Almost one year ago I responded to a classified listing regarding a bicycle for sale on my company’s corporate bulletin board.  Through the discussion I realized that my coworker who was selling his bike lived about .25 mile from my house in the same neighborhood!  I had unsuccessfully tried to carpool with another coworker who lived in my town previously but was eager to try again.

I am happy to report that we have been carpooling for nearly 1 year with great results.  Contributing to the success of our carpool was our list of general guidelines to adhere to.

• We both have similar work hours which is the most important thing to consider when carpooling.
• If the passenger is reading we don’t play music, if music is on it is played low.
• Sometimes the passenger sleeps.  The driver stays awake.
• We alternate driving weeks but with the new EZPass rebate we have decided to use one toll transponder for the calendar month to get an $18 credit for 18 bridge crossings.
• If one of us needs to shift schedule or anything we just drive in separately.
• If we had an emergency at home we discussed using Uber.

In 9 months of driving together each of us had one emergency to deal with.  I used Uber and my coworker got a ride home with a friend.

It has been a great experiment in saving resources.

• The passenger gets time to read or sleep without the stress of driving in Philadelphia traffic.
• We both save money on gas, tolls, and auto maintenance.
• We reduce wear and tear on our cars by at least 4300 miles per year.
• We reduce emissions by one car.
• We reduce traffic by one car.

Here are my dollar savings for my half of the car pool.

• Miles per gallon – 30
• Dollar per gallon – $1.89 – possibly the only benefit to living in NJ…CHEAP GAS!!!!
• Miles per day – 36
• Bridge toll per day – $5
• Cost per day – $7.27
• Savings per month – $72.68
• Saving per year – $656.16
• IRS Mileage rate savings – $2332 (A theoretical number based upon all auto expenses excluding tolls).

With so many benefits of carpooling I am surprised it is not more popular.  Common fears of being stranded are overblown with services like Uber.  I am willing to give up a little convenience to save money, resources, and the environment.  Will you join me?