Let's Carpool

Palmerston North City Council and the Greater Wellington Regional Council have joined forces to launch a new carpool website set to become the market leader in New Zealand for commuter carpooling.

Palmerston North City Council and the Greater Wellington Regional Council have joined forces to launch a new carpool website set to become the market leader in New Zealand for commuter carpooling.

Over the past few months, Palmerston North City Council has worked closely with Greater Wellington Regional Council, with support from the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA), to develop a national carpooling service and brand. The new website is now live at www.letscarpool.govt.nz.

Let's Carpool offers a free, secure service to help individuals find a carpool match for their regular commute, one-off trips and inter-regional trips. The partnership between Palmerston North City Council and the Greater Wellington Regional Council has been established to create a single carpooling service that is trustworthy, reliable, easy to use, with high quality matches and excellent customer service.

Palmerston North City Council's Project coordinator for Sustainability, William van Ausdal, says the new website will capitalise on the success of the rideshare site and provide a fantastic gateway for other regions in New Zealand looking to join. The   Auckland, Waikato, Taranaki and Nelson regions have already signed up as partners.

"The goal is to increase awareness and understanding of the benefits of carpooling as a viable form of transport. As more people choose carpooling as their preferred transport option, we expect to see easier matches, increased usage and a subsequent decrease in both congestion and single-occupancy trips, both within our region and inter-regionally, particularly between provincial towns and rural areas, to Palmerston North and Wellington."

The new site includes features such as email alerts which will allow users to sign up for automatic updates on new carpool matches. A mobile version of the site has also been developed for smart phone and tablet users.

Additionally, users will be able to link their 'Let's Carpool' profile to their Facebook or Twitter account.  The home page of the new website features a savings calculator so motorists can see the savings they are making by choosing carpooling. This is based on fuel price, journey distance and the number of passengers in the car.