Here’s How Employers Can Get Discount Transit Passes at Agencies Across the US

Most frequent transit riders already know that they can get a monthly pass to save money on each trip. But did you know many transit agencies in cities across the country offer even greater discounts when employers buy those monthly passes for their employees? Employees benefit from these discounts on top of their pre-tax advantage. And even if the agency doesn’t offer an employer discount, they probably have a program that makes it possible for employers to purchase and distribute bulk passes.

Why do transit agencies offer employer programs?

People traveling to work make up a significant share of daily commutes, and transit agencies long ago figured out to offer steep discounts to draw those riders to transit rather than their cars. King County Metro in Seattle has administered its employer discount program since 1993, and now over 60 percent of transit trips in the Puget Sound Region are made with an employer-provided pass.

These programs are valuable for employers, too. Kacey Brankamp, Program Director of the Downtown C-pass in Columbus, Ohio reports: “We heard from [employers] that offering the benefit helped with employee recruitment and retention… There were 17 companies that reported making leasing decisions based on this transit incentive. That’s a big deal in a place where overall transit use is so low.”

While employer programs were flourishing pre-pandemic, COVID changed how we commute, and transit agencies are getting more creative to bring back riders. With employers pushing Return to Office, these programs are drawing new attention in cities of all sizes. Let’s take a look at how different US agencies have built their employer discount programs.

‍

Flat discounts

Start simple: these agencies offer a special discount on employer passes that’s a better deal than the retail price.

Dallas DART: 25% off monthly passes
Portland TriMet: an annual pass for the cost of 11 months’ fare
Denver RTD: a tax credit to employers for 50% of the value each annual EcoPass they purchase.

Volume-based discounts

Some agencies offer steeper discounts for larger orders. The more people that sign up, the better the deal.

SF Muni. These bulk discounts are available to anyone, not just employers, making it easy for community organizations and event producers to recommend transit: 10% off orders of 100-499 items, 15% for 500-999, 20% off 1000 or more.
San Diego MTS. 10% for monthly orders of 25-100, 20% for 101-400, 25% for 401+.
Miami-Dade Transit. 10% for 4-99 monthly passes, 15% for 100+.
Atlanta MARTA. When employers purchase monthly passes for over 1500 employees, or buy them through a participating TMA regardless of size, the monthly passes receive a 20% discount.
Santa Clara VTA. Employers get a 50% discount on an annual pass if they have over 3000 enrolled participants. Their rate also varies by office location and whether they are a college, for-profit, or not-for-profit organization.

Usage-based pricing

More recently, some transit agencies have seen success with “usage-based pricing”. This is exactly what it sounds like: employers can offer unlimited subsidized transit to their employees, and only pay for the trips that employees actually take. Four agencies in the US have rolled our usage-based systems, and each one is a little different.

Philadelphia SEPTA Key Advantage: Employers pay SEPTA a fixed amount each month for every eligible employee, based on estimated ridership and a standard rate for each trip. SEPTA updates that estimate every six months based on actual average use.
LA Metro’s Employer Pass Program: Employers are billed the cash value of each employees’ trips at a standard rate, up to 80% of the cost of a monthly pass. This means employers always get at least a 20% discount on the cost of monthly passes, but the actual price is based on actual use.
TriMet’s Universal Annual Pass: Employees complete a survey each year to report their typical transit usage. TriMet applies that percentage to the cost of an annual pass. For example, if an employee commutes once a week, the employer would be billed 20% of the cost of an annual pass for that employee.
Denver RTD’s Bulk Mobile: Employers pay RTD $88 per employee at the start of each month. RTD refunds the employer for any unused value, based on a standard rate per trip.

Bulk passes without discounts

Other agencies don’t offer an additional discount, but they do offer the technology and processes that allow passes to be bought in bulk and distributed to employees.

Pass products

Monthly passes are only the beginning. Pre-pandemic, when so many people regularly commuted five days a week, monthly passes were all most employees needed. As the table below shows, monthly passes are still the standard, but some agencies have begun offering more flexible pass products in response to changing commuter needs.

‍

Institutional Pass Programs by Available Product Types

‍

Pass Distribution Made Simple

Want to offer passes to your employers, but not sure where to start? Jawnt works closely with many of the agencies above to complete the purchase and distribution processes on behalf of busy employers. Reach out to our team to learn more.

‍