Do you know your cost of commuting? Check out our Harford Commuter Assistance Cost Calculator to see if alternative transportation options would be right for you! Do you need to find a carpool or vanpool? Visit Commuter Connections or Rideshare by Enterprise to find one in your area. Remember, Commuting is Smart for your wallet and smart for your world! 

Carpooling

A carpool is when 2 or more people share the ride to work. It only takes 2 to form a carpool, and arrangements can be as flexible as you need them to be.

Carpool Benefits

• Cost Savings - Carpooling helps you save on your commute costs and the wear and tear on your vehicle. The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimates that driving alone to work, 25 miles round trip each day, can cost a commuter about $22 per day - and over $5,100 each year! And that includes wear and tear (depreciation) and the cost of auto maintenance related to the miles spent commuting. Sharing the ride with just 1 other person in a carpool can, according to AAA, reduce those costs to roughly $11 per day and $2,550 per year; riding in a 3- or 4-person carpool can cut those costs even more!
• Relief from Stress - Typically, carpool participants take turns driving. That means you might be able to read, sleep, work, socialize or just plain relax instead of being stuck all the time behind the wheel by yourself fighting the traffic. Carpoolers report that they are more relaxed, rested and feel more ready to face the day than drive-alone commuters.
• Flexibility - Most carpools are formed through arrangements with friends, neighbors and coworkers, who are sensitive to individual needs. So if a member of the group can't carpool 1 day, the group simply travels without that person that day. Since every so often everyone needs to stay late or arrive early, carpool groups become expert at crafting flexible arrangements. Overall, a carpool tends to be a friendly association that easily adjusts to the needs of the people in it.

Vanpooling

A vanpool is a group (usually between 7-15 people) who commute together on a regular basis in a van. One person usually drives and maintains the van, while riders share the expenses. Whether you ride in a vanpool, or drive it yourself, it's a great way to get to work!

Vanpool Passenger Benefits

Read, sleep, work, socialize or just plain relax instead of being stuck behind the wheel! You save thousands on your 
commute costs, while minimizing wear and tear on your car.

Vanpool Driver Benefits

Vanpool drivers are often rewarded with a 'free ride' to work, and have the use of the van after work and weekends.
If you already own a van, you can recover your ownership costs. 

Harford Commuter Assistance will help you:

• Find carpool partners (go to Commuter Connections for more information)
• Start or join a carpool
• Join a vanpool
• Form a vanpool with a leased van (go to Rideshare by Enterprise for more information)
• Form a vanpool with your own van
• Help you take advantage of a low-interest van purchase program
• Keep your vanpool on the road with support services
• Find the answers to all your carpool or vanpool questions!