Do you work odd hours, or maybe transit isn’t the best commute solution for you? Are you tired of driving alone and putting miles on your car, paying for parking? You might want to consider sharing the ride. Sharing the ride or ridesharing is a great way to get work, save money on the cost of gas and parking and when you share the ride you can take advantage of the high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes. Ridesharing can be totally flexible too, you can share the ride everyday or only on occasion.

 

Want to give ridesharing a try? We’re partnering with UW Transportation Services to find potential rideshare partners in your area, so visit our commute planning webpage here. Tell us where you are coming from and where you are going, and well point you in the right direction. Want to learn more? Keep reading about all of the rideshare options out there.

Vanpool

A vanpool is a group of five to 15 people who live at least three miles away from the U District and who commute together in a van that is owned, maintained and insured by a public transportation agency like: King County Metro Transit, Community Transit, Island Transit, Kitsap Transit, Pierce Transit or Intercity Transit. Riding in a vanpool give your group access to the HOV lanes and on-ramps to get a faster start to your day. For even more flexibility, some of the transportation agency owned vans, can be outfitted with bicycle racks, so it’s easy to use your bicycle to run errands during the day.

RideshareOnline

RideshareOnline is the oldest ridesharing network in the region. Here is how it works, create an account, answer a few questions like where you’re coming from and where you’re going, set your work hours and the days you commute and you are ready to go. The website generates possible matches based on starting and ending locations.

 

To contact certain drivers/riders, just make sure to click the “Send Message” button. A great thing about RideshareOnline is that you can connect with specifically people going to the University of Washington. Just make sure to check the box labeled “University of Washington.”

 

RideshareOnline does have some drawbacks. Some people may take longer to message back when coordinating rides. The popularity of the site has declined in recent years. Through the help of other third party ridesharing networks, the hope is that connecting to other riders can be simpler. Make sure to post your ride to increase the chances of connecting with potential carpoolers. Make sure you are advocating for ridesharing in your neighborhood. Visit King County Metro

  

Scoop   

Scoop is a application you can download on your smartphone. Very similar to Uber and Lyft, you can find riders or drivers in your area. The difference is that you’re not arbitrarily summoning people to come to drive to your area, they are users who live and work nearby. Scoop utilizes algorithms to find the most efficient route and they do this by locating the fastest routes, number of carpoolers, and HOV lanes. You can schedule rides ahead of time. This makes it easier to find a route that fits your specific needs. Scheduling your rides early helps to eliminate guesswork of when a ride will be available. Ridership is not as high as it could be on this application. Joining the application and referring other colleagues would help expand the program.

Waze

Download Waze on your smartphone. This is a fairly new site and it is starting to gain momentum. Like other rideshare applications you set your home address, work address, and work hours to get connected to people in your area. You are in control of who you ride with, people are rated out of five stars. Check out the application to see who is riding in your area.

iCarpool

iCarpool connects you with verified drivers going your way at the same time so you can start carpooling in a matter of minutes. There’s no long term commitment, each carpool ride that you take is for a single trip. Carpooling can provide you a direct point to point convenient option and can help you reduce your commute time.

Migo

Migo is a hub for all transportation modes in Seattle. It’ll compare prices for hailing services, taxi services, car rentals, bikeshare rentals, and more. You can also see real time information for buses in your area. You can compare the times and cost of the different modes of transportation in the area to find the best route for you.

 

As you can see, there are a lot of options, resources and ways to get connected with riders going your way.  These applications are your ticket to avoid the costs of driving alone. RideshareOnline, Scoop, Waze, and iCarpool  are just some of many sites to get you connected to riders and drivers in your area. Create an account and browse your options to start sharing the ride. Increasing usage on these websites allows for more ridership in your area. Want more help? Check out the U District, Let’s Go commute planning services, let us help find you a match.