Fareshare lets employers subsidise their staff’s public transport costs to and from work on Auckland Transport (AT) services.
Businesses can choose to subsidise 25%, 50% or 75% of their employees AT travel costs, and set it to apply to weekdays-only or to the full week.
Once Fareshare is loaded onto an employee’s AT HOP card, they’re charged a reduced fare on eligible journeys. The employer pays the difference, which is billed monthly. Subsidised public transport provided via Fareshare is exempt from fringe benefit tax (FBT).
Employers who have signed up to Fareshare love that it:
- creates an affordable staff benefit that helps attract and retain staff
- reduces demand for employee and customer parking at and around their business
- helps reduce road congestion
- helps them meet their sustainability goals.
The Fareshare pilot started in 2020 with Genesis Energy and two other businesses. All three early adopters started on a 25% subsidy. Due to the success of the programme they later raised the subsidy level to 50%.
They say measures of success include a shift from single-passenger vehicles to public transport, affordability, and positive shifts in staff culture.
In late March 2024, AT released a new version of Fareshare. It is easier for businesses to administer and for new businesses to sign up to. By August 2024, 18 businesses were using Fareshare to subsidise their staff’s transport costs. More than 700 employees are currently benefitting from Fareshare.
The are plans to make CO2e (emissions) data from public transport available to participating businesses via Fareshare. Currently, that data is available on request.
More information on Fareshare is on AT’s website here, or you can email [email protected].