Vanpool

 

 

How does vanpool work?

A vanpool is like a carpool except it holds more people, typically a group of 5 to 15 people who commute to and from work together in a van or SUV. Vanpoolers usually meet at a central location that suits everyone.

The van itself is leased and paid for by the riders, with the primary driver being the leaseholder. Typically the lease is month-to-month, unless you want it for longer at a reduced rate.  Vendors have competitive pricing that includes a complete service package, vehicle registration, insurance and maintenance.

Typically vanpools cost between $150-$225/month per person plus gas, but SLOCOG can cover up to 50% of this cost for qualifying vanpools (up to $700). See our Vanpool Vendors page for more information.

In some vanpools, everyone takes turns driving; in others, passengers cover the full commute costs of the driver. Division of cost is up to the vanpoolers. Drivers of vehicles with 11 to 15 passengers must get a DMV medical. The cost for this certification is dependent on insurance, without it is typically $200.

Rideshare provides up to a 50% subsidy per month for vanpools that have a minimum of 50% average occupancy, have an origin or destination within San Luis Obispo County and fill out and sign the vanpool application. Vanpool captains are required to log their vanpool trips each month, in addition to providing a list of all of the vanpool riders, mileage reports, and information about your commute such as origin and destination details.

How do I start a vanpool?

  1. Get a group of 5 people who have a similar schedule, and are coming from around the same location.  Pick a meetup spot (parking lot, park’n’ride…etc).
  2. All vanpool members including the captain need to fill out a Vanpool Rider Agreement found here.
  3. Vanpool captain fills out the Vanpool Application found here.
  4. Vanpool decides on size and type of van and contacts the vendor for leasing options and pricing:
  5. Rideshare will approve the application to the vendor and let the captain know.
  6. Vendor and vanpool captain coordinate the delivery of vehicle and how monthly payments will work (they will have their own lease contract, signed by the vanpool captain).
  7. Vendor will invoice Rideshare for 50% of the vanpool cost.

How do I join an existing vanpool?

There are three ways to join an existing vanpool:

  • You may hear about a vanpool from coworkers or friend and directly contact the vanpool captain. If you don’t have their contact information but you do have their name, you can email infro@rideshare.org to find out how to get in touch.
  •  You could fill out our vanpool interest form and the Rideshare team will see if there is an opening in an existing van that meets your schedule.
  • You can look at the existing vanpools in iRideshare.org and identify if any of the routes would work for your schedule and if there are open seats in the vans.

What vanpool vendors are available?

Commute with Enterprise

Contact: Myra Banuelos, myra.i.banuelos@ehi.com

Ventura Transit System

Contact: Sara Pontecchi, sarap@venturatransit.com

How much does it cost?

Vanpool costs depend on a few things: monthly mileage, size of vehicle, type of vehicle, extra features. Costs are also impacted by the number of riders in the vehicle and gas prices because the lease cost and gas is split between the riders.  Before the riders are charged for the monthly lease, Rideshare covers 50% of the lease cost of up to $700.

For example: if your lease cost is $1,400 for a 7 passenger mini-van that travels about 750 miles per month, Rideshare will cover $700 of the cost.  The remaining $700 will be split between the riders.  If there are 7 riders that would be $100 per month per person, plus gas costs.

Vendor pricing is detailed below (prices are before the subsidy is applied).  The amounts shown are the MAXIMUM amount the lease can be based on the mileage and vehicle capacity.

Commute with Enterprise

Monthly Mileage – 7/8-Passenger / Base Vehicle 9/10-Passenger Base Vehicle / 11+ Passenger Base Vehicle
500    –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
750    –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
1,000 –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
1,250 –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
1,500 –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
1,750 –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
2,000 –  $2,100 / $2,200 / $2,250
2,250 –  $2,200 / $2,300 / $2,350
2,500 –  $2,300 / $2,400 / $2,450
2,750 –  $2,400 / $2,500 / $2,550

Ventura Transit System

Monthly Mileage – 7/8-Passenger Base Vehicle / 9/10-Passenger Base Vehicle / 11+ Passenger Base Vehicle
500    –  $1,400 / $1,500 / $1,600
750    –  $1,525 / $1,625 / $1,725
1,000 –  $1,650 / $1,750 / $1,825
1,250 –  $1,775 / $1,875 / $1,925
1,500 –  $1,900 / $2,000 / $2,100
1,750 –  $2,025 / $2,125 / $2,225
2,000 –  $2,150 / $2,250 / $2,350
2,250 –  $2,275 / $2,375 / $2,475
2,500 –  $2,400 / $2,500 / $2,600
2,750 –  $2,525 / $2,625 / $2,725

Vanpool FAQ 2024

5 Steps to Start a Vanpool 2024