Carpooling is undergoing a significant transformation. Technology, social networking, location-based services, cellular services, and cloud technologies have all contributed to the expansion of shared and on-demand mobility in recent years, as well as a revival in IT-enabled carpooling. While single-occupant travel remains prevalent in many countries, new services such as app-based carpooling make it easier for travelers to share a journey. There are several societal, employer, and individual advantages to carpooling by use of cool.mt.
According to anecdotal evidence and academic studies, carpooling has multiple societal benefits, including:
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- reduced energy consumption
- reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
- reduced traffic congestion.
Carpooling has been shown in studies to save fuel and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for both users and non-users (the latter due to reducing congestion on the rest of traffic). The average passenger vehicle consumes about 550 gallons of gasoline every year. Carpooling can be a valuable approach for reducing fuel use. According to another study, adding one more passenger to every ten automobiles has been shown to reduce the use of natural resources by a lot. Suppose one passenger was added to every ten cars. In that case, the study estimates that 68.0 million tonnes of GHG emissions would be saved every year. According to another survey, carpoolers cut their commute GHG emissions by about 4% to 5% after enrolling in a workplace trip reduction program.
Several studies examining the effects of employee trip reduction programs (including carpooling and various other transportation demand management programs) have found that employees who participate in these programs report between 4% and 6% fewer vehicle miles traveled than employees who do not participate at the same worksite. Depending on the impact of carpooling’s congestion reduction on traffic, several studies have calculated that carpooling can reduce the regional vehicle miles traveled by 1% to 2%. However, it is crucial to know that carpooling may result in induced demand. Thus, people are motivated to drive more.
Employers can gain from carpooling in addition to noticeable societal benefits by:
- Increasing employee morale
- Reducing parking demand
- Employer financial tax incentives for sponsoring carpooling.
According to anecdotal data, employees who carpool may experience reduced commute stress and enhanced convenience due to shared driving responsibilities, time savings in high occupancy vehicle lanes, and preferred parking at work sites. Employers can also minimize parking demand by reducing the number of car journeys to a job site, saving a ton of capital costs and space in operations and maintenance. Employee morale may improve due to these advantages.
Finally, firms can take advantage of various commuter tax perks and carpooling tax credits available at the state level. The property managers and employers providing financial incentives to their employees are eligible for credits depending on the laws.
Carpoolers benefit individually from:
- Shared travel costs
- Travel time savings from high-occupancy vehicle lanes
- Reduced commute stress
- Preferential parking and other incentives.
According to empirical and anecdotal research, individual carpool users benefit from pooled travel costs, time savings from HOV lanes, reduced commute stress, preferential parking, and other incentives.
