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Glad this got turned into a form, I'm really hoping this works out and it's something I'd even consider helping to organize if you need assistance. Two thought

by dotBen 15y ago

Glad this got turned into a form, I'm really hoping this works out and it's something I'd even consider helping to organize if you need assistance. Two thoughts: 1) Have you considered getting sponsorship to help make this possible? I have raised the idea in the past with funded startups - esp those looking to hire or have developer-facing tools - that funding something like this would be beneficial. On the one hand, I would be against a startup actually pitching during the ride, but I wouldn't be against using a service that is non-in-your-face sponsored to off-set some of the costs. 2) Bauers already provides the shuttles for an number of employer services (TaaS, Transport as a Service??). You should definitely consider them: http://www.bauersit.com/ http://www.bauersit.com/ Finally, you've not stated whether this is something you intend to run for profit or as a community service. It would be useful to clarify, perhaps. I'd personally love to see it as a community service but I'm not against this being commercial. Let me know what I can do to help.

jhuckestein 15y ago
Good points, thanks Ben! 1) Sponsorship is a great idea, but it seems like a great idea. At StartupBus, the majority of our costs are covered through sponsorship. 2) BauerIT works with us on StartupBus every year and they have already offered a very reduced rate. This is slightly off-topic, but I second that they are amazing and highly recommended for all bus needs. It does seem to be more economical over the long run to buy a bus though. If you're interested in specifics, we can take this offline. I'll shoot you an email in a bit. 3) Looks like it won't easily be possible to run it for profit at prices comparable to caltrain (which is my goal), so I'm open to making it a community service (this also helps with setting expectations). As a non-immigrant visa holder it's a hassle for me to turn a profit on anything anyway ;)
- dotBen 15y ago
  Arhh, I didn't know you were part of the startup bus crew. Elias is a good friend of mine. I'm guessing you're Ausie too if you have a non-immigrant visa. As it happens, so do I so I have same challenges. To your point on CalTrain, and what everyone who might use this service needs to understand, is that CalTrain is run at a loss - $12 each way from SF<>MountainView doesn't cover their true costs. In fact my client pays me $40/round-trip if I drive between SF and Mountain View because it's 80 miles round-trip ($0.5/mile driving costs, which is standard). Further more, Caltrin have scales of economy on their side too. So if people are looking to pay the same as CalTrain then they're going to be disappointed - unless you can subsidize with sponsorship.

by dotBen 15y ago

jhuckestein 15y ago

Good points, thanks Ben! 1) Sponsorship is a great idea, but it seems like a great idea. At StartupBus, the majority of our costs are covered through sponsorship. 2) BauerIT works with us on StartupBus every year and they have already offered a very reduced rate. This is slightly off-topic, but I second that they are amazing and highly recommended for all bus needs. It does seem to be more economical over the long run to buy a bus though. If you're interested in specifics, we can take this offline. I'll shoot you an email in a bit. 3) Looks like it won't easily be possible to run it for profit at prices comparable to caltrain (which is my goal), so I'm open to making it a community service (this also helps with setting expectations). As a non-immigrant visa holder it's a hassle for me to turn a profit on anything anyway ;)

dotBen 15y ago
Arhh, I didn't know you were part of the startup bus crew. Elias is a good friend of mine. I'm guessing you're Ausie too if you have a non-immigrant visa. As it happens, so do I so I have same challenges. To your point on CalTrain, and what everyone who might use this service needs to understand, is that CalTrain is run at a loss - $12 each way from SF<>MountainView doesn't cover their true costs. In fact my client pays me $40/round-trip if I drive between SF and Mountain View because it's 80 miles round-trip ($0.5/mile driving costs, which is standard). Further more, Caltrin have scales of economy on their side too. So if people are looking to pay the same as CalTrain then they're going to be disappointed - unless you can subsidize with sponsorship.