Marty Saves a Mint

Marty Dutton, a senior quality analyst at a high tech corporation, lives 55 miles from work. Two days a week, she cushions the expense of her commute by carpooling. One day a week, she works from home. She works a four-day workweek, so her solo commute is reduced to one day a week.

"We have been carpooling for two years. It has cut down on my gas bills and my oil changes. I used to get oil changes as often as fillups," Marty said.

Marty drives 15 miles to meet her carpool partner, and they drive the last 40 miles together.

It's more important to work near each other and work the same hours than to live near each other. It's possible to drive to a meeting place at a major road, and carpool from there, but most people don't want to go out of their way at the work end. Ideally, you work at the same company, but that's not necessary for a carpool to work.

Marty has the simplest, most flexible carpool: one other person, with whom she is friends. Without compatibility, a carpool will fail. With genuine friendship, it will thrive.

With a carpool friend, you can say, "Let's leave 15 minutes early on July 3," or, "Next week, I need my car worked on. Can you pick me up at the repair station?" or "Can you drive? I have to make a few phone calls."

By driving less, Marty pollutes less, gets to spend time with a friend, and saves a mint on her car expenses.