The Web app GroupCarpool sets out to make organizing carpools for events easy with a simple interface and no login required.
The Group Carpool Web tool makes it easy to sign up as a passenger or volunteer to drive.
Launching with an ethos of 'keep it simple', the Group Carpool site is designed around the idea of making it easy for large groups of people to organize drivers and passengers.
James McBryan, programmer of Group Carpool, grew frustrated with using Google spreadsheets to match up drivers and passengers for backpacking trips. He set up this new Web application as a means for people to arrange transportation for specific events.
To create a carpool, you don't need to register for an account or login with Facebook. It merely requires clicking the 'Create a carpool' link on the homepage, after which you will be asked to name the trip and enter your email address.
The site presents you with a custom link for your trip, the only way to access your new carpool page.
You can share the link with a specific group, members of which can pull up the page, then volunteer to drive or sign up for a particular car. Drivers can specify how many passengers they are willing to take.
Although Group Carpool lets each person enter a street address and phone number, it has no mapping functions, so drivers will need to figure out their own routes. It also lacks any security, beyond members of a group not sharing the custom trip URL.
But as a tool for quickly figuring out who wants to drive and who needs a ride, Group Carpool is simple to use and share.
