Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog.net

Located Next to the Train, Survey Monkey HQ Minimizes Car Commuting

10:56 AM EDT on October 4, 2013

While Apple gets ready to break ground on its suburban spaceship campus, Palo Alto-based Survey Monkey is showing there's a better way to locate. Adina Levin at Network blog Peninsula Transportation Alternatives says that less than a third of Survey Monkey employees drive to work -- thanks, quite simply, to a transit-friendly site:

The developer of online survey tools allows its employees to choose from a Caltrain GoPass, cash on a Clipper card usable on multiple transit services, a bike voucher good for bicycle commuting gear and maintenance expenses, or a parking pass. Cantieri says that the location near Caltrain and the transportation benefits help attract employees in a competitive recruiting market. The location across the street from Caltrain was a major requirement in choosing a new headquarters location for the company (which also has employees in Portland and Seattle).

Last Spring, Palo Alto City Council approved a controversial 52,000 square foot office building at 101 Lytton, with 173 parking spaces, plus in-lieu fees for the city to construct 22 additional parking spaces. Residents of nearby neighborhoods expressed serious concerns about the amount of parking, since there has been an increasing influx of downtown workers parking on nearby neighborhood streets. The development got a 20% credit on required parking because of the location near Caltrain.

Fortunately for the neighbors, the building found a tenant that seems unlikely to cause parking overflow problems any time soon, since only 60 workers -- less than a third -- have parking passes. Given Palo Alto’s current policies, though, the success of SurveyMonkey is largely a matter of luck. Palo Alto does require developments to provide Transportation Demand Management programs to reduce vehicle trips. But there have not been requirements to report on the performance, to see if tenants are actually reducing trips, or any consequences if the goals aren’t met.

Elsewhere on the Network today: Streets.mn discusses the pros and cons of Minneapolis's famous skyway system. Half-Mile Circles looks at an Australian study that shows why transit should be considered a mode of active transportation. And This Big City shares an infographic that explains all the benefits transit provides in the Kansas City region.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Wednesday’s Headlines Ask How Much a Life Is Worth

There isn't much of a financial penalty for drivers who kill pedestrians — even if those drivers are cops.

September 27, 2023

‘I’m Not Grieving Alone’: New Play Explores a Father’s Journey After Losing Two Children to Traffic Violence

Colin Campbell and his wife Gail Lerner lost both their children in a car crash with impaired driver. A new play explores how to talk about similar tragedies.

September 27, 2023

How Transit Saved Lives — And Became a Lifeline — During and After the Maui Fires

A Maui bus agency helped transport 42,000 people off the island in the wake of one of the most devastating fires in American history — and highlighted the critical role that shared modes can play not just in preventing climate-related disasters, but saving lives when they happen.

September 27, 2023

California Has to Stop Building Freeways. Now.

"People aren't used to thinking of freeways as fossil fuel infrastructure, but they are." And once built, there's no going back, no making up for the extra driving by trying to convince people that a bus or train might be a better choice - we're stuck with it.

September 26, 2023

Streetfilms Tours Emeryville, Calif., the Little City that Can

Did somebody say "encore?" Safe streets rock star John Bauters, Mayor of Emeryville, population less-than 13,000, gave Streetfilms producer Clarence Eckerson a tour of his city.

September 26, 2023
See all posts