tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5666195730630249633.post7338969783586547567..comments2024-03-25T17:49:41.408-07:00Comments on Salem Breakfast on Bikes: In Media: Friday Newsbits on TransportationSalem Breakfast on Bikeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618055627843335993noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5666195730630249633.post-51544585932131927992013-01-11T21:46:57.421-08:002013-01-11T21:46:57.421-08:00I put it in quotes because it's not a real tax...I put it in quotes because it's not a real tax, in that only govt agencies would pay it, to another agency, with a 100% rebate, so the agencies that impose a lot of commuting demand on society would be payers, and agencies that reduce trip demand aggressively would be rewarded budgetarily.Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12731260619465817652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5666195730630249633.post-14866732068900855392013-01-11T11:02:33.638-08:002013-01-11T11:02:33.638-08:00"Market parking rate" sounds better than..."Market parking rate" sounds better than "commute tax" to me.Curtnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5666195730630249633.post-9946618003819272622013-01-11T08:31:10.069-08:002013-01-11T08:31:10.069-08:00We don't need a "radical" change eit...We don't need a "radical" change either ... A media scareword. If the top employers (state agencies and Salem hospital) applied some insight, not only could we eliminate rush minute but also get higher productivity, greater employee satisfaction, and better employee health. <br /><br />State government has really backslid terribly on commute trip reduction programs, and is basically deciding that it would rather jam the bridges twice a day than figure out how to deploy technology to support telework. There is such a leaden inertia crushing state government on ths. Management would far rather rent more space and spend money on moving bodies and cubes around than on telework and flextime, despite the myriad benefits. <br /><br />Ultimately what we need is a "commute tax," where state and local government employers have to pay ODOT a fee based on workforce size, office size, and commute distances -- a fee that goes into a fund that agencies can tap to pay for telework IT tools and training for managers on how to deploy telework (get the work done without having to drag people into an office daily for the roughly one hour a week when you actually talk to them), but also to pay for incentives for employees. The more intelligent the incentives, the more the agency can be a net beneficiary from the fund, instead of a net payer.Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12731260619465817652noreply@blogger.com