New vanpool drivers makes vanpool formation easy. A few grant programs in King County wanted to increase the number of vanpool drivers. They offered more substantial subsidies and incentives to people who were willing to take on this additional responsibility. But once they had found drivers, getting passengers to ride in them was relatively easy. At least 11 new vanpools were formed as a result of driver reward programs.
Ridematch campaigns work best when done in conjunction with a relocation or a subsidy enhancement.
Worksites with long established CTR programs often have difficulty finding new members for their in-house ridematching system or for the regional ridematch database. In order to increase the number of people who register for a ridematch, the ETC must offer a substantial incentive to attract more registrants. The best time to conduct a ridematch campaign is when an employer is moving to a new worksite, since this will affect employee travel patterns and may produce matches with other employees in the vicinity of the new site. Make sure the requested grant amount is substantial enough to meet the program objectives. Several recipients surprised at the amount of work it takes to offer an incentive program found that the value of their staff time far surpassed that of the grant amount.