Use casual carpools to control commute

January 21, 5:11 PMOakland Hills ExaminerDebby Richman

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When headed into San Francisco from the East Bay, many commuters rely on "casual carpools" rather than BART trains.  This way, you can control the time you leave for work and do your part for global warming.

Casual Carpool Spots

How does this work?

As a driver, you head to a carpool pick-up spot during normal morning rush hours and let two people hop in your car.  You proceed over the Bay Bridge and drop them off downtown.

Eager passengers show up and wait in line.  They arrive at the pick-up spot by public transportation, their own cars which often can be parked nearby, or loving families who deliver them daily.

For the evening rush, riders typically wait where they were dropped off in the morning - and the process simply goes in reverse.

What are the benefits?

For drivers and riders alike, you fly along in the carpool lanes and don't get stuck in the Bay Bridge traffic quagmire.  That provides serious mental relief, not to mention commuting time.

Drivers also don't have to pay tolls if there are three people in the car, because they can travel in the HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) lanes with their passengers.  This is a morning benefit, as tolls are only collected westbound.

Many of the San Francisco drop-offs occur at very convenient spots for getting around the city.  One of the most common places is the Howard/Fremont intersection, though this varies a bit depending on the driver.

Is this a reliable commute?

When you drive by the carpool pick-up spots, people look like they are standing at a BART station.  They check their Blackberries, listen to music and even read newspapers.  Just like train or bus stops, they are all kind of quiet.

According to RideNow, this is a thirty-year tradition in the East Bay.  This informal approach to ride-sharing thrives on the goodwill among drivers and riders, who trust and depend on each other.

Interestingly, the RideNow site keeper tried to establish a more personalized, online carpooling system which didn't work.  Apparently, folks didn't want to find and commit to each other beforehand.

Where can you carpool?

Here's the list of carpool spots which are now accessible for Oakland Hills residents, and the best one depends on where they (we) live in the hills and slants:

• Claremont & College - in front of Safeway
• Grand & Lakeshore - under I-580 in parking lot
• Grand & Perkins - in the Valero gas station
• Hudson & Claremont - under Hwy 24 on Hudson
• Oakland & Monte Vista - at intersection
• Park & Hampel - near TransBay bus stop
• Park & Hollywood - next to TransBay bus stop

Many Oakland commuters use carpool locations outside city limits too.  They often cross the border into Piedmont, as there's a convenient pick-up on Oakland Avenue, just east of Hillside.

Some other folks, who live near the Caldecott Tunnel, even head to Orinda.  They can park their cars at the BART station, and get picked up in the alley on the north side of Theatre Square. Now that's what we call a commute with a reverse twist.