The Benefits of Carpooling

Carpooling allows travelers to share a ride to a common destination and can include several forms of sharing a ride, such as casual carpooling and real-time carpooling. Because carpooling reduces the number of automobiles needed by travelers, it is often associated with numerous societal benefitsincluding: 1) reductions in energy consumption and emissions, 2) congestion mitigation, and 3) reduced parking infrastructure demand. In recent years, economic, environmental, and social forces coupled with technological innovations are encouraging shared and pooled services. Shared mobility is changing how people travel and is having a transformative impact on mobility. This chapter reviews key trends impacting the mobility marketplace including the growth of shared mobility and key demographic indicators, such as an aging population and Millennials entering the workforce. For decades, carpooling has been used as a strategy by numerous public agencies and employers as a strategy to address a range of climate, environmental, and congestion mitigation goals, while simultaneously increasing roadway and parking capacity. This chapter discusses how employers and public agencies can support carpooling. This chapter concludes with a summary of key findings from the report.