May 2005 Archives

Casual carpooling is one of those oddities of the Bay Area that inspires me enough to make fun...

What it is this:

"Casual car pools" are informal car pools that form when drivers and passengers meet at designated locations. There are a number of East Bay pickup locations, which are listed on the previous page. Drivers drop passengers off at Fremont and Mission Streets (or nearby) in downtown San Francisco. Sometimes the driver will indicate where they are going after that (north of Market, for example, or even to Civic Center) and offer to take passengers further. Casual car pools are quick and convenient. They are quick because in the morning car pools are able to bypass the long delays at the Bay Bridge toll plaza. In the evenings you can take advantage of the car pool-only on-ramp to the Bridge, and car pool lanes on I-80 and I-880. Car pools also do not pay tolls on either the Bay Bridge or the Carquinez Bridge during commute hours. Casual car pools are convenient because no pre-arrangement or fixed schedule is necessary. There are usually sufficient numbers of drivers and riders so that you can get a car pool within a matter of minutes. Casual car pool sites for rides to downtown San Francisco have been in existence in the East Bay for more than 20 years. Casual car pools are not "run" by any organization or authority. They have worked well for over 20 years based on a few simple rules that have evolved among drivers and passengers. Regular car pools on the Bay Bridge and I-80 are required to have three or more people in a car. An exception is made for cars and trucks that have only two seats. Such vehicles may use the car pool lanes when there are two people in the vehicle. People are usually careful to form as many car pools as possible. This means no more than three people per car. People are quite mindful of the "first-come, first-served" aspect of the lines. Avoid the ire of your fellow commuters: don't "line-jump." Also, please be mindful of business and residential neighbors. Drivers should avoid blocking driveways and side streets while waiting for passengers. Never stop in a bus zone. The fine is now more than $250! As far as anyone seems to know, over the history of East Bay casual carpooling, there have been no untoward incidents. The "three-per-car" requirement has helped. A little caution and common sense also have helped. Passengers can always decline a ride. For example, female passengers have been known to decline rides in two-seat cars. They simply let another passenger go first, and wait for a larger vehicle. Car pool etiquette seems to be that passengers remain silent unless the driver initiates conversation. Enjoy the ride!

Source: http://www.ridenow.org/carpool/

What so funny? I thought how useful it might be to pimp out my bitches at the carpool, they can jump in and with traffic, have enough time to ply their trade with up to all four potential and captive customers.