View All Winners

Mark Cloney

Vanpooler/Bus Rider May 2015
Employer: Avista Corporation

Mark’s a vanpooler with a 35 mile one way commute from Coeur d’Alene to downtown Spokane where he works for Avista Corporation. During a normal work week, Mark rides in the vanpool 4-5 days with 8 others commuters…. all from different employers!

Shortly after he started working for Avista, Mark realized how much he was spending on his commute, so he started driving to the Liberty Lake park & ride and taking the bus from there. After 4 months, Mark reached out to Catherine Cooper, ETC for Avista and inquired about vanpooling and he’s been riding in the vanpool ever since.

When asked about challenges, Mark commented on last winter when his son was playing basketball; the van he was on wasn’t getting him home in time to watch his son’s games. Fortunately Avista allowed him to flex his schedule and Mark was able to catch an earlier van and get to the games on time. Another challenge for Mark is getting between Avista’s different offices for meetings. Marks solution for this, he rides the bus to his different meetings, which he says, works perfectly!

Because of vanpooling, Mark has been able to save nearly $200 a month and in addition to reducing the wear & tear on his car, it’s also allowed him time to relax (and sometimes rest his eyes) on the way to work or on the way home. A few words of wisdom from Mark; “Make sure to get your free bus pass that accompanies vanpooling. It allows you to travel around as needed. Secondly, remain friendly and flexible when using any public transportation modes. High stress people need not apply!”

Avista ETC, Catherine Cooper says, “I am so proud of Mark for vanpooling and taking it one step further with using the STA bus system to go to his meetings.” Marks final comment “why spend the money if you don’t need to”?

Way to go Mark!