Rideshare Rewards

Form a new King County Metro vanpool or vanshare and get a $50 MasterCard Rewards Card for each role!

• $50 for new riders
• $50 for new primary or back-up drivers
• $50 for new primary bookkeeper

Mix and match roles and earn more — up to $150! Rewards are only for new participants assigned to a new group at the time it starts.  Eligible participants may not have been in any other public vanpool program within the past 90 days.  Offer ends December 31, 2012 or until funding runs out.

Find riders for your new vanpool or vanshare at RideshareOnline.com.

Call 206-625-4500 or email with any questions.

Every month in 2012, 50 lucky winners will win a $50 MasterCard Rewards Card just for sharing the ride!

Simply start carpooling or participating in a van commute at least seven times a month (that's less than twice a week). Track your commute using the RideshareOnline.com calendar and you will automatically be entered into the monthly drawing.

Looking for a carpool partner or an existing commuter van to join?  RideshareOnline.com can help. Register for your free account at RideshareOnline.com and this ridematching tool will securely match your trip with other registered co-workers or commuters who have a similar commute.

This promotion is open to new or existing carpool, vanpool and vanshare participants who live or work in King County.  Drawings will be held on the 5th of each month, or the first business day after. The last drawing will be held on January 7, 2013 for December's commute calendar.

The Commute Coach is the coordinator of the new vanpool or vanshare while the group is forming. The coach recruits commuters, organizes the group and assists the team to cross the finish line in their new commuter van. Earn a $100 MasterCard Rewards Card for organizing your new Metro vanpool or vanshare today!

Our first ever Commuter's Choice Awards have come to a close. We had an overwhelming response. After pouring over 300 nominations, we painstakingly narrowed the field down to 5, and left the voting up to you. The results are below! A special thanks to all of our nominators, our nominees, and all of our drivers, bookkeepers, and riders who keep our program rolling so smoothly down the road. We appreciate all of you.

1. 1st Place - Barbara B.
   The rider nomination for Barbara B includes an amazing profile. In addition to driving a 12-Passenger van 55 miles every day from N.Seattle to REI in Kent Barbara makes vanpooling sound irresistible. So irresistible, her riders call her the 'van mom'.
   
   Here are some highlights. Barbara knows all the side street and road closures to get around traffic. She makes sure no one gets left behind. She not only keeps track of who is working when, she also keeps track of birthdays and life milestones like organizing a group wedding gift. She routinely turns the radio up for the morning comedy routine.
   
   Barbara keeps track of weather, and makes sure everyone makes it in to work safely on snowy days. She also keeps track of local happenings. In fact, on the first day of the viaduct closer, she arrived with water bottles, muffins and handi-wipes, to deal with the delay!
   
   Barbara ends the morning commute by saying "Have a fun day!" to each person… and MEANS it!! And all this has been going on since 2001. Amazing!
2. 2nd Place – Debra S.
   Some might call Debra a 'musher'. Since 2000 she has driven a vanpool that travels 210 miles in a 12-Passenger van over Snoqualmie Pass from Thorp to Seattle and back each day. Debra is described as democratic, organized and a team builder. Debra keeps track of the back-up driver roster and runs an on-time schedule with a half-dozen pick-up and drop-off points. Riders don't have long waits or get left behind. Despite construction delays, wandering wildlife, avalanches and roadside tire chain drills it is said that Debra drives a 'mellow' group in a drama-free zone. This helps her riders get to work with no stress and back home in a peaceful manner so that they can deal with their jobs or families.
   
   Debra, however, says that it is her riders that make things easy for her. Debra says riders are 'family'. She credits the unfailing dedication of the guys in the van for putting on tire changes in terrible conditions. When it snows on the pass Debra says she goes into 'snow mode' and slows down for safety. During the stressful conditions Debra appreciates that the riders give her continual reassurance her that she is doing a great job.
   
   GIN 1413 is a great example of how a team is nurtured by shared dedication and great people. Having a driver who has mastered 'snow mode' driving is helpful, too!
3. 3rd Place – James O.
   James is a poster-child for what Metro wants in a driver - always on time, handles all of the van maintenance for our group, established clear guidelines for our van, keeps the gas tank full and the van clean at all times. All this, plus he is a lot of fun as a driver, always showing up with the radio on, on Thursdays its tuned to classic hits of the 80s!
   
   We can seemingly set our clocks by James' driving, he is so reliable. He's made my first vanpool riding/back-up driving experience so positive that I'm now a walking brochure in support of vanpooling!
   
   In addition, he keeps the tone in the van very lighthearted and filled with laughter; always ensures backup drivers are plugged in and successful so we don't forget anyone; is organized & does a stellar job of taking note of mileage details for the bookkeeper.
   
   I'm not sure how he has time to do it all with a family (w/ 4 kids!) and being an avid runner (his goal for 2012 is to run a half marathon once a month…he's still on track!). James is a Rockstar!!

---

More Commuter's Choice Awards coming soon, get connected at:

• Facebook or
• Twitter

Call 206-625-4500 or email with questions.