Tech firms re-invent bus travel for staff

Businesses in Silicon Valley are offering their workers high tech, high-end, dedicated bus services

Silicon Valley, the peninsula area south of San Franciso, is famous for being home to high tech and social media giants such as Google, Apple, Yahoo, Facebook, Cisco Systems and Genenetech.  

These firms are known for being at the cutting edge, so it should come as no surprise that they are re-inventing the commuter journey by turning the traditional bus into a highly desirable mode of transport. 

Businesses in Silicon Valley tender contracts with private bus companies to run networks of scheduled services to and from their suburban campus offices along set routes. Some of these routes can be fairly long, such as from San Francisco to Mountain View, which is a distance of 40 miles. To make a similar journey by scheduled public transport could require using multiple bus and rail services.

Firms can tailor bus routes and services to best match where their employees live. For example, Genentech sponsors a fleet of 34 “gRide” buses to bring employees from 56 Bay Area communities directly to its South San Francisco campus where 8,500 employees work. Meanwhile, Google sponsors an even larger fleet of 105 coaches and shuttlebuses to help bring staff from seven Bay Area counties to its Mountain View headquarters, which employs 17,500 workers.

Certain bus routes enable staff to board from local city bus stops while other stops serve those who choose to park & ride. Some park & riders may live much further away, and use the employee bus to reduce the driving leg of their long commute. 

There have been cases of employee buses competing for kerb space with other bus services at the same city bus stops. San Francisco is seeking to resolve such conflicts by introducing bus stops exclusively for employee bus use. If successful, additional stops may be implemented. 

The buses themselves are normally fitted with reclining leather seats, good temperature control, GPS, on-board Wi-Fi, and electrical power outlets for charging laptops and tablets. Some buses are fitted with tables to allow work or conversations. Yahoo’s buses have bike racks, offering staff the option of cycling the ‘last mile’ to the nearest bus stop. 

For employers, providing these buses makes good business sense for several reasons. It is a way of attracting people who might otherwise decide against working for that company due to a long commute. These employers are using luxury buses as an employee benefit and marketing tool, akin to how some of these firms offer free food in on-site staff restaurants and fitness centres along with generous holiday deals.

As more travel by bus, firms can reduce parking capacity at their offices,  allowing savings on property taxes, maintenance and management of the sites. And supporting bus travel is a good way for a firm to illustrate its environmental credentials. 

At the same time, the bus services offer employees a low cost or a free method of getting to work. For those that prefer to live in dense urban areas, it makes travelling to the suburbs a viable option. And this is also true for those that live out in the countryside, as they can take the park & ride option.

Certain employers consider an employee has ‘arrived’ at work once they board the bus. Travelling by bus means staff can convert unproductive travel time into work time, saving them up to an hour. This is an excellent example of enlightened human resources policies achieving greater productivity while encouraging public transport use.

Who would have thought that the bus could be such an effective recruiting and retention tool in California, famed for freeways and a car-centric lifestyle?