Contact:
Mary Chalupsky
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MetroPool Lauded for Improving Air Quality, Reducing Traffic Congestion
Stamford, CT – Sept. 3, 2009 – MetroPool, Inc. – the area’s leading commuting solutions company -- was designated one of the Best Workplaces for CommutersSM by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).Â
Best Workplaces for Commuters, a voluntary partnership program designed to cut traffic congestion and traffic-related air pollution, recognizes employers that provide environmentally friendly commuter benefits to employees. Offering these commuter benefits identifies MetroPool as an organization committed to reducing pollution, commuting costs, traffic congestion, and employee stress caused by single-occupant vehicle commuting.
“We’re thrilled to receive this designation that recognizes the work MetroPool has been doing to promote commute alternatives in Connecticut’s Fairfield County and the lower New York Hudson Valley counties, as well as serve our own employees, for nearly three decades now,” said John Lyons, President and CEO of MetroPool, Inc. “Clearly, our efforts continue to contribute to the environment by helping to improve air quality, while enabling employees to save money and ease their stress.”
MetroPool offers an array of benefits that help employers and commuters pursue environmentally friendly and cost-effective commuting strategies including carpooling, vanpooling, public transit (bus/train/ferry ridership), biking and walking, telecommuting, compressed work weeks, and commuter tax benefits.
According to Margo Oge, EPA director of the Office of Transportation and Air Quality, the effects of incentive programs like Best Workplaces for Commuters can be dramatic. “If just half of all U.S. employees were covered under these commuter benefits,” said Oge, “traffic and air pollution could be cut by the equivalent of taking 15 million cars off the road every year, saving American workers about $12 billion in fuel costs. That’s both cleaner air and real savings for families.”
“We are proud to make this commitment to all commuting employees and to the environment,” added Mr. Lyons. “The Best Workplaces for CommutersSM program demonstrates that a healthy balance sheet and a clean environment are not mutually exclusive.”
The results of MetroPool’s efforts will be reflected in the environment and in the bottom line. MetroPool’s programs reduce commuting costs not only for its employees, but also for all commuters by taking cars off the road and reducing traffic congestion. The production of ground-level ozone, the major component of smog, is reduced as well.
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About MetroPool
Since 1980, MetroPool has provided employers and commuters with free services to encourage transportation options –car/vanpooling, walking/biking, bus/train/ferry transit, compressed work weeks/flex hours, and pre-tax commuter benefits.  With the support of the New York State and Connecticut Department of Transportation, MetroPool’s services are available to commuters traveling to destinations in Rockland, Westchester, Orange, Putnam, Dutchess, and Ulster Counties in New York, and in Fairfield County in Connecticut. For information, call MetroPool at 1-800-FIND-RIDE (1-800-346-3743), or visit www.metropool.com
About Best Workplaces for Commuters
Best Workplaces for CommutersSM Â www.bwc.gov is a public-private partnership developed by the EPA and DOT. Â EPA and DOT have established a voluntary National Standard of Excellence for employer-provided commuter benefits. Â The program challenges employers across the country to voluntarily meet the National Standard of Excellence.
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