efforts to optimize new development and service decisions.

“With Pave Commute, we can meet every commuter where they are, and empower them to adopt new, more sustainable options. Organizations can increase the impact of the program by providing incentives, which the app distributes automatically to optimize use of available infrastructure,” said Corey Tucker, RideAmigos Director of Innovation and lead of the SBIR-funded project. “By leveraging blockchain technology to establish a secure, decentralized market, we can enable the full range of public and private stakeholders – including mobility providers and planning organizations – to participate.”

This year, other projects to receive SBIR Phase I funding from the agency focus on artificial intelligence, intelligent road systems, material safety, equity, and climate change.

The Pave Commute app is available to download in the Apple App Store and Google Play store and requires an employer subscription to sign up. Interested organizations can learn more at pavecommute.app.

About RideAmigos:

RideAmigos is a technology company on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds. (http://www.rideamigos.com)

RideAmigos Named Finalist for Workplace in Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas Awards

Santa Monica-based RideAmigos was a finalist for its World Changing Ideas for the Workplace and received honorable mentions from Fast Company in AI, Apps, and Corporate Social Responsibility categories for apps that leverage behavioral science to help everyone find a better commute. 

SANTA MONICA, May 10, 2022 RideAmigos announced that its Commute Hub platform has been recognized by Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas Awards as a finalist in the Workplace category. Winners and finalists were revealed this month, honoring clean technology, innovative corporate initiatives, new designs for cities and buildings, and other creative works that support the growth of positive social innovation, tackling social inequality, climate change, and public health crises.

Commute Hub is a professional transportation demand management (TDM) platform with an experience tailored to the workplace. It enables employers like LinkedIn, Patagonia, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and the State of Arizona to optimize the employee commute experience with diverse parking, transportation and incentive programs across large campuses or multiple worksites. 

In 2021, employers used RideAmigos’ Commute Hub to administer over a million dollars in incentives and parking cash-outs, issue thousands of parking permits, and avoid 2.5 million drive alone trips.

Now in its sixth year, the World Changing Ideas Awards showcase some of the world’s most innovative entrepreneurs and companies tackling global challenges. A panel of eminent Fast Company editors and reporters selected winners and finalists from among more than 2,997 entries across dozens of industries. The workplace category is new in 2022 and honors projects that improve our lives in the office, increase employees’ rights, or make work safer, smarter, or more meaningful.

Commute Hub  also earned honorable mention in the Corporate Social Responsibility category. 

The honor for Commute Hub comes at a time when many employers are prioritizing programs to support commuters and complement hybrid work arrangements and other new realities that are emerging from the pandemic and an evolving talent market. 

“The enterprise has a renewed and larger role in the employee commute,” said Soren Eilertsen, CEO of RideAmigos. “We partner with our customers to navigate this paradigm shift and work to empower everyone to evolve the consciousness around everyday mobility choices.”

 “We are consistently inspired by the novelty and creativity that people are applying to solve some of our society’s most pressing problems, from shelter to the climate crisis. Fast Company relishes its role in amplifying important, innovative work to address big challenges,” said David Lidsky, interim editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “Our journalists have identified some of the most ingenious initiatives to launch since the start of 2021, which we hope will both have a meaningful impact and lead others to join in being part of the solution.”

RideAmigos personalized commute app, Pave Commute, launched in 2021, also earned honorable mention in three categories. Pave Commute is a fully automated, science-based commute management app for employees that provides personalized recommendations, groups users with others who can share trips, and rewards them for making smart choices. Fast Company recognized Pave Commute in the AI & Data, Apps, and Corporate Social Responsibility categories.

RideAmigos is featured in Fast Company’s Summer 2022 issue released May 10, 2022 and at fastcompany.com. 

About RideAmigos: At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds.

About the World Changing Ideas Awards: World Changing Ideas is one of Fast Company’s major annual awards programs and is focused on social good, seeking to elevate finished products and brave concepts that make the world better. A panel of judges from across sectors choose winners, finalists, and honorable mentions based on feasibility and the potential for impact. With the goals of awarding ingenuity and fostering innovation, Fast Company draws attention to ideas with great potential and helps them expand their reach to inspire more people to start working on solving the problems that affect us all.

Six California Agencies Collaborate to Expand TDM Program Impact

Regional rideshare and Transportation Demand Management (TDM) programs across the country are providing valuable support as commuters feel the squeeze of increasing traffic and spiking gas prices. Bay Area agencies have been planning for this throughout the pandemic. Among initiatives to reduce traffic is a multi-agency connected carpool and incentives network that offers commuters access to six area programs with a single login.

In early 2022, six California transportation agencies with some of the most active commute programs in the United States launched the innovative solution designed to improve commuter access to shared alternatives to solo driving. The new integrated network is designed to expand the pool of available ridematches for participants in the various agency programs. It will also empower commuters across the region — many of whom commute across county lines each day — to access services and participate in incentives based on their eligibility without creating multiple accounts and logging trips.

Six California Agencies Launch Joint Commute Support Programs

Announced in March 2022, the interconnected TDM programs primarily serve the nine counties surrounding the San Francisco Bay, with some of the agencies specifically focused on trips that start or end within a specific county. They are managed by six separate California-based commuter and transportation agencies with independent commute programs.

The partnership facilitates the seamless integration of six independent commuter management platforms, all powered by RideAmigos, making it far easier for commuters to find and choose more sustainable transportation options throughout the region. The list of participating agency programs includes:

Each of the six agencies operates its own unique set of commuter support programs within their jurisdictions. The initiative, led by MTC merge.511.0rg and piloted with Commute.org in late 2021 provides a seamless user experience for commuters, while continuing to empower each independent agency to operate targeted programming and also to more easily collaborate on easing congestion on key corridors (especially during peak travel hours), and reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with personal travel by car. To access the integrated network, commuters simply need to log into their existing account with one of the agency programs or sign up with any of the programs for which they are eligible.

Those who already had active accounts when the program was launched received automatic prompts. These prompts highlight new ridesharing options and potential benefits from additional regional agencies for which they are eligible based on their commutes.

How Will Commuters Benefit?

Thanks to the new program, commuters will enjoy expanded access to carpool, transit pool, vanpool and walk pool matching and other services. For example, commuters using a participating agency’s platform will be able to view relevant eligibility-based programs from all six participating agencies through a single account. This will increase the number of potential matches. .

Importantly, the partnership also integrates the various commuter rewards programs operated by the participating agencies. Commuters whose journeys cover multiple jurisdictions can use the integrated platform to explore all rewards and benefits that apply to their trips, even if the programs originate with an agency other than the one they originally joined with.

What Can Other Organizations Learn From California’s Rideshare Support Programs

Technology continues to evolve to better empower public sector actors in the TDM world. The innovative connected network created by these six California agencies also points to the transformative power of collaboration as transportation agencies work together in pursuit of shared goals. With this integrated network, better transparency and quality data about how commuters engage with their programs will enable deeper collaboration between these agencies working to improve transportation in the region.

“This solution best serves commuters who want to find carpool partners,” said Barbara Laurenson, MTC Principal Program coordinator. “The timing couldn’t be better as COVID-19 fears wane, gas prices increase and more dire news about the climate is released.”

“Commute.org recognizes that to solve the transportation challenges in San Mateo County, we need to have strong partnerships with our peer agencies in the region,” said John Ford, executive director, Commute.org. “Nearly 60 percent of the San Mateo County workforce travels to work from outside the county. This project opens up new ways to connect with those commuters, spur meaningful changes in drive-alone rates and promote better Bay Area air quality.”

RideAmigos agrees. “We have been partnering with individual Bay Area agencies for nearly a decade to encourage smarter transportation,” said RideAmigos Director of Customer Success Kathryn Hagerman Medina. “Connecting these programs creates a seamless user experience for carpool and commuter rewards across the region and, at the same time, [it] empowers individual agencies to collaborate in powerful new ways.”

Commuters and transportation industry observers can expect to see more innovative programming from participating agencies that leverages the new integrated network in the months to come.

RideAmigos works with these and other organizations at the forefront of TDM, providing best-in-class commute management solutions for the public sector, employers, and individual commuters. To learn more about this project and other products, reach out and start a conversation with our experts today.

How Business Is Leading the Charge to Make Commuting More Sustainable

Geneva, Switzerland

Meeting the important Sustainable Development Goals set out by the United Nations and other commitments will require major global social and economic transformations across sectors. Yet, warnings about the stakes we face as a species have never been more dire. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) brings together the chief executive officers (CEOs) of more than 200 leading global companies to leverage their influence toward accelerating progress toward sustainable life on our planet. Participating partners represent a wide variety of sectors, and have combined revenues of more than $8.5 trillion.  Among other programs, the WBCSD leads an innovative and comprehensive Commuter Behavior Change project. It is designed to reduce the socioenvironmental impact of commuting and prompt increased migration to sustainable commuting modes.

RideAmigos participates as a member in the WBCSD’s Commuter Behavior Change project and other mobility initiatives, which are making a compelling business case for promoting behavior change. The organization also maintains a comprehensive database of “use cases” that document the strategic impact of established approaches to commuter engagement.

Here’s a breakdown of the project, its areas of focus, and our involvement.

WBCSD Commuter Behavior Change: Project Overview

The Commuter Behavior Change project seeks to address the unacceptable levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that result from transportation use. To this end, the WBCSD cites several key statistics:

Addressing these issues on the demand side by shifting commuters toward sustainable transportation alternatives holds the potential to meaningfully address all three of these issues. The organization stresses that employers occupy a very important position in the ongoing push to reduce transportation-related GHG emissions.

As such, the project focuses on studying and promoting effective strategies businesses can use to encourage their people teams to choose sustainable modes that will also improve their work-life balance and satisfaction.

The business case for Commuter Behavior Change

The Commuter Behavior Change project stresses that businesses stand to benefit from a mass shift to more sustainable transportation modes. It cites multiple specific advantages enterprises can earn through innovative approaches to managing their commuter needs:

  • Strong commuter supports make companies more appealing, boosting their efforts to attract and retain the best available employment talent
  • Resilient approaches to commuter management improve business productivity and efficiency
  • The increased use of sustainable commuter modes is linked with positive health benefits, improving employee well-being and reducing costs related to absenteeism and healthcare benefits

Commuter engagement strategy and behavior change

The project’s use case database tracks more than 15 specific strategies used to promote mode shift and behavior change among commuters. Each strategy that appears in the database is accompanied by a summary of its associated benefits, potential challenges and ways to address them, and suggestions on statistical metrics that can track progress after adoption.

WBCSD advocates for several familiar and well-established engagement strategies, including:

It also details several emerging and technical approaches to commuter management, such as:

Among other strategies, the WBCSD use case database also offers insights on campaign and transparency measures, micromobility, electric vehicle infrastructure, and budgeting. These digital resources combine to create a comprehensive information repository that businesses and organizations can draw on to create, develop, and expand their own internal commuter management initiatives.

Our work with WBCSD

RideAmigos joined the over 200 member companies in the WBCSD in 2021 to participate in the project to transform mobility, beginning with building a business case and contributing to best practices for corporate commute management as well as a forthcoming framework for sustainable corporate mobility policies.

Of our participation, Thomas Deloison, director of mobility at the WBCSD, said, “RideAmigos’ unique expertise in behavioral science and solutions to help shift commuting habits will be an important contribution to WBCSD’s work on accelerating the transformation toward sustainable urban mobility. We’re excited to collaborate with RideAmigos and bring their knowledge to companies and cities alike.”

To learn more about RideAmigos insights and solutions for implementing or transforming your own commute program, please contact us to talk to an expert.

RideAmigos Supports the We Mean Business Coalition’s COP26 Call to Action

In 2021, world leaders convened in Glasgow, Scotland for the United Nations’ 26th climate change conference. The event, widely known as COP26, seeks to commit nations and stakeholders to aggressive, meaningful action to advance the goals of the historic 2015 Paris Agreement.

The We Mean Business coalition was among the climate action organizations pressuring COP26 participants to deepen their commitments to climate change mitigation. We Mean Business penned an open letter to members of the 2021 Glasgow climate summit, calling for immediate action across three specific areas. RideAmigos is a proud signatory of the coalition’s letter.

What does the We Mean Business coalition advocate for?

The We Mean Business coalition calls on world leaders to take action in three important areas to keep the objectives of the Paris Agreement within reach:

  • Increasing the agreement’s nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% by 2030
  • Ceasing the financing and development of new coal-fired power generation plants by 2030 in developed countries and by 2040 in developing countries
  • Coordinating economic policy, public funding, and COVID-19 recovery financing to advance the objective of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050

The coalition supports science-informed decision-making, alternative energy investment, and transparency in disclosing progress among stakeholders. It has emerged as an impactful, high-profile organization dedicated to sustainable forms of economic growth.

We Mean Business mainly targets members of the G20 countries, as they account for approximately 90% of global economic output and 80% of trade-related greenhouse gas emissions.

RideAmigos proudly supports the We Mean Business coalition.

We Mean Business boasts an impressive lineup of supporting partners including the International Chamber of Commerce, Solar Heat Europe, and the United Nations Global Compact. RideAmigos joins hundreds of businesses and organizations in endorsing the open letter We Mean Business submitted to the COP26 delegates.

We’re proud of the smart choices people are making every using RideAmigos apps, and we look forward to working with you to continue reducing emissions and other negative impacts of commuting in the next decade.

RideAmigos joins forces with Austrian startup Carployee to make commuting smarter

The merger enables RideAmigos to scale personalized commute support in new ways for employers of all sizes.

RideAmigos, whose commute management platform powers the largest public and private commuter management initiatives in the United States, announced the acquisition of innovative Austrian startup Carployee, the team behind the successful employee carpooling app used by European businesses like STIHL, Mercedes Benz and Würth Group. 

Carployee will continue operating from its headquarters in Linz as its team is fully integrated into Santa Monica-based RideAmigos. 

The acquisition comes at a time when commuting is becoming a bigger focus for employers, many of which are reimagining employee transportation and parking for the hybrid workplace of the future. Businesses like LinkedIn, Patagonia, and Rivian as well as states and megaregions like the San Francisco Bay and Denver-Boulder areas already use RideAmigos solutions to make commuting more sustainable and less stressful. 

These and other customers rely on privately held RideAmigos to power the future of employee transportation during and after the pandemic with a flexible and streamlined commuter experience. 

The natural partnership between RideAmigos and Carployee merges both companies’ research and expertise in commuter experience, behavior change and mobility optimization. “Our missions and values are totally aligned and we are already seeing the amazing potential of our teams’ combined competencies in ways that will benefit all of our customers,” said RideAmigos CEO, Soren Eilertsen. 

Carployee CEO, Albert Vogl-Bader affirmed the synergy between the two teams. “While carpooling is a good start, we are all committed to empowering people to make better commute decisions across all modes. The opportunity to do that on a global scale with a like-minded and experienced team made this a perfect match and an easy decision,” he said. 

About RideAmigos

At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds. 

About Carployee

Carployee is a carpooling app for companies, business parks and universities. The talented team around CEO Albert Vogl-Bader has been active since 2018 serving major employers across Europe. The Linz-based company invests heavily in research and development, including groundbreaking grant-funded project in partnership with the University of Salzburg. Carployee is also a partner of klimaaktiv, the climate protection initiative of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology. (www.carployee.com)

Over 1,500 Transportation Leaders Gather Virtually To Discuss Commuter Behavior

Hosted by RideAmigos, speakers from leading research institutions, public transportation, and private employers shared insights on the future of commuting.

Santa Monica-based commuter mobility technology company, RideAmigos, hosted a virtual crowd of transportation industry leaders on Wednesday, April 1 for the fifth annual CommuteCon.

As the country prepared for another month of sheltering in place to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, transportation is one of many sectors facing uncertainty about the future. Always an online gathering, this year the CommuteCon conference came at a time when more people than ever are using technology to connect virtually, and online learning opportunities have taken on a new level of importance.

The theme for CommuteCon 2020 was “The Science of Smart Commuting.” Several of the presentations focused on applications of behavioral science to influence and optimize commuter mobility. Leading academics, planners and designers discussed science in practice from Chicago to Durham to Tulsa.

Others highlighted emerging research and technology. In the first keynote of the day, Professor Susan Shaheen of UC Berkeley’s Transportation Sustainability Research Center discussed the role technology is having on shaping consumer behavior and expectations – including potential long-term impacts of COVID-19 on commute patterns.

The conference also brought forward other topics of concern to the industry. Tamika Butler, Esq. of Toole Design encouraged the audience to examine the question of equity in transportation. Andrew Duvall, Ph.D. of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory looked further at the equity issue in a specifically rural context.

Other speakers shared results of innovative projects such as the Los Angeles Metro micromobilty pilot, LinkedIn’s ambitious commitment to sustainable commuter mobility, Waze’s public partnerships, and a sweeping report on the state of the American commute based on survey data from across the United States from San Francisco-based carpool company, Scoop.

Closing the conference was Timothy Papandreou, an industry influencer whose resume includes roles like Chief Innovation Officer at San Francisco’s Municipal Transportation Agency and strategic partnerships for autonomous vehicle leader GoogleX/Waymo. Papandreou provided his unique insights from private, public and community experience to highlight the trends and the policy and technology focus areas that will ensure safer, more equitable, and sustainable outcomes.

“Events that bring together industry thought leaders are important opportunities to learn, and share stories, successes and challenges,” said Jeffrey Chernick, co-founder of RideAmigos. “We conceived CommuteCon five years ago to make this kind of learning accessible to everyone in our field, whether or not they have a travel budget. This year, in the face of physical distancing and uncertainty across the industry, the virtual gathering is everyone’s way of staying connected to our shared purpose.”

First launched in 2015, CommuteCon has grown into one of the most important transportation and commuter mobility events in the world. It represents a live, collaborative exchange of ideas, bringing established Transportation Demand Management (TDM) leaders together with leading researchers, and rising innovators to discuss trends, opportunities, and emerging technologies.

In 2019, the event set a record with more than 800 participants from across the United States and around the world. This year over 1,500 people were signed up as of two days before the conference. They represented a geographically diverse group of federal, state and local government agencies, large employers, mobility providers and technology companies, commercial real estate, and universities. The event was free and only required advance registration.

Hosted and organized by RideAmigos, this year CommuteCon was presented in partnership with Scoop (http://www.takescoop.com), and with support from the Association for Commuter Transportation (http://www.actweb.org), Waze (http://www.waze.com), and the Coalition for Smarter Transportation (http://www.smartertransportation.org).

More information about the event, and recordings from previous conferences are available at http://www.commutecon.com.

About CommuteCon

CommuteCon is a free annual online conference that unites members of the commuter management and transportation demand management (TDM) community. Its objective is to bring those in search of smart and sustainable commuting solutions together to participate in a robust and inspiring exchange of ideas. Each year, we welcome hundreds of TDM leaders and stakeholders from around the world. Beyond benefiting from the advanced insights of the conference’s all-star lineup of expert speakers, participants also enjoy excellent opportunities to build broader networks of thought partners while furthering their strategic skills.

https://commutecon.com

About RideAmigos

At RideAmigos, we are on a mission to change the way the world commutes, for good. Our mobile and web-based commuter engagement solutions combine innovative technology with proven principles of behavioral science to empower everyone to make smarter transportation choices. Large employers, universities and government agencies use our powerful products to reduce congestion, parking demand, and environmental impact while creating healthier, happier communities. We have helped our clients take tens of millions of cars off the road and reduce our collective CO2 footprint by over 280 million pounds. (www.rideamigos.com