Last week, Gerber announced that it’s moving its headquarters from New Jersey to Rosslyn, a few blocks away from us at Mobility Lab.
Gerber will be joining its parent company Nestle, which announced last year its move from the Los Angeles metro region to Rosslyn.
Why is Nestle moving both its headquarters and one of its subsidiaries to this slice of Arlington? The great transportation options in the area, enhanced by transportation demand management.
If this is your first time on Mobility Lab, transportation demand management (TDM as we lovingly call it) might be confusing. But it’s really simple. All you need to know is this:
TDM helps people use the existing infrastructure in more sustainable, equitable, and efficient ways.
Want people to bike to work? Employers should provide showers and secure bike rooms. Want people to take transit? Give employees transit benefits.
It really works: Arlington is proud that its TDM program takes 40,000 cars off the road each day. And it’s a major reason why Nestle’s headquarters is arriving in Rosslyn.
“Attracting new talent is the biggest reason why Nestle picked Arlington,” said Jonathan Boldes, Arlington Transportation Partners‘ Nestle representative. “They know that being accessible to mass transit, biking, and walking is a great way to attract a millennial workforce.”
To further this, Nestle is offering both a transit-benefits program and a walk/bike incentive program. The walk/bike program gives employees a monetary incentive to walk or bike to work, according to Boldes.
Nestle is also educating employees on how to use the D.C. region’s plethora of transportation options, knowing that California or New Jersey transplants might not be used to car-free living. “We give employees presentations on how to use Metro, the buses, SmarTrip cards, walking, and biking,” said Boldes. “I’ve done over 10 events just for Nestle employees.”
And it’s working: most Nestle employees aren’t driving to work. “Avoiding traffic is the most persuasive reason why they’re not driving,” Boldes said. “Most are keeping their cars but they aren’t commuting in them.”
Maybe after a couple of years in Arlington, they’ll ditch their cars altogether.
Photo of Rosslyn by Tim Evanson.