With information kindly supplied by liftshare.com
How does it work?
All car share schemes are free to register. Having joined the scheme you simply log your journey and the system automatically lists all potential matches.
Having found a match you simply send an automated email to any likely matches and arrange to travel together. The system also calculates the financial and CO2 saving you are likely to make on each journey compared to making that journey alone in the car.
What is Van Pooling?
Van pooling is similar to car sharing and particularly common for those working in areas with inadequate public transport and low car ownership. An employer may organise a vehicle and pick up employees at designated points along a route to work. Van poolers may pay a nominal cost towards running the vehicle. Filling a van to capacity can result in carbon as well as financial efficiencies and could also improve employee punctuality.
When can I share a car?
You can share a car for any journey – getting to work, doing the weekly shop, taking the children to school, going to the match at the weekend, travelling to a festival, event or show, getting to or from university, visiting friends or getting to the airport. You can offer lifts if you have spare seats in your car or look for a lift if you don’t have a car.
Can car sharing work for businesses?
Yes. If parking is an issue for you, you are having trouble recruiting staff because they can’t reach you, or if you just want to do your staff (and your bottom line) a favour, then using a car share scheme is likely to be a good idea.
You can either encourage your staff to join the free open access group on your local car share scheme or set up a restricted access group for your staff.
This facility enables you to establish your own private journey matching scheme within one of the scheme operator sites. Your staff will be able to choose to search from either the public scheme if they wish, but the default setting restricts journey data and matches to within your organisation. Some companies prefer the added feeling of security this gives.
An Administrator, nominated by you, will have access to some of the data on the group for monitoring and promotional purposes. This may be important if you have a Travel Plan, or want to track uptake and usage.
How safe is car sharing?
The safety of our members is a priority for liftshare, and we have made our web-site as secure as we can. All members’ details are stored securely in the database and only the members’ intended travel information can be accessed on-line.
When it comes to travelling, every member is responsible for his or her own safety. However we do recommend that members’ follow some simple security measures outlined below:
- Avoid exchanging home addresses with your travelling companion before you meet them.
- Arrange to meet in a public place.
- Inform a friend or family member of who you will be travelling with, when and to where.
- Make sure you show each other your I.D.s – passports, student cards or driving licences – so you know you’re travelling with the right person.
You are under no obligation to go ahead with any liftshare. If you have any doubts about your travelling companion, for any reason, you should avoid travelling with them.
Is it possible to find travelling companions of the same sex? (Single sex travelling i.e. Only females)
Yes, through our public groups you can join all male or female car sharing schemes.
Where should I arrange to meet my travelling companions?
We recommend that you meet your travelling companions at a public place, close to public transport networks if possible so that alternative transport options are available should the lift fall through. We advise members not to meet at a home address for security reasons.
What are the costs of car sharing?
Liftshare suggests that passengers pay the driver 10p per mile each. Alternatively drivers and passengers can split the cost of petrol. Please note that drivers should not make a profit from car-sharing as this can invalidate their insurance. As a basic figure we advise that drivers receive no more than 40p per mile from passengers, but if you have any concerns please contact your insurance company directly.
What are the insurance implications of car sharing?
The Association of British Insurers clearly states that car-sharing won’t affect the insurance of their members so long as a profit isn’t made:
“Giving Lifts – All ABI motor insurers have agreed that if your passengers contribute towards your running costs your insurance cover will not be affected, as long as lifts are given in a vehicle seating eight passengers or less. This agreement does not apply if you make a profit from payments received or if carrying passengers is your business.” (Source: ABI website, 2005)
The ABI represents around 400 companies, transacting 94% of the business of UK insurance companies.
Drivers with any concerns should check with their insurance company as terms and conditions may vary between insurance providers over time.
How do I contact the driver/passenger?
Having selected a suitable travelling match, you should make contact (to agree a time and place to meet) using their e-mail address. We do not recommend that you exchange home addresses (for security reasons), and we advise all members to meet in public locations such as a train station or bus station, which are easy to get to and away from, should the lift fail.
What happens if my lift fails?
Liftshare is solely a travel information service provider and we cannot be held responsible for any journeys that don’t work out as planned. Likewise the drivers and passengers who register their journeys with us are under no legal obligation to their travelling companions or to liftshare to make any journeys.
However we hope that if plans change and journeys can’t be made, that all affected parties will be contacted and forewarned with appropriate notice. We also suggest that travelling companions arrange to meet at locations close to public transport networks, so that if plans fall through the passengers have the option of using an alternative form of transport to get to their destination on time.
What are car sharing lanes?
On 20th March 2006, the Transport Secretary Alistair Darling announced the first ever UK motorway car share lane.
Drivers using the M606 and M62 between Bradford and Leeds, in West Yorkshire, will benefit from the £2.5 million initiative, which was introduced in Spring 2008. The one-mile lane aims to cut the average peak-time journey by eight minutes.
In general the Government favours providing extra capacity for car pool lanes, but in some case it may be possible to use one of the existing lanes. These could be created by using the hard-shoulder as a running lane or by widening the road to create an additional lane.
Carplus supports the introduction of car share lanes but favours the use of existing space to make the most of the existing road network as evidence shows that wider motorways can attract more traffic.
