Community carpool program

My idea is to implement a carpooling program to assist commuters who live and/or work in the Eastern suburbs. This would include the establishment of a website and associated app to help commuters to find others in their community who travel similar routes and/or have similar work hours. To encourage uptake and reach of the program, information would be distributed online via social media, as well as via information sessions with workplaces and the wider community. To assess the effectiveness of the program, an evaluation study involving a voluntary survey of carpool program participants would also be undertaken.

For those in the Eastern suburbs, public transport infrastructure is not keeping pace with population growth, and many commuters are heavily reliant on their cars in some capacity for getting to and from work. By implementing a community carpooling program, commuters will be able to search for and connect with others in their community who make similar journeys. This would help to reduce transport costs – both financial and environmental. It would also provide a more sociable alternative to commuting alone. For the broader community it could also provide indirect benefits through reduced congestion and improved parking accessibility.