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Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) |
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The Washington State Legislature passed the Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) Law in 1991 to call on employers to encourage their workers to drive alone less often, reduce carbon emissions and keep the busiest commute routes flowing. Kitsap County and the cities within the county nominated Kitsap Transit to oversee and administer the program.
In 2006 legislators passed the CTR Efficiency Act, requiring local governments in urban area with traffic congestion to develop programs that reduce drive-alone trips and vehicle miles traveled per capita.
For two decades, CTR has proven an effective tool for easing congestion and operating our transportation system efficiently. By encouraging people to ride the bus, vanpool, carpool, walk, bike, work from home or compress their work week; CTR makes transportation better for the entire state.
CTR targets workplaces with 100 or more full-time employees in the most congested areas of the state. Employers develop and manage their own programs based on locally adopted goals for reducing vehicle trips and miles traveled.
Affected CTR
worksites are required to have an Employee Transportation Coordinator (ETC) on
site to encourage rideshare and administrate the employer’s CTR Program. To see
if your employer is affected by the CTR Efficiency Act, see the List of Employee
Transportation Coordinators.
Kitsap County has 28 CTR sites that are actively reducing congestion, air pollution and fuel consumption within Kitsap County. With the rising price of fuel and the expected growth in Kitsap County the importance of the CTR Program has greatly increased. The latest survey from 2009 showed Kitsap County had a 56.2 % drive-alone rate, which was 9.4% lower than the drive-alone rate from the 2007 survey. The next survey will be conducted in the spring of 2012.
In 2011, Kitsap County’s ETC and two of Kitsap County’s CTR-affected worksites were honored with Governor’s Commuter Smart Awards, which recognize the unsung heroes of start commuting. Lee Reyes received the ETC Champion Award for maintaining a robust CTR program among county employees despite the flagging economy and a shrinking county budget. The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Naval Intermediate Maintenance Facility worksites were honored with a Commute Smart Employer Champion Award. These two facilities, with a longstanding mission of supporting responsible commuting and a 48% drive-alone rate, provide employee incentives that support both the environmental benefits of public transit as well as local partnerships throughout the region. These employers and Ms. Reyes have glowing reputations as regional transportation problem solvers. They are leaders in the community by reducing traffic and cutting harmful emissions, which enhances the lives of people throughout the county.
Websites:
WSDOT CTR Site:
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Transit/CTR/default.htm
For more information, contact Lindsay Bailey at 360-479-6961.
| Updated:
August 10, 2012
Phone: (360) 373-2877 or 1-800-501-RIDE |
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