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#100MILEStone: Celebrate 100 Miles of Bike Lanes

As of May 2022, DC celebrates 100 miles of bike lanes. This milestone marks a 60% increase in bike lanes in the District and four times the number of protected lanes installed since 2015. The District takes pride in being a bike-friendly community and continues to improve and expand its bike infrastructure to make bicycling easier, safer, and equitable for everyone. In addition, DDOT is celebrating 20 years of service to residents, businesses, and visitors of the District of Columbia! 

Creating a Smooth Hybrid Transition

According to ADP Research Institute, 64% of workers would rather quit their jobs than return to an office full time. For anyone who’s been following the shift to remote work over the past two years, this should come as no surprise. Working from home has saved employees time and money, and maintained productivity. However, some employees still yearn for the social aspect of the office and worry about missing out on promotions and leadership roles without the office setting. This is where a hybrid schedule can give employees and managers the best of both worlds.

Thankfully, 35% of DC employers are listening to their employees and are working to create and implement hybrid work schedules as employees return to the office this summer. But transitioning to a hybrid schedule isn’t as easy as you may think. For a smooth transition, employers need to audit their policies and consider that after two years of working from home, pre-pandemic in-office policies can’t just be resurrected without evaluation. Companies need to assess their new hybrid work situation and address the challenges it brings regarding commuter benefits, regional emergency ride programs, and complying with local DC transportation ordinances. Creating a new hybrid policy from scratch may sound like a heavy lift, but if you follow our list of items to consider below, you’ll be off to a great start.

Be Clear About When and Why Employees Should Be in Office
About 38% of hybrid employees say their biggest challenge in the past few months was knowing when and why they should come into the office. Is this something you have outlined in your hybrid work policy? Possibly not, as only 28% of leaders report including it in their policies. Make sure you have clear and direct instructions on when employees should come into the office. Should they be in for important meetings? On a certain day? If they need to access certain equipment? Use examples and include the “why” behind these in-office requirements.

Make Sure You’re Still Compliant with DC Laws
DC has two local ordinances that apply to employers in the District: the DC Commuter Benefits Law and the DC Parking Cashout Law. If you meet the base qualifications of these laws, you must comply with them even if your employees are on a hybrid work schedule. Our employer team can help you navigate and comply with these laws.

Supplement Guaranteed Ride Home
The regional Guaranteed Ride Home program, run by Commuter Connections, requires employees to commute by transit, carpool, bike, walking, or scooter at least two times a week to qualify for the program. For many only going back to the office 1 day a week, they are unable to use this benefit. If you have employees who only work from the office one day a week, you can supplement the regional program by covering rides for unexpected overtime and emergencies. Talk to our employer team to learn how.

Remind Employees About Commuter Benefit Flexibility
Unlike other health care, commuter benefits aren’t restricted to open enrollment. Although most admin and HR departments are aware of this, your employees may not be. Make sure you remind your employees regularly that they can enroll, adjust their allocation, or pause their commuter benefits at any time.

Fully Subsidize Transit Costs to Encourage In-Office Work
If your office is operating on a hybrid schedule but management would like employees to come into the office more frequently, fully subsidizing transit costs can help you achieve this goal. By fully subsidizing transit costs, you remove one of the barriers of coming into the office. This can easily be done through WMATA’s SmartBenefits system, and the best part is that this type of transit subsidy will be refunded to you if not used.

Encourage a Variety of Sustainable Commuting Options
Fear of taking public transit due to COVID-19 has led to many workers choosing to drive to work when they would normally take transit pre-pandemic. It’s important to let your employees know they have options like carpool apps, biking, or walking. You can even encourage these behaviors through a bike subsidy/monthly bike benefit, walking benefit, or free parking for carpools. Our employer services team can help you set up benefits and incentives like these.

Welcome to National Bike Month

May is National Bike Month! Established in 1956, this month-long celebration honors biking as a form of transportation and recreation, and as essential to our well-being and everyday lives. National Bike month gives us a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling and encourage more folks to give biking at try.

Navigating DC During Capital Pride

Capital Pride is back in person this year! The Nation’s annual Capital Pride celebration recognizes its LGBTQ+ communities in an effort to unify, educate, and preserve the history and rights of citizens. From June 10 through June 12, there will be a variety of festivities such as the Pride Parade, block parties, and concerts. Whether you are going solo or traveling with a group, we encourage you to travel sustainably. Check out the transportation options below that will get you to Capital Pride events sustainably.

Accessible Transportation for Seniors and People with Disabilities

goDCgo is here to support sustainable transportation needs for all DC commuters and residents, regardless of age, ability, or income. In addition to providing complimentary resources about the alternative travel options available in the District, we have information on affordable, easily-accessible programs that can break down transportation barriers and help those with special mobility needs get to/from their communities and around the city. From adaptive vehicles, to shared rides, to the Metro, there's no limit to where you can go.

Benefits of Car-Free or Car-Lite Living

Living in Washington, DC can bring you closer to car-free living with all of the sustainable transportation options available to get you to, from, and around the city. In fact, Redfin ranked DC the 4th “Best City for Living Without a Car” in 2017. If you still aren’t quite ready to hang up your car keys, here’s the bigger picture of car ownership -- the average cost to own and operate a new car is nearly $10,000/year or $805.50/month. This estimate is calculated based on considerations for vehicle value and depreciation, finance/loans, and the price of gas, insurance, licensing, registration, taxes, maintenance, and repairs. It's no wonder that buying a car is one of the biggest purchases a person will make in their lives! Try calculating your own driving costs to see how much you're spending every year.

Everything You Need to Know About the DC Parking Cashout Law

To continue to improve air quality and reduce the number of commuters driving to work in the District, an amendment to the Sustainable DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2014 was signed into law by Mayor Bowser in April 2020. The new law titled Transportation Benefits Equity Amendment Act of 2020 requires all employers who offer free or subsidized parking benefits and have 20 or more employees to comply with the law and submit a report to DDOT. New regulations can be confusing for impacted businesses and goDCgo is here to help your organization become compliant.  

goDCgo’s Guide to the 2022 National Cherry Blossom Festival

Bring on the blossoms! The world-renowned National Cherry Blossom Festival is making an in-person return this year, so be sure you're prepared to make the most of this popular experience. Since this annual spring celebration attracts thousands of visitors, goDCgo encourages you to plan ahead for the events you want to attend and we'll tell you the best ways to get there. We highly recommend leaving the car behind due to increased traffic and limited parking across the city. Instead, try one of the many alternative transportation modes available in the District like Capital Bikeshare, DC Circulator, Metrobus, Metrorail, or electric scooters. Review the routes you can take below or download our 2022 Getting to the Blossoms Guide.

In addition to the festival events, some of DDOT’s transit services will be unveiling their one-of-a-kind vehicles to get you in the spring spirit, too! You can't miss DC Circulator's "Blossom Bus," externally wrapped in themed decor. While it's perfect for post-worthy pictures, the "Blossom Bus" can also get you to the blossoms for just $1 and it will be staged at a few events, so be on the lookout. You may also find Capital Bikeshare's "Bike in Bloom" making its way around the city. The "Bike in Bloom" is a specially wrapped cherry blossom bike that you should keep your eye out for while participating in the festivities.

9 Tips to Help your Employees Telecommute Productively

Two years into the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, most DC employees and managers are extremely familiar with working remotely. Although many of us would consider ourselves work from home experts, it’s probable that we’ve all picked up some bad work from home habits or have forgotten the tips we originally incorporated when first adjusting to remote work. In honor of this year’s Telework Week DC, we’re unpacking some oldies but goodies along with some NEW teleworking tips to help your employees continue to telecommute productively. 

Be a Roll Model: Practicing Proper Bike Safety and Etiquette

The District of Columbia has over 100 miles of bike lanes and more than 60 miles of trails to discover, providing bicyclists with lots of space to get around town. For added security and confidence, there are 24 miles of protected bike lanes, so even the most novice of bicyclists can feel safer riding throughout the city. And there's more where that came from! The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) plans to install an additional 20 miles of protected bike lanes by the end of this year, ten of which are already completed.

While it's always important to practice proper bike etiquette and follow the rules of the road, there are even more safety precautions that bicyclists should know since the COVID-19 pandemic. goDCgo encourages you to be a "roll model" for others and use your best biking judgement. That means staying alert, maintaining safe speeds, keeping right and passing left, standing aside if standing still, and being courteous and considerate when sharing the road. Review more of the bike safety tips so you're properly prepared for your next ride and beyond.