TI's employee transportation programs have evolved over decades to address pollution and energy issues. On-site shuttles and employee vanpools were initiated during the gas shortages and rationing of the 1970s to cut costs and meet employee needs at our U.S.-based corporate headquarters in Dallas, Texas. As our ranks swelled, we expanded our alternative transportation offerings.

In 1996, our Dallas-based Employee Trip Reduction program was set into motion. Available to about one-third of the company's employees who mostly reside in the North Texas area, it has continued to grow steadily. In addition, as TI has expanded its operations globally, so too has our advocacy for cleaner and more efficient transportation options worldwide.

Ozone, the main ingredient in urban smog, forms when emissions from automobiles and other sources accumulate and react to hot, sunny conditions. Dallas-Fort Worth has been designated a "non-attainment" area, meaning that the region fails to meet federal air standards for ozone air pollution. This development has made the multi-faceted Employee Trip Reduction program all the more valuable for Texas employees.

Our progressive approach doesn't stop at the Texas border. Commute Solutions coordinators at high-population facilities such as those in Manchester, N.H., and Tucson, Ariz., assist with employee trip reduction and awareness activities. We provide buses and jeeps to employees in the Philippines. In France, TI hosts a Web site to educate workers on commuting options. The Web site includes an eco-calculator to help employees calculate the annual costs of their transportation options.

With the variety offered in this transportation strategy, we hope that each and every TI employee will realize the resources available for commuting options, which can reduce stress, save money, increase productivity and preserve the environment.

Commute Solutions

TI has spearheaded a progressive and comprehensive approach to commuting that takes more than just optional methods of transportation into consideration. For example, we are committed to educating our employees about transportation options and benefits.

We also believe in providing on-site facilities and services that encourage employees to make fewer small trips in their cars during the day. TI offers flexible work schedules, shuttle service and communications technology to help reduce employee trips between work sites. And we make continuous improvements by regularly measuring the performance of our transportation programs so we can set achievable goals for the future.

TI knows our employees have different transportation needs based on their site location, proximity to congested areas, distance to work from home and individual circumstances. That's why we offer several options to discourage single-occupant commuting.

Mass transit

TI began offering free mass transit passes to Dallas area employees in 2004. Our more than 10,000 Dallas-area employees can ride for free on any Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) light rail train or bus, as well as the Trinity River Express bus and train system. This benefit not only saves employees money and stress from driving, but frees up time in the morning and evening that can be devoted to work tasks or next-day planning. In 2007, an estimated 1,100 employees used DART passes daily.

Vanpools

At the end of 2007, 230 employees were participating in TI- and DART-subsidized vanpools and 510 employees carpooled to and from work, up from a combined total of 500 in 2006. The vehicles used in these pools are entitled to use high-occupancy vehicle lanes and receive premium parking spaces at TI sites. Riding pools are another optional form of transportation that many employees enthusiastically support because of the money savings and reduced stress it affords them.

Shuttles

Employees can plug themselves into TI's free shuttle network any time they need to make a short trip. Free service is available from DART stations to TI's campuses in Dallas and Plano, Texas. Shuttle service between buildings in Dallas is also available. In 2007, these inter-campus shuttles carried an average of 1,000 employees each day.

On-site facilities and services

Some transportation strategies have nothing to do with wheels. TI offers on-site facilities such as cafeterias to reduce lunch trips, or showers for workers who ride bicycles or walk to work. LesConcierges, an on-site contractor, assists employees with errands, reservations, event planning and other services. LesConcierges even sells certain items on premises, such as gift cards and candy, to cut down on quick runs to the store.

TI also encourages the use of our virtual conferencing system, NetMeeting or WebEx, to cut down on travel required for meetings at different locations.

Work flexibility

TI employees may be allowed to have flexibility into their workday by arranging to telecommute or work compressed shifts. These options can help make commuting less stressful or eliminate it altogether.

Information and education

Our Commute Solutions Web site serves as an information hub for employees to explore and learn more about commuting alternatives, including a ridesharing match-up database, flexible work options, ways to reduce trips during the day and commuting events and ozone alert days, which occur most frequently between May and October.

EZ Commute Team members distribute information each month during this period to help TIers learn to be better stewards of the environment. The company promotes environmentally sound practices in April as well, during TI Earth Week.

Best Workplaces for Commuters

TI has been honored nationally and locally for its Employee Trip Reduction program, including recognition as among the top "Best Workplaces for Commuters" by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Aside from the environmental benefits of the program, employees who participate can enjoy monetary savings, reduced stress and an overall better quality of life. Additional benefits include reduced impact to human health. TI benefits through increased productivity and improved ability to recruit and retain the very best employees.

Back to top

2007 performance

In 2007, for an investment of $1.5 million, our trip-reduction efforts kept an estimated 8,400 vehicles off North Texas roads daily, averting ozone-forming NO_x as well as CO₂ emissions.

Looking ahead to 2008, TI hopes to increase DART ridership. We would also like to expand mass transit benefits to other U.S. campuses and assess additional alternative transportation needs and options on a global level.

One key challenge we face is that often, our smaller employee populations in other states don't receive the same purchasing price breaks as those enjoyed in Texas. We are working to assess cost trade-offs with the benefits that alternative transportation provides.

Back to top