Greasing the wheels of commuting

General Article
October 17, 2002

Center goes beyond city, state requirements to ease the trip to and from work for faculty and staff

The Hutch Pass, subsidized 100 percent by the center, is the cornerstone of Fred Hutchinson's efforts to encourage non-single-car commutes. Photo by Todd McNaught

By BRAD BROBERG

It's no accident that the supply and demand for parking on the Day Campus maintains a delicate balance.

Steered by city and state requirements, Fred Hutchinson's Transportation Department uses a busload of carrots and sticks - and goes beyond the call of gridlock - to satisfy the needs of faculty and staff while supporting regional efforts to coax more commuters out of their cars.

"The biggest thing I'd like faculty and staff to understand is that we're always trying to find new ways to help them improve their commute," said Shelly DaRonche, transportation manager.

"Some people who have been here a long time may have forgotten all of the options available to them."

DaRonche's department makes available three main services for the center and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance:

• It runs the shuttle-bus system.
• It manages parking.
• It promotes alternate ways for faculty and staff to commute other than by car.

Subsidized transit fares are the cornerstone of the center's alternate-commute program. They're also a city mandate, as Seattle requires the center to include a 50 percent subsidy for transit passes in a Transportation Management Plan that the city requires as part of the permitting process for new construction.

One step further

The center, however, goes a step further. The Hutch Pass provides a 100 percent subsidy.

"I don't think people realize we are only required to provide a 50 percent subsidy for transit passes," DaRonche noted.

The Hutch Pass is valid at all times in all zones on Metro, Community Transit, Pierce Transit and Sound Transit. A separate pass covers ferries from Kitsap County and Kitsap Transit.

"The Hutch Pass is a huge benefit," DaRonche said.

How huge? Just one monthly two-zone pass from Metro alone costs $72.

About 2,000 faculty and staff have a Hutch Pass. Besides helping the center meet the city's requirements, the Hutch Pass acts as a benefit that helps recruit and retain faculty and staff and makes it easier to attract those who live outside the city, DaRonche said.

Plus, she said, taking the bus is more dependable than driving when it comes to getting to work on time.

Parking is another element of city requirements. Even if it had enough room, the center could not provide free parking for everyone.

The city requires the center to charge for parking, limit the number of spaces and dedicate a certain quantity to visitors, disabled drivers and car- and vanpoolers.

"We don't just arbitrarily pick these numbers," DaRonche said. "The city designates them. They want to encourage alternate-commute modes."

Right now, some monthly parking remains available, but that frequently changes, DaRonche said.

"We're not at capacity, but we're always close," she said.

Trip-reduction law

In addition to satisfying the city stipulations, DaRonche said the center also must comply with the Washington State Commute Trip Reduction law, which, among other things, encourages employers to support alternate-commute promotions such as the annual Bike to Work Day.

"I don't think most people know how much of what we do is guided by regulations," she said.

Fortunately, however, by satisfying city demands, the center also meets many state requirements.

DaRonche, who joined the center 13 years ago as a program assistant, became transportation manager six years ago.

Since then, the growing volume of city and state reporting requirements, along with ongoing construction on the Day Campus, has created constant challenges.

Ahead lies the arrival of 825 more faculty and staff and many more study participants when the Public Health Sciences Building is completed in early 2004.

Right now, those people can park in Met Park garages. But while the new PHS building also will feature an underground garage, DaRonche anticipates that some PHS faculty and staff who now drive to work will want to consider other ways to commute when they move to the Day Campus.

DaRonche will meet with those faculty and staff in the fall of 2003 to discuss options.

With so many more people working daily on campus, she anticipates putting together more car- and vanpools.

"We'll put some real effort into making sure the PHS faculty and staff know how to connect with the people who are already here," she said.

Work with Metro

What's more, DaRonche works closely with Metro King County to improve and expand service to the Day Campus.

"Having a larger block of faculty and staff in one place makes it easier to get better service," she said.

DaRonche also is talking to officials with the proposed monorail project and Sound Transit's light-rail line as they plan routes and stations that may pass near the center.

"We want to make sure those folks know we're here," she said.

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Two measures on Nov. 5 ballot promise to improve traffic flow

By BRAD BROBERG

Every day, Fred Hutchinson faculty and staff deal with a challenging mission - the fight against cancer.

But before they can tackle that challenge, they must face another - the fight against traffic.

While the center supports programs that encourage alternate ways to commute, most people still take their cars to work. And there's little the center can do to relieve the gridlock they endure every day.

"The whole Puget Sound region is just paralyzed," said Shelly DaRonche, transportation manager.

However, that doesn't mean the situation is hopeless. Two measures on the Tuesday, Nov. 5, ballot aim to ease the region's transportation headaches.

Statewide proposal

Referendum 51 is a statewide proposal that aims to improve safety on some of the state's most dangerous roads and bridges, reduce congestion and increase funding for public transportation. R-51 identifies a list of projects, ranging from completing carpool lanes on Interstate 5 between Everett and Tacoma to fixing chokepoints on I-405.

Funding would come from a 1 percent surcharge on vehicle purchases, weight-fee increases for trucks heavier than 10,000 pounds (excluding pickups and recreational vehicles) and a 9-cent-per-gallon gas-tax increase phased in more than two years. For someone driving 12,000 miles a year at 24 miles per gallon, R-51's gas-tax increase would cost $45 a year.

Monorail measure

In Seattle, voters also will decide whether to build a 14-mile monorail line that would run from West Seattle through downtown Seattle to Ballard.

City residents would pay a 1.4 percent vehicle excise tax to fund construction of the $1.29 billion line. The annual cost to the owner of a vehicle valued at $15,000 would be $210.

If voters OK the measure, the Seattle Elevated Transportation Company, a Public Development Authority created in a previous election, will complete the central portion of the line in 2007, with each end to follow by 2009.

Unlike other businesses and organizations, the center does not rely on the region's transportation system to move products back and forth.

However, the center's faculty and staff, not to mention patients and their families, do rely on it to get to and from work and to travel between sites while at work.

Congestion creates uncertainty and frustration for commuters, which can affect productivity, DaRonche said. In addition, clogged city streets have forced her to add travel time to shuttle schedules.

With that in mind, anything that promises to improve traffic flow is a potential benefit to the center, DaRonche said.

DaRonche urges faculty and staff to study the two measures and vote Nov. 5.

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