By MIKE HUFFMAN
Staff Reporter
Vanpool rates will go up next month, and Spokane Transit Authority officials say they don't plan on losing any of the existing users.
That report was given at July's regular meeting of the STA board of directors just prior to a unanimous vote to raise the rates.
No one spoke out either for or against the proposal, which amounts to a 13 to 20 percent increase, depending on the classification.
Vanpool riders – who use the service to commute to work – have paid the same flat mileage rate since the program started in 1992. In April, users were sent a letter stating that the rate structure would have to go up to help cover operating costs.
Under the new plan, vanpool riders will pay a fixed monthly fee, regardless of mileage. Then, a mileage-based assessment will be added for fuel maintenance and insurance costs.
Different users going to and from work in their own vans will pay different rates, depending on the number of riders in the pool and the number of miles traveled. Under the existing plan, those in groups of 12 traveling 30 miles a day round trip would individually pay $23 apiece. Under the new rules, those same riders will each pay $27.92 through December – after that they will pay $31.57 each from then on.
As a bonus, vanpool riders will receive a Smart Card bus pass that is good for unlimited travel on any bus and any route in the STA system.
Mike Huffman can be reached at [email protected]
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