Car or van pools save cash

Car or van pools save cash

Gas prices are soaring. For easier calculation, let's figure I get about 20 miles per gallon from my Grand Caravan. If I drive 30 miles each way (60 miles round trip), five days a week, I'm traveling 300 miles and spending about $60 just to go back and forth to work each week.

That’s $240 per month in fuel costs alone. It doesn't include wear and tear in addition to depreciation on my vehicle, maintenance, insurance and the possibility that I might be involved in an accident on the highway. Remember. I'm only driving me.

There are better ways.

One is Car Pooling. Sharing rides has been going on for years but really took hold during the Oil Embargo in the 70's.

Car Pooling not only saves gas money but cuts all other costs for everyone involved - if the driving responsibility is shared. Should one person consistently do the driving, expenses are usually shared equally by all. There is no special insurance required for car pooling.

This arrangement works best if everyone works at the same location with the same work schedule - for example, start work at 9:00 a.m. and head home at 5:00 p.m. -- and all live reasonably close to each other.

You simply have to find people who work where you do, live near where you do and have the same schedule (or close to it) that you do. That means asking a lot of questions and talking to a lot of people.

Or - You can look on the Internet for http://cooltopool.com/ and fill out a couple of forms provided by the First Coast Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) to help find a match for your Car Pooling needs. It's free and you may be well pleased with the results.

You'll not only save money, you'll help the environment, reduce accident potential and increase the life of the highway itself simply by reducing the number of vehicles.

One disadvantage, however, is that a personal vehicle is still being used. Something else might work better. It's called Van Pooling.

Jim Cipollone, VPSI, Inc., a company which works with the MPO, said there were more than 450 active van pools in Florida alone. Some advantages to Van Pooling include:

You get all the above advantages plus you drive and ride in a new vehicle which no member of your group owns and your monthly fee covers the cost of the vehicle, the fuel and all related expenses.

All maintenance is included - the vehicle just has to be taken to the maintenance provider on schedule. Not only that, but you're covered by a $1,000,000 insurance policy as part of the deal. Additionally, there's often an "emergency ride home" program set up in case you can't make your usual departure time.

New vans are used for Van Pooling. Jim estimated that a Grand Caravan such as mine would run about $169 a month for each of seven riders. A 15 passenger van would run about $100 per month. As the number of riders goes down, the amount per rider goes up.

Actual rates depend upon the size of the vehicle, the number of people involved and the mileage (round trip), among other factors.

Air quality has also become a factor and in some parts of the United States, the First Coast MPO area is not one of them, Federal and other money may be available to assist Van Pools.

Car and Van Pooling work. There are advantages for both employees and employers. They save money, reduce the possibility of accidents and increase the life of our highways. Reducing the number of vehicles also cuts down the parking space needed. Whether you are an employer or an employee, check out http://cooltopool.com/ . Speakers may also be available.