Canadians love their cars.
Despite traffic congestion, rising infrastructure costs and concern for the environment, the private automobile is the still the preferred mode of transportation for most Canadians. An estimated 80% of the cars on the road are occupied by only one person.
In order to help reduce the volume of traffic on our highways, many of Canada’s large urban centres, including Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, London, Waterloo, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and Halifax, have established programs to promote carpooling and other alternative forms of transportation.
One such program, The Smart Commute Initiative, was launched in 2004 with funding from Transport Canada as a three-year pilot project. The program has continued since 2008 as part of Metrolinx, an Ontario government agency.
Using the theme, Choose Your Way, Smart Commute is focused on the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, Canada’s most densely populated region. Working with employers, Smart Commute helps to register carpoolers, find ride matches and promote healthy commuting options such as walking, cycling and taking public transit.
“Smart Commute is not just about travel,” said Sandra McEleney, Program provider for Durham Region’s Smart Commute program. “It’s about employee well being, climate change and saving money. And it’s the right program for our communities.”
“We can’t keep building new roads. We need to make better use of the ones that we have,” she said.
McEleney says that carpooling is often the easiest way for people to change their commuting habits, because it offers the greatest flexibility.
“You can have your car on the days that you need it and you don’t have to give up the comfort and convenience of driving.”
“But I think the things that really sustain the program are the intangibles. Feeling good about doing something for the environment and forging new friendships.”
Smart commuting
In the first three years of the program, The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area’s Smart Commute program:
Reduced trips by lone drivers by 1.3 million
Eliminated 75 million kilometres of vehicular traffic
Reduced the equivalent of 10,000 car trips per weekday
Adding up the Numbers (the high cost of commuting)
Transportation accounts for 27% of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions (Environment Canada)
80% of cars on the road have one occupant (carpoolzone.ca)
71% of commuters depend on the car (OECD)
Traffic congestion costs Toronto $3.3 billion per year (OECD)
The cost to operate a car is estimated at $9,000 a year (CAA estimate)
Carpooling can cut the cost of commuting by 50% by sharing the cost of gas and parking. (University of Ottawa)
A two-person carpool with a 100 km commute can save $4,387.50 annually (ridefinders.org)
Benefits of carpooling
For carpoolers
Reduces commuting times by allowing access to high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, where available
Saves money on fuel, parking and car maintenance
The more people you commute with, the more you save
Chance to relax and reduce stress by reading, taking a nap or chatting during your commute (when not driving!)
Preferred parking and other employer incentives
Get to know your co-workers and make new friendships
Feel good about doing something for the environment
For taxpayers
Reduces the need for highway expansion and other costly infrastructure
Reduces maintenance costs on highways, by reducing traffic
Reduces congestion and related costs
For the environment
Reduces greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and air pollution
Improves air quality and reduces smog (and related health costs)
Carpool etiquette
Smart Commute offers the following suggestions for maintaining a successful carpool:
Communications - Ensure everyone has a copy of home, work or cell phone numbers in case of an emergency, illness or a change in plans. Don’t forget to give notice of vacation, overtime or personal plans.
Route - Establish the morning pickup point(s) and designate a place to meet for the trip home.
Be Punctual - Decide as a group how long you’ll wait for a passenger (and don’t honk your horn when picking up passengers)
Establish policies - Smoking or nonsmoking; music and volume; food and drinks. Your carpool will have a better chance of success if possible irritants are discussed initially.
Cost sharing - If your carpoolers don’t share the driving equally, come to an understanding of how the costs will be shared and agree on payment dates.
Driving schedule - If all members of your carpool agree to share the responsibility of driving, decide among yourselves if you want to alternate driving on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
Vehicles – Drive carefully and keep the vehicle in good repair. This includes keeping the vehicle clean, safe and gassed up before each trip.
Insurance - Check your policy if you will be a driver in the carpool. Your insurance rates may change if you carpool on a regular basis.
Patience - It usually takes a few weeks for everyone’s routine to come together. Respect your fellow carpoolers wishes. You don’t have to carpool every day. Find out what works best for you.
Feb. 1 to 5 is National Carpool Week.
For more information about the Smart Commute, how to set up carpool program or for links to trip reduction programs in other cities, go to www.smartcommute.ca.
