Pierce Transit Vanpool transitions to flat rate, part-time rider services

Pierce Transit's vanpool commuters will automatically transition in May 2022 to one of six flat rate fare options based exclusively on the daily round trip commute miles.

As part of the transition to flat rate fares, a permanent part-time rider service will also launch in May. This option gives hybrid commuters with a consistent, in-office work schedule the ability to join a vanpool group. Part-time riders will pay a daily rate based on the daily round trip commute miles of the vehicle.

To eliminate ongoing adjustments historically based on daily round trip miles, group size and number of commute days, vanpool commuters will now have a predictable and consistent fare, regardless of how many people are in their group or how many days per week they commute.

In November 2021, the Pierce Transit Board of Commissioners approved the simplified flat rate fare model for vanpool service, which reduces the number of vanpool fares from 420 down to six. The board also approved the part-time rider service that will give hybrid commuters more flexibility to participate in vanpool.

A predictable monthly fare is especially important to commuters who take advantage of commute subsidies offered by their employer, as they must often identify what their vanpool fare is going to be months in advance when submitting subsidy choices. Current vanpool commuters will automatically be transitioned to one of the six new flat rate fares based on daily round trip commute miles.

Later this year, Pierce Transit will launch a flexible daily rider service that will allow commuters with a fluctuating in-office work schedule to reserve open seats on qualifying vanpool groups. This will include an online reservation, notification and payment processing interface at PTVanpool.com. It is anticipated that the flexible daily rider service will launch sometime in the third quarter of 2022.