Drivers are quick to complain about traffic congestion yet are still not willing to give up their seats at the wheel, according to the creators of carpooling platform Bum a Lift.
After a number of futile at-tempts to test the idea of ride sharing, this newspaper discovered that the team behind the initiative has halted efforts to market the platform on a national level.
Shaun Grech, the creator of Bum a Lift, said that while initial reactions to the concept were positive, the novelty around it had worn off and fewer people were making use of the service.
Instead, the team decided to focus on the university and independent schools, where carpooling was more readily taken up.
“We are holding off on trying to get the service up and running on a national level because there needs to be a massive shift in our society’s mentality and we don’t have the resources to do that,” Mr Grech said.
While at first people seemed interested in the idea of sharing journeys, they proved reluctant to drop their private cars. “Getting drivers to understand the benefits of carpooling at a local level isn’t easy. It’s a challenge that requires years of work and a lot of money.”
Getting drivers to understand the benefits of carpooling at a local level isn’t easy
Instead, the Bum a Lift team have identified a “micro-culture” that fits the carpooling mould perfectly – the university. According to Mr Grech, improving carpooling there would create an environment where sharing cars became something that came naturally to students. The concept would be second nature by the time they enter the world of work.
“University students present the perfect scenario to nurture a culture that would be open to alternative modes of travel.
“Students want to cut down on fuel costs, they want to avoid the hassle of looking for parking and they are willing to socialise, so carpooling fits in perfectly,” he said.
Even thought they might come from different localities and have varied schedules, most would rather spend an extra hour at the library waiting for a lift than wasting time in the morning searching for a parking spot.
The carpooling initiative was launched by the University Students Council earlier this year, in collaboration with Bum a Lift.
Arrangements were made by the council for one of the car parks to be used exclusively by those carpooling.
According to Mr Grech, the parking spaces there are always taken up and next year more car parks are to be reserved for carpooling students.
While university students are willing to offer lifts to anyone, however, this is not the case with parents of schoolchildren, who seem reluctant to carpool before getting to know the other parents.
Mr Grech said that parents who made use of the service for the school run had asked the team to develop a chat feature which would allow them to do this.
“Many seem to fear getting lifts with people they do not know. It’s somewhat understandable when young children are involved, that’s why we are tackling it. But it should not stop adults from carpooling,” he added.
Another carpooling platform, Quota, run by a Junior Achievement Young Enterprise team called Unity, was set up recently.
While saying it has so far received positive feedback, it acknowledged that taking the platform to a national level could be difficult and it hoped to collaborate with other companies.
“We’re fighting against a culture which very much enjoys its privacy and independence, something which carpooling does not provide,” Unity spokesman Filippo Vassallo Kirpalani said.
Roberta Vella, student
“I find carpooling to be very efficient and when I do manage to find someone to carpool with, getting to my first lecture on time is no problem at all. When I do not carpool, it has sometimes taken me over an hour to find parking.
“For more students to be able to use this system, we obviously need more parking spaces. There have been times when I carpooled, but the carpark was already full.
“I’m not sure about carpooling outside university, since everyone has their own commitments. I guess it depends on where you are going.”