Flexible carpooling is designed to be as efficient as possible.
There’s a parking area for each route that operates from the flexible carpool park. A flexible carpool park can support several destinations (for example: CBD, airport, university, office park). Each of these would have a separate parking area.
Each parking area has a ‘driving lane’ and two ‘parking lanes’. All parking fills up from the ‘exit end’ first. Always park on the lowest numbered parking space available.
With this layout it is easy for people to see what is going on and make their decision about whether to be a rider or a driver for the day.
People who want to be riders can park their car and get out and wait right next to their car. This is where they will get into the car they take a ride in. No walking across the parking lot to line up. And if the wait is longer than expected, it is easy to get back in the car and become a driver instead.
People who want to be drivers drive down the middle lane and pick up the people waiting. If there is no-one waiting, they stop and wait next to the empty spaces where arriving riders will park.
At the end of the work day, it’s easy for drivers to drop riders very near to the rider’s car.