Vanpool service operates primarily from rural and outer suburban areas into urban area central business districts or suburban employment centers. Most vanpools serve large urban areas, though a few states have statewide programs.
The vast majority of vanpools are privately-operated, are not available to the public, and are not considered public transportation, which is limited to the several dozen transit agencies that do fund and operate public vanpools.
Vanpool mode is comprised of vans (and very rarely, small buses and other vehicles) operating as a ridesharing arrangement, providing transportation to a group of individuals traveling directly between their homes and a regular destination within the same geographical area. The vehicles have a minimum seating capacity of seven persons, including the driver. It is considered mass transit service if it is operated by a public entity or is one in which a public entity owns, purchases, or leases the vehicle(s). Vanpool(s) must also be in compliance with mass transit rules including Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provisions, and be open to the public and that availability must be made known. Other forms of public participation to encourage ridesharing arrangements such as the provision of parking spaces, use of high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, coordination or clearing house service, do not qualify as public vanpools.
Types of Service
Vanpool service is operated in two ways. Either transit agency vehicles are leased to companies or directly to volunteer drivers, or the service is contracted to a vanpool
management company that has its own vehicles and administers the service. Under either arrangement, many vanpools serve large private corporations or government agencies and consist solely of their employees.
Vanpool service generally serves areas far outside the normal bus service area, or intra-suburban trips where bus service cannot be justified. The average trip length is nearly 35 miles, and trips well over 50 miles are not uncommon.
Vanpool fares often vary depending on the number of people in the vanpool, the size of van used, and the distance traveled. The driver collects fares (unless there is a pay-by-mail program), operates the van, and arranges for maintenance. In return, the driver rides free, may keep the van at home overnight, and may often use it for personal use within prescribed limits.
The transit agency, or sometimes another local governmental unit, runs a vanpool matching service to recruit new riders and usually pays insurance, fuel, and maintenance costs. If the number of vans involved is large enough, the transit agency may perform the maintenance itself, though the usual procedure is for the driver to take the van to a local automobile dealer.
Types of Vehicles
Almost all vanpool service is operated with vans less than 21 feet in length.
A van has a typical seating capacity of 5 to 15 passengers and is classified as a van by vehicle manufacturers. Very rarely, a modified van (body-on-chassis van)--a standard van that has undergone some structural changes by another company, usually made to increase its size and particularly its height--may be used. The seating capacity of modified vans is approximately 9 to 18 passengers.
Accessibility
Vanpool service is not required to be accessible by law, as are other modes, since the passengers are voluntary participants. Rather, a vanpool would be assigned an accessible van if a person in need of such a van became a vanpool participant.
An accessible vehicle is a public transportation revenue vehicle that does not restrict access, is usable, and provides allocated space and/or priority seating for individuals who use wheelchairs.
High-floor vans require all riders except the person next to the driver to climb into the van from street level through a sliding door on the side of the van. A few such vans accommodate wheelchair-bound and other riders who cannot climb steps by using a retractable lift that raises and lowers persons and equipment between street and van floor levels.
Low-floor vans generally use a side sliding door for passengers and have a level floor in the entire passenger-seating area. Only a short retractable ramp is necessary to accommodate wheelchairs and those who cannot bridge the gap between van and street level.
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