Commuter Value Pass
For employees at companies who meet the minimum participation requirements, the Commuter Value Pass program is a tax-smart employee benefit that provides reliable transportation at the lowest possible cost. Read below for more details or view our Commuter Value Pass FAQs page here. Employees can also download a helpful brochure here.
Plus, the MCTS Emergency Ride Program is available if the employer chooses to participate and is free to all recipients of Commuter Value Passes.
Participating employees receive an unlimited pass good for use on all MCTS services.
Commuter Value Passes Are...
- Easy to Use: Employees simply show their passes when boarding.
- Secure: Passes include photo identification and are revalidated each quarter.
- Economical: The employee's cost contribution provides for unlimited use on any MCTS route, including Freeway Flyers, festival services and special event shuttles. Employees will save at least 25 percent over the cash prices for commuting by bus five days a week.
- A Partnership: MCTS includes a 14 percent discount off the pass price for maximum savings with this program. The employee and the employer may share in the cost.
- Tax-smart: The employer contribution is a deductible business expense and is tax-free for the employee. In addition, the employee cost can be deducted as a pre-tax reduction in wages, resulting in further savings for both employees and employers. (You may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this form.)
Advantages for Your Company
- Easy to Administer: Employers are billed once per quarter, but employees may join or leave on a monthly basis. MCTS representatives manage the enrollment and produce the passes.
- A Great Employee Benefit: As an employer, help your employees fill a very basic need – transportation. It provides a benefit that will be used regularly and assists you in recruiting and retaining employees throughout Milwaukee County.
- Relief: A way to help your employees avoid construction delays and the hassles and expense of driving and parking during peak traffic hours.
- A Positive Direction: This program provides an effective way to combat traffic congestion, reduce parking requirements and be more environmentally friendly.
If you have any questions regarding the MCTS Commuter Value Pass, please contact MCTS at (414) 343-1777.
Some Participating Companies
Commuter Value Certificates
MCTS offers the Commuter Value Certificate, a voucher that employers can purchase and distribute to employees as a 100 percent employer paid, tax-free transit benefit. Read below for more details or view our Commuter Value Certificate FAQs page here.
- Each certificate can be exchanged for a weekly pass or strip of regular fare tickets, or can be used toward the purchase of premium/Freeway Flyer tickets or a monthly pass.
- Commuter Value Certificates equal the cost of a standard adult weekly pass or 10 adult tickets. The minimum order quantity is 20 and they must be purchased in multiples of four certificates. Certificates do not expire and can be exchanged at any MCTS retail outlet.
- Employers may purchase Commuter Value Certificates after signing a letter of agreement which details their responsibilities while participating in the program.
- You can print an order form online and then mail your completed form and payment to MCTS. (You may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this form.)
- Commuter Value Certificates must be provided to the employee/client as a no-charge and tax-free transit benefit. For federally taxed organizations, certificates are tax deductible as an employee benefit expense.
- Commuter Value Certificates are a very effective employee benefit. Employees use their passes or tickets every workday and gain reliable transportation to work at the same time. The program can be a real advantage in recruiting and retaining employees.
If your company has 20 or more employees who are bus riders, you can qualify for even greater savings with the Commuter Value Pass.
If you have any questions regarding Commuter Value Certificates, please contact MCTS at (414) 343-1777.
Emergency Ride Program
As a Commuter Value Pass customer, employees are automatically eligible to participate in the Emergency Ride Program. MCTS recognizes that a major obstacle in using our transit services is the rider’s fear of being “stranded” in case of a personal or family emergency. As a result, we created this program to provide alternate transportation for our Commuter Value Program users if an emergency arises and your normal bus service is not readily available.
How it Works
A CVP participant may utilize the program when an emergency situation develops for the employee or an immediate family member.
• Rides are available between 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. through a specified taxi company.
• The participant can quickly get home, to a transit point of origin or to a medical care facility. It is available throughout MCTS’s service area. Since we understand that time is of the essence, we made the program easy to use for the employee and easy to administer for the CVP Coordinator.
• When an emergency arises, the participant just lets his/her CVP work coordinator know of the emergency.
• The coordinator calls the taxi company and gives the participant a voucher to give to the taxi driver. There is minimal paperwork to be completed.
• No money or tip is needed. The participant just needs to fill in informationon the voucher and return it to the coordinator the next day.
Transit is a convenient and reliable form of transportation. The Emergency Ride Program gives that added assurance so you can use transit every day to work.
For more information about Emergency Ride or the other MCTS employer programs, please call MCTS Business Services at (414) 343-1777.
Featured Employers
Godfrey & Kahn, S.C. law firm has a steadfast commitment to protecting, preserving and defending the environment through environmental practice service to clients, as well as through internal green initiatives. The firm subsidizes employee bus transportation with its participation in the MCTS Commuter Value program. The program is an invaluable part of the firm’s commitment to environmentally conscious practices. Firm employees save more than 50,000 commuter miles per year with the Commuter Value Pass and an additional 115,000 miles when counting Commuter Value Certificate use.
The firm adopted a Green Office Policy in 2007 and later established the “Green@Godfrey” office task force in 2009. Godfrey & Kahn has made a commitment to integrating environmentally conscious practices into everyday operations.
In 2010, Godfrey & Kahn became the first law firm to achieve Green Tier status from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Green Tier is a program aimed toward rewarding environmentally responsible businesses in Wisconsin, and is the first program of its type in the nation.
MCTS applauds Godfrey & Kahn for their Green Tier achievement and is proud that the Commuter Value program is an integral component of the firm’s everyday green practices.
For more information about Godfrey & Kahn, S.C. and the legal services they provide, visit gklaw.com.
Maple Ridge Rehabilitation Center’s HR Manager, Sandy Corey, had great things to say about recently joining the Commuter Value Pass (CVP) program; “This is a true Commuter Value Pass! It is a very simple process and a great value to our employees. Any perk we can offer them is a WIN-WIN! I conduct interviews and being able to pass on a savings to a potential new employee is a great incentive.”
When Maple Ridge Rehabilitation Center introduced the CVP program to their employees there was a great deal of interest from those who were already riding the bus to work. With a savings of $34 for a monthly pass, it was an easy sell. Not surprisingly, employees who usually drive to work and occasionally ride the bus took advantage of the CVP as well.
Maple Ridge Health & Rehabilitation Center is a leading provider of long-term skilled nursing care and short-term rehabilitation solutions. The 80 bed facility offers a full continuum of services and care focused around each individual in today’s ever-changing healthcare environment.
To find out more information about Maple Ridge Health & Rehabilitation Center and the care they provide visit: http://www.extendicareus.com/mapleridge/.
John Poehlmann, Co-founder and Principal of Reserve Advisors said the company joined the CVP program to save employees money on transportation to and from work, “We're able to offer an added benefit to our employees that many companies in Milwaukee don't provide for a modest corporate participation investment.” Poehlmann also noted that the program allows them to eliminate expensive monthly parking costs for their employees and reduce pollution caused by one person per auto.
Reserve Advisors has been offering the CVP program for several years now. Thirty percent of their employees in the corporate Milwaukee office participate in the program.
Reserve Advisors is an engineering consulting firm, providing long range capital project forecasts (known as reserve studies) of when building components and other property will wear out and need to be replaced. The company serves the condominium market, country club industry, commercial property owners and nonprofit organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House Charities. They have conducted reserve studies in over 45 states and 30 countries worldwide.
MCTS is proud to have Reserve Advisors as a participant in the Commuter Value Pass program!
To find out more about Reserve Advisors, visit reserveadvisors.com.