Top Knoxville Businesses Offer Innovative Employee Benefits to Earn National Best Workplaces for Commuters Designation.  

City and County Officials Presided over Annual Awards Ceremony at Market Square on April 30. It was a great event hosted by Smart Trips!

New BWC Employers 

• Home Federal Bank of Tennessee
• Knoxville Area Transit
• Knoxville Utilities Board
• Y-12 National Security Complex
• The Tomato Head (The Tomato Head partnered with Smart Trips to encourage their staff to walk, bike, take transit, and carpool to work instead of driving alone. They hosted an in-house “Commuter Challenge” offering individual and group prizes. The top prize was a $500 donation to the charity of the employees’ choosing. The challenge ran July- September 2012 and every employee who reported at least 9 “Smart Trips” during the challenge got the chance to nominate and vote for their charity).

Renewing BWC Members

• Elizabeth Eason Architecture
• Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
• Mast General Store
• The Metropolitan Planning Commission
• Red Chair Architects
• Tennessee Valley Authority

BWC Newsletter May-June 2013

New BWC Brochure May 2013

We have updated our popular Commuter Benefits brief to reflect the 2013 rates for qualified transportation fringe benefits.  You can download from here.

March-April 2013

For Immediate Release

USF’s National Center for Transit Research Selects Best Workplaces for Commuters^SM Winners

Awards recognize companies who offer highest level of commuter benefits

TAMPA, Fla. (Jan. 31, 2013) – Best Workplaces for Commuters^SM, a program designed to encourage sustainable transportation innovation singled out 23 employers nationwide Thursday, January 31 during the annual “Race to Excellence”  Virtual Awards Ceremony.  The awards recognize organizations who have taken exemplary steps to offer transportation options such as vanpool and transit benefits or telework and compressed workweek for their employees.

 “The annual Race to Excellence provides national recognition for employers who offer high level commuter benefits,” said Julie Bond, NCTR’s national program manager for Best Workplaces for Commuters. “Offering commuter benefits is a win-win situation for employees who change their commuting habits to save time, money and stress and employers who gain a competitive edge in employee recruitment and retention.”

 This year participants were awarded in four categories:  Employer, Employer (under 100), Supporting Agency, and University.

Employer:  

 Gold

• Booz Allen Hamilton, VA
• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, GA
• Central Arizona Project, AZ
• Inova Health System, VA
• Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc., FL (employer under 100)

Silver

• Compuware Corporation, MI
• Pfizer – Greenwheels, NC
• Quarles & Brady LLP, AZ
• Yale-New Haven Hospital, CT

 Supporting Agency:

Gold

• Fairfax County Department of Transportation, VA
• State of Arizona, (Capital Rideshare), AZ
• Suburban Transit Network, PA
• Smart Trips, TN

Silver

• CommuterLink/511NY Rideshare- NY
• Commuter Services, FL
• reThink, Orlando, FL

 University: Gold

• Stanford University (“Best of” 2011)
• University of California, Irvine
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of South Florida
• Virginia Tech, Blacksburg

“Best of”

• “Best of” Employer Award

        Booz Allen Hamilton, VA

• “Best of” Supporting Agency Award

        Smart Trips, Knoxville, TN

•  “Best of” University Award

        University of North Carolina Greensboro  

• “Best of” Small Employer Award

       Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc., FL

Best Workplaces for Commuters provides qualified employers with programs and services along with national recognition and an elite designation for offering outstanding commuter benefits, such as free or low cost bus passes. Employers that meet the National Standard of Excellence in commuter benefits – a standard established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and maintained by the National Center for Transit Research (NCTR)– can become a member of Best Workplaces for Commuters (http://www.bestworkplaces.org).

Best Workplaces for Commuter ™ is a program of the National Center for Transit Research at the University of South Florida.  NCTR is funded by Florida Department of Transportation and U.S. Department of Transportation. The theme of NCTR is to make public transportation and alternative forms of transportation, including managed lanes, safe, effective, efficient, desirable, and secure.

The University of South Florida is one of the nation’s top 63 public research universities and one of only 25 public research universities nationwide with very high research activity that is designated as community engaged by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.  USF was awarded $394.1 million in research contracts and grants in FY 2009/2010. The university offers 232 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate, specialist and doctoral levels, including the doctor of medicine. The USF System has a $1.8 billion annual budget, an annual economic impact of $3.2 billion, and serves more than 47,000 students on institutions/campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and Lakeland. USF is a member of the Big East Athletic Conference.

    # # #

What is the Race to Excellence?  The Race is a challenge that encourages, recognizes, and highlights dedicated professionals throughout the country who promote commuter benefits, transportation options and the Best Workplaces for Commuters designation in their workplaces and throughout their local communities. Even if you did not enter this year’s Race, we encourage you to see what your peers have been doing to deliver high quality commuter benefit programs that employees truly value.

Keynote Speaker: Velma Booth, Senior Manager of Administrative Core Services with Booz Allen Hamilton.  Booz Allen Hamilton supports outstanding commuter benefits and flexible transportation options to improve quality of life and work-life balance for employees.  A new strategic initiative, “Way We Work,” will help Booz Allen decrease its carbon footprint and our employees’ commute time.  Developed in 2009, this multi-year strategy is all about working where we need to, when we need to – a flexible framework that includes remote delivery, teleworking, hoteling at work sites nearest to the employee’s home, virtual events, and other work arrangements that better connect talent with opportunity in ways that benefit clients and staff, support the environment, and promote work-life integration. 

Date:  Thursday, January, 31, 2013
Time:  3:00 p.m. Eastern; 2:00 p.m. Central; 1:00 p.m. Mountain; 12 noon Pacific
Duration:  1 hour

2012 Race to Excellence Finalists:

• Booz Allen Hamilton, Fairfax County, VA
• Central Arizona Project, Phoenix, AZ
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA
• Commuter Services, Florida
• CommuterLink/511-NYC
• Compuware Corporation, Detroit, MI
• Fairfax County-DOT, Virginia
• Inova Health Systems, VA
• Pfizer, Inc. – GreenWheels
• Quarles & Brady LLP, Phoenix, AZ
• ReThink, Orlando, FL
• Smart Trips, Knoxville, TN
• Stanford University, CA
• State of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ 
• Suburban Transit Network, PA
• Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc., Tampa, FL
• University of California Irvine – Transportation and Distribution Services
• University of California Los Angeles
• University of North Carolina Greensboro
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of South Florida
• Virginia Tech
• Yale-New Haven Hospital, CT

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We hope to see you then!

Sincerely,

Julie Bond

Program Manager

P.S. Check out the new look of our website, www.bestworkplaces.org! 

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c/o Center for Urban Transportation Research
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Ave., CUT100
Tampa, FL 33620-5375
www.bestworkplaces.org

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We are pleased to announce the date for the 2012 BWC Race to Excellence Virtual Awards Ceremony. Finalists will be awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze status for their efforts during the Race at a “live” virtual awards ceremony on Thursday, January 31, 2013 at 3 p.m. EST (GMT-05:00). “Best of” awards will also be announced.  We hope you will join us for this free online event.  You will find the connection information below.
The Race to Excellence is a challenge that encourages, recognizes, and highlights dedicated professionals throughout the country who promote commuter benefits, transportation options and the Best Workplaces for Commuters designation in their workplaces and throughout their local communities. We encourage everyone to attend this exciting ceremony.

This year’s keynote speaker is Velma Booth, Senior Manager of Administrative Core Services with Booz Allen Hamilton.  Booz Allen Hamilton supports outstanding commuter benefits and flexible transportation options to improve quality of life and work-life balance for employees.  A new strategic initiative, “Way We Work,” will help Booz Allen decrease its carbon footprint and our employees’ commute time.  Developed in 2009, this multi-year strategy is all about working where we need to, when we need to – a flexible framework that includes remote delivery, teleworking, hoteling at work sites nearest to the employee’s home, virtual events, and other work arrangements that better connect talent with opportunity in ways that benefit clients and staff, support the environment, and promote work-life integration.  

Date:  Thursday, January, 31, 2013
Time:  3:00 p.m. Eastern; 2:00 p.m. Central; 1:00 p.m. Mountain; 12 noon Pacific
Duration:  1 hour

2012 Race to Excellence Finalists:

• Boise State University, ID
• Booz Allen Hamilton, Fairfax County, VA
• Central Arizona Project, Phoenix, AZ
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA
• Commuter Services, Florida
• CommuterLink/511-NYC
• Compuware Corporation, Detroit, MI
• Fairfax County-DOT, Virginia
• Inova Health Systems, VA
• Pfizer, Inc. – GreenWheels
• Quarles & Brady LLP, Phoenix, AZ
• ReThink, Orlando, FL
• Smart Trips, Knoxville, TN
• Stanford University, CA
• State of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ 
• Suburban Transit Network, PA
• Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc., Tampa, FL
• University of California Irvine – Transportation and Distribution Services
• University of California Los Angeles
• University of North Carolina Greensboro
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of South Florida
• Virginia Tech
• Yale-New Haven Hospital, CT

The recently passed American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (i.e., fiscal cliff deal), included Section 203 that extended the parity for exclusion from income for employer-provided transit and vanpool benefits at the same level as parking benefits ($245 per month) through December 31, 2013.

In 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (a.k.a. the stimulus bill) effectively created the equity between benefits received by employees who use transit/commuter highway vehicles (e.g., vanpools) and those who received parking benefits.  As you may recall, Congress chose not to extend the parity for 2012.  This caused the monthly cap on transit and vanpool limits to roll back to pre-ARRA levels of $125 per month while parking remained at $240 per month.

In 2013, under the fiscal cliff deal, Congress changed the effective date of Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits (Section 132(f)) and extended its end date through December 31, 2013. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 now provides the option for most employers to provide transit and vanpool tax free benefits to their employees up to $245 per month again.

Raytheon Company location in Dallas, Plano, and McKinney, Texas have been actively participating in commuting alternatives for many years. Currently over 325 employees participate in some type of ridesharing. The plant locations in Dallas and Plano have access to light rail and bus service operated by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). The McKinney site is located outside the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and does not have DART service. The site draws employees from a six county area, including the Dallas urban area as well as many surrounding suburban and rural locations. Vanpools have become very popular with McKinney employees and 21 vanpools are currently in use. Texoma Area ParaTransit System (TAPS) Public Transit also provides some service for McKinney employees from the counties to the north.

Raytheon provides a subsidy to employees who ride public transit or vanpools. To make it even more convenient, the employee’s portion is automatically deducted pretax each month from the paycheck once signed up.  All this is handled online by the third party benefits manager, WageWorks. The high cost for commuting in private vehicles the past few years has made these programs even more popular with employees.

BWC Tips . . . from my experience . . . by Alan Larsen, Raytheon

I am a Senior Environmental, Health and Safety Engineer at Raytheon and have been promoting and supporting ridesharing programs for the last 17 years. I think over this time, Raytheon has been able to make a significant reduction in air pollution and highway congestion in the North Texas region. I’ve found that folks in Texas are very reluctant to give up the flexibility of driving their own vehicle to work. In my experience, the three keys for a successful program are:

1. Ridesharing must be convenient (minimal waiting at pickup point, available close in parking at work, etc).
2. A few people will rideshare just to save money on their commute, but far more will participate if the employer provides some kind of financial subsidy.
3. Employer must be supportive of employee participation, such as allowing employees to leave work in time to  catch their vanpool.