is now offering a unique ride-sharing system called Gohio Commute sponsored by the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS) and Kent State’s Office of Sustainability.
The free, web-based program, , is available for everyone to find ride matches, daily commutes and one-time trips. Students, faculty and staff can register with their Kent State email to be entered into a private Kent State network of other students, faculty and staff who are commuting.
“There is no fee for going onto the platform and using it,” says Melanie Knowles, manager of sustainability at Kent State. “We want everyone to be able to use the program and match up with other Kent State commuters.”
Members can enter in their starting point and final destination as a driver or a rider to match with other carpoolers. As a driver, members can start their own carpool and match with riders. As a rider, users can search through different carpools and connect with drivers. Once users are connected, they can send messages to other users to coordinate trips.
The Office of Sustainability is dedicated to providing environmentally friendly transportation initiatives, which include Gohio Commute.
“The Gohio Commute platform also estimates CO2 avoided by ride-sharing,” Ms. Knowles says. “So, in addition to the individual benefits, ride-sharing benefits the community by reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The platform shows us the collective impact of the Kent State network choosing to share rides or use alternative transportation.”
Gohio also shows transit options, walking directions, biking directions, bike pools and driving directions. Users also can choose ride matches from the Kent State network, the AMATS network or any other network.
For more information about sustainable transport at Kent State, visit www.kent.edu/sustainability/transportation.