How a Major Corporation Revised its Approach to Parking—and Saved $22M/Yr in the Process

Until recently, commuting costs were an afterthought for most companies—if they considered them at all. But that’s changing fast, as enterprises realize how much uncontrolled spend stems from commuting.

This newfound attention to commuting has led to the rise of Commute Capital Management™ (CCM), an approach that reclassifies workforce commuting as a strategic capital domain, placing centralized oversight under the control of the Finance department. CCM treats commute-related spending as an asset class: one with tangible returns when optimized and real risks when ignored.

Parking: a costly and inevitable(?) expense

Much of commute spending stems from parking. Organizations that own rather than lease parking know that lots are costly to build and maintain. Not to mention, they occupy valuable real estate. But having them is simply the cost of doing business: people need to get to work, and if you aren’t located in a major city surrounded by great public transit, employees need to drive. Or do they? Perhaps the more useful question is: do they all?

Thinking outside the parking space

A major corporation Commutifi worked with was building a state-of-the-art world headquarters. But before the beautiful new campus was fully open, a pressing problem had already emerged: the site was on track to max out parking demand. Despite its multiple lots, structures, and garages, there simply wasn’t enough spaces for all the cars that needed to use them.

Adding yet another parking structure seemed like the only viable solution. It would cost tens of millions of dollars, but what other choice did the company have?

Commutifi’s team decided to find out.

Running complex, data-backed models, they soon unveiled an alternative. The analysis demonstrated that launching strategically designed private shuttle routes throughout the city and into the neighboring suburbs, working with the local public transit agency to build new lines in the city, and doubling the amount of campus bike parking would entirely negate the need to break ground on additional parking spaces.

Even after the cost of the new initiatives, the company will save a minimum of $22 million USD per year for at least five years.

Bring CCM to your organization

Curious about the ways Commute Capital Management can slash your hidden commute spending? Read the definitive guide, or get in touch with one of our experts.