More than 100 employees at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Mechanicsburg here are eschewing high gas prices and commuting stress in favor of the financial rewards and quality of life enhancements garnered from less time spent behind the wheel thanks to the Navy base's growing Transportation Incentive Program (TIP).

TIP is a commuter bus service that went into operation in May 2006. The service is a partnership between the base management and Capital Area Transit (CAT), the public transportation provider to the greater Harrisburg area. TIP offers bus service from Shippensburg, Newville and Carlisle to the Navy base.

Riders receive monthly vouchers from $16.50 to $80, which are converted to monthly bus passes. The vouchers, which are provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation, fully cover the fare. There are two morning and afternoon runs to accommodate different work schedules.

When the program was created 60 riders signed up. Now, 105 employees ride the bus, a 43 percent increase overall, with 26 riders joining since May of this year. NSA manages TIP for Navy tenant commands, which make up roughly half of the 4,300 base employee footprint.

This month, base employee Vicky Munger-Husler finally surrendered to truck traffic and traded in her 80-mile commute and the keys to her 2003 Buick Century for a bus voucher, saving about $400 per month in fuel costs.

"I have been driving 76 miles round trip for the last 23 years, and I finally got tired of fighting with all that truck traffic," Munger-Husler said.

While she does have to get up 30 minutes earlier, the Naval Inventory Control Point contracting officer said she gets home at just about the same time. What's more, instead of starting her day stressed, she arrives at the office more rested and in a much better mood.

"The bus is always on time and everyone that I have ridden with seems to be very friendly and cooperative," she offered as side benefits of using TIP.

Base employee Ron Houser agrees. He has been a TIP traveler for almost two years now, and with only a couple of minor inconveniences, becoming a passenger has been a very positive experience thus far.

"The savings that I have gotten by traveling by bus, and the friends that we all have become, has been wonderful," Houser said.

Base program managers are currently working with mass transit providers in York and Lebanon Counties to determine if additional routes are feasible and if employee interest exists.