If you’re a fan of carpooling, the  Rhode Island Public Transit Authority’s (RIPTA) vanpool partnership with Commute With Enterprise might be right up your alley. Rhode Island’s program is currently serving 177 individuals and saving people approximately $6,000 a year. The ride is convenient, economical and a greener alternative to driving alone.

According to RIPTA Marketing Manager Erminio Conte, there are currently 27 vanpool vehicles on the road within Rhode Island. The company is looking to increase that number to 30 by the end of 2023 and expand into other areas of the state.

“We try to infiltrate areas where companies do not have a lot of transit,” said Conte.

Commute With Enterprise Sales Executive Shaughn Earle said that, for vanpool users, Enterprise will match five to 15 people commuting to the same facility each day. Individuals can either come up with a centralized meeting location or have one person house the vehicle and pick individuals up along the way. Those vanpooling will determine their route, who’s driving and vehicle type.

“We have the benefit of being the largest rental car company in the world and have the opportunity to always have new model vehicles,” said Earle. “So even right now, we have 2023’s available.”

The company has seven, 12 and 15 passenger vehicles.

“Everyone’s splitting the cost of fuel, splitting the cost of the program so now – instead of five to 15 people commuting by themselves – we’re matching them all up and saving carbon footprint, CO2 emissions and reducing the number of cars on the road every single day,” Earle said.

Vanpool’s rates are set per person. For instance, someone vanpooling in a minivan in Rhode Island would pay $200 a month to participate in the program. However, RIPTA offers a $100 subsidy, so individuals end up paying half the original cost.

“As far as I know, most people are spending around $100 every week just to get to some places in Rhode Island,” Earle said.

The Commute with Enterprise vanpool program operates across 48 states. On an annual basis, the company’s vanpool has reduced 1 billion commuter miles – taking 45,000 individual vehicles off the road nationwide. The program has also been able to reduce 812 million pounds of CO2 emissions every single year through this program.

RIPTA CEO Scott Avedisian added that vanpool gives RIPTA more options to get people out of their cars and into a bus service or ride sharing.

“Vanpool allows us to get into smaller niche markets,” said Avedisian.

He added that the program is letting businesses tell RIPTA where their employees live, where they can gather together and how RIPTA can help get them to where they need to be.

The program could also be a game changer for those without licenses or a vehicle; this form of transportation is a way for individuals to open up new horizons and get to a job beyond their walking or biking distance.

“Right now with the companies we really work with across the United States, a lot of people are targeting refugee organizations or second chance employers,” Earle said.

Conte said once other employees see vanpool happening at their facility, that really stimulates other employees to know more about the program.

Earle added that 90 percent of vanpools come to fruition because of word of mouth.

“We’re really excited about the vanpooling because we think we can really grow this to something that would make it a viable option for a lot of individuals going to work,” said Conte.

He added that, by the end of the year, RIPTA would like to get an additional 20 to 40 people into the program – totaling to 30 vehicles. Prior to the pandemic, there were 50 vanpool vehicles operating within the state.

Conte added that this program is something extra in employers’ pockets that they can offer to employees as benefits. If individuals are using vanpool, they are eligible to receive two emergency rides a year, so people do not feel anxious about not having their personal vehicle in an emergency situation. Users can call an Uber or taxi within 100 miles and submit the bill to RIPTA. Sometimes RIPTA increases this number of emergency rides or the employer decides to match RIPTA’s rate. 

In addition to saving money, vanpool saves people from burn out; say goodbye to the headache of road rage, maintaining your own vehicle, rising fuel costs, maintenance and insurance.

Vanpool needs at least five people in a vehicle. Individuals or companies interested in additional information on the vanpool program can visit Commute with Enterprise’s website (www.commutewithenterprise.com) or RIPTA’s website (www.ripta.com/vanpool/).