Countywide : OCTD Plans to Lend Vans for Ride Sharing

By the end of this year, weary Orange County commuters may find it easier to join van pools at work because the Orange County Transit District will loan vans to increase ride sharing.

Under a plan approved Monday by district board members, OCTD’s Commuter Network program will loan the vans from an 11-vehicle “seed fleet” that will be bought for about $200,000. However, gasoline costs will be borne by passengers, and each rider will have to pay a daily or monthly fare based on the length of the trip. The fees and gasoline expenses are expected to total no more than what existing van pools cost an average rider when vans are full--usually $3.70 to $5.35 per day for trips ranging from 30 to 150 miles.

The purpose of the program, board members said, is to increase the number of van pools being formed by making it less costly and risky to start them and keep them going.

Commuter Network has helped start nearly half of the county’s 186 known van pools, district officials said. The vans in these groups carry about 2,000 passengers daily, and each van pool is self supporting or partially subsidized by an employer, according to OCTD.

The first seven vans of the 11-vehicle seed fleet will be ordered in October, officials said.