Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit has contracted with the vanpooling company VPSI Inc. to provide a service where a group of people living in the same vicinity can ride to and from work together. Passengers can get their work done, relax or eat breakfast while saving money and helping the environment.

The service is geared towards people who work in Tompkins County, mostly at Ithaca College and Cornell University, and commute more than 30 miles round-trip each day.

VPSI, based out of Michigan, is the largest commuter vanpool provider in the country and caters to areas similar to Ithaca that promote sustainable practices.

A vanpool is a group of five to 14 people who commute together on a daily basis and one person serves as the primary driver. Drivers must be at least 25 years old and have a clean motor vehicle record. They are responsible for picking up and dropping off passengers on time at a mutual location along with completing a monthly report.

Besides a few basic rules, such as no smoking in the car or talking on cell phones while driving, Jesse Kafka, business development executive of VPSI, said the vanpool is purely self-organized.

“It’s an exercise in sharing because you share the cost, you share the driving, you share the rulemaking,” he said.

College employees will receive $20 a month towards the cost of vanpooling, a free college parking permit for the van, TCAT bus passes and a “Just in Case” Ithaca

Carshare membership. Currently, employees at the college can save even more if they sign up for the vanpooling service with incentives such as a $700 subsidy through TCAT.

The cost of the ride depends upon the amount of people in the vanpool and the distance they are commuting.

“The more people you have and the farther distance you commute, the more you’re going to save,” Kafka said.

VPSI will also provide a range of customer services including roadside assistance and emergency rides home.

Charlie Brundza, TCAT’s superintendent of operations, said interest in this program is already high.

“When we first put out the notice for this, we got 200 to 300 e-mails within a couple of weeks,” he said.

Marian Brown, special assistant to the provost and special projects assistant in the Sustainability Initiative, said vanpooling will be beneficial to many in Tompkins County.

“There are a number of people out in those communities who come in this far to come to work because IC is a great place to work,” she said. “[It’s] just a hard place to get to.”

Brown said the program will be another transportation option to use to get around Ithaca.

“I see it as another piece of the puzzle we are starting to address,” Brown said. “You’ve got Ithaca Carshare for people who live in Ithaca, you’ve got TCAT within the county, but this meets that next tier of people who are completely underserved.”

Finding a group of people to ride with can be done through word of mouth or through the VPSI Web site. There is an option on www.VanRide.com that aids those interested in the program to find others in their vicinity.

Kafka said the vanpooling option is a safe and easy way to get to work — a perfect match for the Ithaca community.   

“Right now in this economy, people are trying to figure out, ‘OK, how do I keep my car on the road longer?’” he said. “Here’s a good way — leave it at home.”

To sign up for a vanpool to commute to work, visit www.VanRide.com.