32.40.050 CTR requirements for affected employers

32.40.050 CTR requirements for affected employers.

(1) Affected employers are required to make a CTR good faith effort to develop and implement CTR programs that will encourage their employees to reduce VMT per employee and proportion of SOV commute trips. In order to satisfy implementation requirements the following time limits shall apply:

(a) Affected employers shall have six months from the effective date of this chapter to submit CTR programs to DPW. Newly affected employers shall have six months from the date they become newly affected employers to submit CTR programs to DPW.

(b) Affected employers shall have six months from the date of their initial CTR program submittal to implement approved CTR programs as evidenced by appointment of an employee transportation coordinator, distribution of information to employees regarding alternatives to SOV commuting and commencement of other measures according to the affected employer’s CTR program.

(c) Affected employers shall have six months from the date of their annual progress report submittal to implement modifications of their CTR programs.

(2) Every two years, affected employers are required to measure progress towards the CTR goals in reducing VMT per employee and SOV commute trips. Affected employers will measure progress through employee surveys using forms provided by the county or through equivalent data approved by the county. Base-year measurements are required of newly affected employers. CTR goals by zone and year are shown in Table 1.

CTR ZONE A -- Rural North and East Zone
Measurement Goal	Year	Newly Affected	% Goal Reductions	VMT/Employee	SOV%
0	1992 (Base)	Year 0		7.7	82%
1	1995	Year 2	15%	6.5	69%
2	1997	Year 4	20%	6.1	65%
3	1999	Year 6	25%	5.7	61%
4	2001	Year 8	25%	5.7	61%
5	2003	Year 10	25%	5.7	61%
6	2005	Year 12	35%	5.0	53%

CTR ZONE B -- Southwest Zone
Measurement Goal	Year	Newly Affected	% Goal Reductions	VMT/Employee	SOV%
0	1992 (Base)	Year 0		7.3	82%
1	1995	Year 2	15%	6.2	69%
2	1997	Year 4	20%	5.8	65%
3	1999	Year 6	25%	5.4	61%
4	2001	Year 8	25%	5.4	61%
5	2003	Year 10	25%	5.4	61%
6	2005	Year 12	35%	4.7	53%

CTR ZONE C -- Everett-Mukilteo Zone
Measurement Goal	Year	Newly Affected	% Goal Reductions	VMT/Employee	SOV%
0	1992 (Base)	Year 0		8.5	80%
1	1995	Year 2	15%	7.2	68%
2	1997	Year 4	20%	6.8	64%
3	1999	Year 6	25%	6.3	60%
4	2001	Year 8	25%	6.3	60%
5	2003	Year 10	25%	6.3	60%
6	2005	Year 12	35%	5.5	52%

(3) A CTR program must contain the following three basic elements.

(a) Designated Employee Transportation Coordinator. This measure refers to the designation of an Employee Transportation Coordinator (ETC) by an affected employer to manage the implementation and ongoing operation of the CTR programs.

(i) Affected employers must designate at least one ETC for every affected worksite and post the ETC’s name in a conspicuous location.

(ii) Typical tasks for the ETC include analyzing the organization’s transportation needs and making program recommendations to management, actively matching employees who wish to rideshare, coordinating production and distribution of promotional materials, maintaining the commuter information bulletin board, selling passes, organizing promotional activities, managing parking programs, conducting employee surveys, maintaining commuter data, maintaining records, coordinating annual program review, and filing the annual report.

(b) Transportation Information Distribution. The employer must provide to employees periodic information on ridesharing, public transportation and other alternatives to driving alone, and information on the benefits of the employer’s CTR program. Information distribution can include, but is not limited to, brochures, flyers, company newsletter articles, electronic mail and/or announcements. Level of effort will depend on the size of the company and the number of employees.

(c) Employer Annual Report and Program Description. Each affected employer’s program must include an annual review of employee commuting and of progress and CTR good faith efforts toward meeting the CTR goals.

(i) Each affected employer shall prepare and submit the report on a form provided by the county.

(ii) In the report, the affected employer will indicate which CTR measures comprised its CTR program during the previous year, any modifications of its CTR program for the next year, the results of measurements (i.e., employee surveys or equivalent data) during measurement years, information about the ETC, and information about the worksite.

(4) Additional Measures. A CTR program shall also include additional measures aimed at reducing commute trips and helping to achieve the applicable CTR goals. Affected employers are encouraged to consider innovative measures and strategies and combine program measures in a manner that will best suit their location, site characteristics, business type, and employee commuting needs. Additional measures may include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following:

(a) Restrictions on Parking Availability. This measure entails a reduction in the supply of parking spaces provided on-site for employees. Restrictions could also involve limiting employee parking to a specific number of spaces and to specific locations to prevent parking in undesignated areas and prevent unintentional increases in parking availability.

(b) Teleworking. This measure refers to programs by affected employers that use telephones, computers, or other similar technology to permit an employee to work from home, eliminating a commute trip, or to work from a place closer to home, reducing the distance traveled in a commute trip by at least one half.

(c) Modified or Flexible Work Schedules. This measure would entail changes in employee schedules to reduce commute trips or facilitate ridesharing.

(i) Commute trips can be reduced through compressed work weeks that regularly allow full-time employees to eliminate at least one day every two weeks by working longer hours during the remaining workdays.

(ii) Peak period commute trips can be eliminated through shifted trips by modifying work schedules such that the regular workday begins before 6:00 a.m. or after 9:00 a.m.

(iii) Ridesharing and transit use can be facilitated through the offering of flexible schedules which allow employees to shift starting and ending times to meet rideshare partners or meet bus schedules.

(d) Guaranteed Ride Home. This measure entails the provision of taxi rides or other guaranteed rides home to employees (non-SOV commuters) who are called away from work unexpectedly by emergencies or other unforeseen circumstances. The program could also apply to employees who have to work unscheduled overtime. Employees are thus more able to rideshare or use transit because they will not need to have a car at work in case of emergencies.

(e) Enhanced Promotions and Marketing. This measure refers to promotions in addition to the basic semi-annual promotions. Enhanced promotions are usually more narrow in focus and select a specific target group. Increased marketing activities and more frequent targeted promotions enhance employee awareness of commute options.

(f) Commute Information Center. This measure refers to a permanent display of information explaining commute modes and transportation programs available to employees at the site. The center typically includes pockets for transit route information, brochures, and an area to display posters and flyers. It should be located in a prominent location such as the employer’s lobby, coffee area or lunch room.

(g) Participate in transportation management organizations (TMOs). This measure refers to participation by affected employers in local TMOs or transportation management associations (TMAs). These organizations are made up of groups of employers within a specific geographic area such as a city or business park. TMOs provide a forum for transportation issues, a network for employers involved in CTR programs and a clearinghouse for information and ideas.

(h) Bicycle Facilities (e.g., lockers and/or showers). This measure refers to capital provisions to facilitate commuting by bicyclists other than simple racks. Such facilities could include bicycle lockers which provide greater security and protection for bicycles and facilities for bicyclists to shower and change clothes before starting work.

(i) Preferential High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) and Bicycle Parking. This measure entails reserving or designating convenient or even covered parking close to building entrances for carpool and vanpool vehicles and providing bicycle racks in a safe and secure location near building entrances. Bicycle parking would preferably be covered and afford security from theft.

(j) Dedicated ETC. This measure refers to provision of at least a half-time person (20 hours/week) dedicated exclusively to CTR program activities. Affected employers of more than 3,000 affected employees would need at least a full-time ETC. The ETC would attend all mandatory training and attend other special workshops as they became available.

(k) Subsidize Bus Service. This measure refers to employer provision of free or subsidized bus passes to encourage employees to use buses already scheduled on routes near the employment site.

(l) Subsidized Ridesharing. This measure entails a financial contribution by the affected employer to defray the fuel, parking or insurance costs of employee carpools or vanpools.

(m) Provisions of Vans for Vanpooling. This measure is differentiated from subsidized ridesharing in that it involves the actual purchasing and/or leasing, operation, and maintenance of passenger vans for use by employees for commuting to work.

(n) Design or Redesign Site for Transit and HOV Compatibility. This measure refers to capital improvements at the employment site to provide better access for buses and/or rideshare vehicles. Examples include providing main entrances with covered loading zones for conveniently picking up or dropping off passengers or re-striping parking lots to allow buses to easily access the worksite.

(o) Redesign Site for Pedestrian and Bicycle Accessibility and Circulation. This measure refers to capital improvements at worksites to provide better access for pedestrians or bicyclists. An example might be building a commuter trail that directly accesses the employment site from an adjacent regional trail.

(p) Construct Transit/Rideshare Shelters or Loading Areas. This measure refers to capital improvements at the employment site or at nearby bus stops to provide covered, comfortable, and secure waiting and loading areas for transit or rideshare users.

(q) Monetary Incentives. This measure refers to any employer-provided monetary incentives intended to encourage persons to commute other than by driving alone. An example is the commuter allowance which gives each employee a fixed monthly allowance for commuting costs which is used in conjunction with parking charges for persons driving alone.

(r) Instituting or Increasing Parking Charges. This measure refers to any employer programs to charge for parking at the employment site, including provisions for differential rate structures for SOVs and HOVs which provide incentives for persons to use HOVs.

(s) Employer Vehicles for Employee Ridesharing. This measure refers to the provision of employer-owned vehicles to groups of employees who agree to carpool to and from work.

(t) Ridematching Program (Personalized/Regional). Affected employers are encouraged to implement a combination of "in-house" ridematching and "regional" ridematching. An affected employer’s in-house ridematching would match employees with other employees interested in carpooling or vanpooling. This effort would be scaled to the size of the employer and thus could involve computer processing of ridematch requests or be as simple as a list of names and zip codes that the ETC could use to match employees. The emphasis is on personalized attention to the employee’s ongoing transportation needs and attempting to match them with a fellow employee with compatible travel needs. The employer’s ridematch program will also include utilization of the Regional Ridematch System. With the consent of the individual employee, information for ridematching will be entered into the regional matching program via Community Transit.

(u) Other Innovative Measures. Affected employers are encouraged to try other innovative trip reduction measures not found in the list above.

(5) A CTR program must also include the following minimum requirements:

(a) a general description of the employment site location, transportation characteristics, and surrounding services, including unique conditions experienced by the affected employer or its employees;

(b) the number of employees affected by the CTR program;

(d) documentation of intent to implement additional measures;

(e) and commitment to provide appropriate resources.

(6) Affected employers shall maintain all records of their CTR program for a minimum of 48 months. (Added by Ord. 92-163, Feb. 24, 1993; Amended by Ord. 93-140, Dec. 20, 1993, Eff date Dec. 30, 1993; Amended by Ord. 99-018 § 6, Mar. 24, 1999, Eff date Apr. 5, 1999).