News

Robins Ride Share program offers numerous incentives for carpoolers

  • Published
  • By Holly Birchfield
  • 78th ABW/PA
Robins Air Force Base, GA --  Several Robins employees are saving on gas and making money with the Ride Share program.

Since its inception, the carpool and vanpool program, which started with its first informational event at the base's Avionics Complex in October 2007, has drawn about 1,500 civilian, military, and contractor employees to carpooling and vanpooling to work at Robins, the largest industrial complex in Georgia.

Roosevelt Robinson, an electronics mechanic in the 402nd Electronics Maintenance Group, has been carpooling for five years and is one of the many people taking advantage of the program. He decided to sign up for the program because it would save him money.

"Carpooling really helps as far as saving money on gas," he said. "It saves money, plus it helps the economy and the environment. I live in Dublin, and I would recommend it to anyone who lives far away like I do."

Other incentives like Cash for Commuters, which gives carpoolers $3 for each work day they ride together, and the Commuter Rewards Program, which enters people who log their carpool usage in a monthly drawing for a $25 Visa gift card, are just a few items that keep people rolling in to work together.

The program is benefiting Robins physically as well.

Bob Farrell, deputy base civil engineer in the 78th Civil Engineer Group, said the program is doing a lot for the base's infrastructure.

"This is a program that is implemented across the state, and the primary driver here is to cut down on the traffic congestion and provide an environment with cleaner air, but there are also additional benefits for Robins," he said.

Mr. Farrell said with a typical traffic flow of about 14,000 vehicles coming on base each work day, the high volume of traffic puts a requirement on roads, parking, traffic lights and other infrastructure. This program has helped cut back on that strain.

Mike Williams, director of programs and employer services for the Clean Air Campaign, said ride sharing is a good way to get to know others as well.

"In addition to all of these benefits from a financial standpoint and an environmental standpoint, it's just fun," he said. "When people start sharing the ride, they realize that there's a social aspect to it and it's a lot more fun making that drive with a friend than making it by yourself."

Mr. Williams said the ride share program is growing.

"We've been doing ride share programs like this for the past 10 years in what's called the 'nonattainment' portions of Georgia that have consistently failed the air quality standards," he said. "You could think of that as the 20-county area around Atlanta. So, we've been doing these programs with the larger employers in that area for some time. It's just in 2007 that we've started branching out to the rest of Georgia."

Mr. Williams said the Clean Air Campaign is currently working with Robins and Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga.. His organization is also discussing the program with Fort Gordon in Augusta, Ga.

Kristin Slaton, Employer Services Program manager for the Clean Air Campaign in downtown Atlanta who oversees a 15-person team that visits bases like Robins, said she and the team have been impressed with people's interest.

"For all of the events and all of the locations that they've set up, we've been amazed by the response that we've gotten from the employees," she said. "The base has people coming from so many different places and varying distances and there are people that drive a very long way to get in to work. So, we've had a high level of interest at all of our events."

Mrs. Slaton said it's not too late to enroll in the program.

"The initial step is to fill out an application and find out who lives near you so you can be carpooling and vanpooling," she said. "That's kind of a one-time, easy thing. You can also request updated ride match lists to see if anyone else in your area has been added into the database."

To register for the Ride Share Program, visit www.logyourcommute.com/teamrobins. Registration allows people to find out about base employees that live near them and work similar hours. Registration does not obligate people to participate. For more information, visit the Ride Share Web site listed above or call 1-877-253-2624 (CLEAN AIR).