Encouraging more downtown employees to use transit is the key to economic growth in both Seattle and Bellevue.

King County Metro Transit and Equity Office recently signed a three-year agreement to offer Metro's FlexPass to all new and renewing tenants in Equity's 54 office buildings spread between Seattle, Bellevue and Renton. The agreement brings new commute options to 25,000 employees working in 10.5 million square feet of office space.

The FlexPass is good on all Metro Transit and Sound Transit service, and includes VanPool, carpool, and Flexcar options. The Downtown Seattle Association (DSA) and Bellevue Downtown Association (BDA) will promote the program through building-wide transportation fairs at each of Equity Office's 54 office buildings.

On Monday, May 10, the area's largest commercial property owners met with King County Executive Ron Sims to learn more about the program, and to discuss what the business community can do to relieve traffic congestion and improve regional transportation.

“I think we all agree that the status quo is unacceptable,” Sims told the property owners. “We don't need to wait until we figure out mega solutions to our mega transportation problems. We can do what Equity Office has done – we can work on these transportation problems one business at a time.”

Metro hopes Equity Office's Transportation Incentive Package (TIP) for its customers can be a model for other property owners in the region. Pat Callahan, senior vice president, Seattle region for Equity Office, said partnerships were key to making such programs successful.

“This initiative is a excellent example of organizations working together for one cause,” said Callahan. “The TIP provides a cost-effective way for customers to travel to work and will alleviate traffic congestion.

“We predict that up to 1,500 people could be moved out of their cars and into public transportation during the program's first year. Employees who now drive to work could save up to $7,200 per year, and those who pay for their own FlexPasses could save up to $1,600 per year,” said Callahan.

Other participants in Monday's roundtable included representatives from Bentall Capital US, Inc., Unico Properties, Inc., Benaroya Capital Co., LLC, Hines G. S. Properties, Inc., and Schnitzer Northwest, LLC – all among the largest commercial property owners and managers in the region. They talked about transportation solutions that could be implemented at their buildings and identified some of the challenges.

Equity Office is the area's largest Class One property manager, with major buildings in Seattle and Bellevue downtown areas, along the Interstate 90, corridor and in Renton. The company represents 20 percent of the Seattle downtown high-rise space and 50 percent of Bellevue's high-rise space.

When signing or renewing a lease, Equity Office tenants can choose to divert a small portion of the tenant improvement funds to cover the cost of the FlexPass. While FlexPass has been traditionally offered to employers, this is the first time it is being offered on a building-by-building basis.

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