Episode 10: Commuting Options into Downtown Sacramento

Thanks for having us.

Absolutely.

Cheryl, we're gonna start with you.

First, for people who may not know, what is the 50 Corridor TMA and what's its role in our region?

Yeah, thanks for that.

The 50 Corridor TMA is a nonprofit organization.

And basically, what we do is help people walk, bike, carpool, and take transit more.

And we work with about 90,000 workers in the Sacramento region, most of whom work downtown, most of whom work for state agencies.

But then, we also work with about 90,000 residents of Sac County along the US 50 Corridor.

in the city of Rancho Cordova, Folsom, and then parts of the unincorporated county.

And we were talking before we got started recording, and the 50 corridor is really a little bit of a misnomer because you cover a broader bit of geography these days, right? Can you tell me about that?

Yes.

The name is left over from when we were mostly focused on the 50 corridor, but we've merged with another organization, the Sacramento TMA, to serve all these downtown workers.

And so we're in the process of changing the name.

But we are helping people regardless of where you're coming from.

If you're trying to commute downtown, we're a resource for you, and especially if your workplace is a member of our organization.

Okay.

So how many people are using the service now? I mean, actually using the service to commute.

And have you seen an uptick recently because of state workers coming back to the office more?

Yeah, because state workers are getting their transit passes through their employer, I don't have the numbers on that.

But one of the services we provide to our members is called Guaranteed Ride.

And so, for these workplace members, if something happens with their sustainable commute, so if they are taking transit to work, or if they're walking, biking, or carpooling, they can call an Uber or a Lyft, and we will pay for it.

Five times a year, up to $50 per trip, we'll reimburse them.

So we have seen an uptick in our workplace members using guaranteed ride, which means they're going into the office more, they're using sustainable modes to commute, and sometimes things happen, like your kid is sick, you gotta pick them up, or you're sick, or your carpool buddy is sick, or sometimes the train get gets canceled or things like that and for these reasons we're supporting people with that service

so that's one of the specific services you you offer the guaranteed ride what what other alternatives do you offer to people who you know are coming in more more frequently but really just don't want to get stuck in traffic or have to figure out parking or whatever