Talk:Driver Reimbursement Guidelines

Just copying out some ideas that have popped up on the message board to get the ball rolling. I thought that below each idea in bullet-point would be a good way to discuss, feel free to change it all up if it doesn't make sense though. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

How Much Should Drivers Get Anyway?

• Gas money only? Gas money + wear & tear? Gas, wear & tear, + inconvenience fee? What is fair to pay? Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Current System

The cost of gas is split up amongst the passengers. The driver gets their share of gas paid for, which goes towards covering the wear & tear and other ownership costs associated with the car.

• It's suggested that moving to a system that gives the drivers more would encourage more driving. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Double Gas System

Everyone including the driver pays for gas, but passengers pay double. This is based on the (very) limited information in table on the main wiki page that indicates that actual per km costs are approximately twice as much as gas alone. A variant system would have the driver not even pay for gas.

• The main idea behind this is that it is quite simple to calculate and seems vaguely accurate. Perhaps to avoid being a huge increase drivers would have to do a better job of estimating the REAL gas costs rather than using current possibly inflated values (that try to factor in some extra for maintenance). Drivers paying their share helps too. Eliminating the driver share provides further incentive to drive if desired. Scott Webster 13:52, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Fixed Compensation Schedule

Example from Scott N:

• Squamish $8 return per passenger
• Brew/Clouburst/Garibaldi/Chekamus Canyon/Callaghan/Calcheck $12 return per passenger
• Whistler/Wedgemount $15 return per passenger
• Phelix(base of FSR) $30 return per passenger
• Phelix(end of FSR) $40 return per passenger
• Cayoosh Pass $25 return per passenger
• Coquihalla Pass $25 return per passenger
• Manning Park $30 return per passenger

Everybody would know what they're getting into ahead of time, could set reimbursement levels higher to motivate drivers. Maybe drivers can do this already, but this system could make it easier for them to ask for a higher amount? Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Doesn't allow any adjustment based on fuel economy. However, should the passenger be paying for that anyway? If it means the vehicle gets them further up a logging road, then certainly yes. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Note that in my proposal above there is big step up from the base of the Phelix road to the end of the Phelix road. That's because a) this section of the road is hard on your truck and b) you need to drive your truck a long way on the highway to get there. This can more than adequately compensate the drivers of big 4x4s when the 4x4s are actually needed. Bigger, less fuel efficent vehicles also carry more passengers and take less damage on rough roads than small cars. Scott Nelson 12:39, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Pool & Redistribute

From Nick C:
Everyone pays the same for gas, except drivers who pay nothing. Charge a flat rate with a margin for error (based on previous years trips) to each member, and pay out each driver on the basis of his/her receipts. Everything left over goes into the pot for the end of year party, where our drivers drink for free.

• Probably applies better to big VOC events than to smaller trips. Seems similar to the current system, but with more paperwork + the year-end booze. Perhaps a simpler way to reward drivers at the year-end event could be devised? Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Big, Thorough Formula

Similar to the BCMC method.

• Probably cumbersome and difficult to organize, but like the fixed schedule at least would make sure everyone knew what they were getting into. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)
• A complicated forumala could be used to calculate a fixed schedule on the wiki. That would make the forumla easy to apply since you just look up the destination in a table. Scott Nelson 12:44, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Other related ideas about payment or driver recruitment

Passenger Pre-Payment

Passengers would be responsible for paying their driver at the pre-trip meeting, and presumably would not get that money back if they bail.

• This would complicate matters for those drivers who rarely come to campus anymore and don't attend pre-trip meetings. Maybe it could be considered standard practice unless the driver chooses to forego it? Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)
• This could be a useful mechanism to prevent empty seats on trip. If a passenger does need to bail last-minute for whatever reason, if they've already paid then the only way to recover their money is for them to find somebody to take their spot. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Per-Passenger Fees vs. Per Car Fees

Should a fee be set per car and then divided up amongst passengers, or should a per-passenger fee be set?

• In the per-car case, if there are too few passengers in a car then they get the short end of the stick. In the per-passenger case, the driver might if they only have one passenger. However that second point could be viewed as incentive for drivers to take as many passengers as they can. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)

Reserved Spots for Drivers on Trips

From Line:
I wonder if (as a trip organizer) it might be as simple as limiting the number of spots for people without cars, and leaving spots open for people willing to drive. This would make sense to have been doing all along, as that's often what really limits trips anyway

• Although this has probably been the case to a certain extent already, it usually isn't explicit on a trip organization wiki that there are a few spots set aside to ensure enough drivers for the trip. One thing that should be considered is that this shouldn't turn into one list for people that own cars and one for those who don't; i.e. if a person signs up for a trip and they have a car, they are automatically on the driver's list. Sam Mason 12:22, 9 December 2009 (PST)
• Would the driver who is skipping the waitlist be allowed to bring their spouse, significant other, dog, or parakeet along with them? Scott Webster 13:48, 9 December 2009 (PST)