PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION/Commuters get online for rideshares

An internet-based service is playing matchmaker in Redmond, Wash. But instead of pairing lonely hearts, it matches single commuters. Ridequest.com, a self-serve, online system, unites motorists commuting to local companies with others traveling to and from the same area at similar times.

The free service was launched in July by the Greater Redmond Transportation Management Association (GRTMA), a consortium of 170 area employers – including the city and the Lake Washington School District – that works to reduce the number of single-occupant vehicles on area highways. Puget Sound Systems Group, Lacey, Wash., developed the $290,000 system using mapping technology from Redlands, Calif.-based ESRI. It was funded by the state and federal DOTs.

“We now provide ride-matching services by phone, by mail, by fax and even e-mail, so this jump to the Internet is the next step,” says King County Executive Ron Sims. “Internet technology now makes it much easier to share a ride, and save money and time.”

Interested commuters register with Ridequest.com and receive a password. They type in their e-mail addresses, work schedules, and business and home addresses, and view a map displaying the commute. The program calculates the distance traveled to and from the workplace and builds a search radius to locate potential ridesharing partners. Matches are indicated on the map with a lettered dot, and the program generates a list of corresponding commuters.

Users can send a pre-written “rideshare wanted” e-mail to any or all of the people on the match list. Commuters can revisit the site (www.ridequest.com) at any time to update or delete their records; change work schedules, pickup and drop-off locations; and find new matches. All users are required to revisit the site at least once every 90 days to verify that their information is current, according to Donald Loseff, GRTMA Ridequest.com project manager.

Because the service requires users to enter some personal information, GRTMA included security measures, Loseff says. For example, users’ e-mail addresses must be verified during registration before they can proceed with locating a rideshare partner. Users also are not required to enter exact home addresses; many just enter an intersection or street name, he explains.

“We encourage people to use their work information – e-mail, phone number, etc.,” Loseff says. “We also suggest that people meet ahead of time, perhaps at their office.”

Match lists include only a person’s name, e-mail address and city or neighborhood. GRTMA has not heard of problems or security issues with Ridequest.com, Loseff says.

Currently, Ridequest.com is being used by more than 1,100 commuters to locate rideshare partners. GRTMA officials expect that as many as 5,000 commuters will be on the system in the next few years. More than 35,000 employees work at companies affiliated with GRTMA.

“Ridequest.com is cutting edge,” says Redmond Mayor Rosemarie Ives. “It connects people who work in Redmond, while helping to reduce gridlock and impro ve air quality.”