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Slash Your Commuting Costs by Half (or more)

For 30 years, Bommanna Krishnappan and his carpool buddy, Fausto Chiocchio, travelled 200,000 kilometres together between Hamilton and Burlington, Ontario. At 30 cents per kilometre, he figures, they each saved $30,000 over the lifetime of their carpool, as well as 1,000 litres of gas.

Chiocchio and Krishnappan are among the thousands of Canadians who are taking to the road - together - to share the costs of gas and parking while reducing the wear and tear on their personal vehicles.

Part of the transit mix

Slash your commuting costs by up to 75% by sharing the ride to work.

Carpooling obviously is not new. But for commuters who want to lower their gas bills, it's fast becoming a popular part of the transit mix: carpooling, carsharing, public transit, bicycling and walking. It can be a practical solution not only for commuting but for other regular trips to sporting practices, community meetings or outlying shopping centres.

If facing the solo commute is no longer your desired method of transport, consider the benefits of carpooling:

• Lower commuting costs for gas, parking and maintenance, with savings as high as 75%
• Reduced wear and tear of your vehicle
• More relaxed commute, with time to read or nap
• Less need for second car and extra loan payments
• Links to existing mass transit

Getting in the pool

Joining a carpool might be as easy as asking a neighbour who shares a similar route to split the costs of driving. Other forms of carpooling take that idea one step further:

• Designated driver - one driver and one or more passengers
• Alternating - costs are incurred only when it is your turn to drive
• Employer - employees ride company vehicles and pay a fare to offset fuel, maintenance and insurance
• Fleet Car/Vanpool - fares are based on round trip distance and cover operating expenses coordinated by a central organization, sometimes with volunteer drivers.

If you are sharing equally in the driving of an alternating pool, you may not need to divide the costs. However, if one person does most of the driving, you should decide on a "fare" each rider will pay to the driver. Do this in advance, and establish a daily, weekly or monthly fare based on fuel, maintenance and parking costs.

Arranging carpools online

In some cities you can use a carpooling database to help you locate travelling companions who live and work in the same areas. Carpooling partners are determined by matching their home postal code and place of work with other carpoolers in the database. The service is usually free and open to all workers whose employers are members of the program.

CarpoolTool.com began as a project in Kitchener-Waterloo in 2001 and went national in February 2003. The service employs an interactive website to connect members with others whose commuting needs match. The program is free and serves 8,600 active commuters in communities across Canada.

Carpool.ca takes a different approach to carpooling - it is a complete rideshare management system created specifically for large employers, including corporations, governments and post-secondary institutions. With programs in place in six provinces, there are now more than 7,000 participants registered.

By paying an annual subscription fee, participating employers receive promotional materials and marketing support to let their employees know about Carpool.ca, making the likelihood of finding a match even greater.

Top Eight Rules for the Pool

1. Set your route and schedule in advance, including morning pick-up points and a meeting place for the trip home.
2. Be punctual - and decide, as a group, how long you will wait for a late member.
3. Figure out a way to share costs, such as gas and parking, especially if members don't share the driving equally. Whose car? Rotation?
4. Establish ground rules about smoking, music, food and beverages.
5. Discourage side trips and errands; save those for the weekend and keep your carpool for getting to and from work.
6. Make sure you are covered by your insurance company - some policies may even offer rate reductions for ride sharing.
7. Make sure everyone in the carpool has a copy of home, work or cell phone numbers and agree in advance what will happen in the event of illness or mechanical problems.
8. Realize there might be an adjustment period; it usually takes a few weeks to arrange everyone's routine into a harmonious pattern.

Related Link

Transport Canada, Commuter Options: The Complete Guide for Canadian Employers