For Earth Day last year, DCist looked at how our region could green up its transportation system, and help area residents to reduce how much they drive. This year, we take a look at a new service that could change the way you do -- or don't -- drive.

Dealing with global warming is one of the biggest challenges our generation faces, and transportation is a major source of the greenhouse gases that are behind the problem. While many D.C. residents are lucky enough to live where walking, biking, and transit can take them to a majority of places they need to go, sometimes, you just need a car. Internet-based car-sharing services like Zipcar and Flexcar are one great option. Since D.C. residents have so heartily endorsed car-sharing with their wallets, this year for Earth Day, we are highlighting another fascinating internet-based transportation experiment.

According to the 2000 census, nearly three-quarters of car trips in the U.S. are taken alone. To some extent, people have begun to embrace transit, cycling, and walking as alternative travel options. As a result, we are seeing more bike lanes in our communities, an emphasis on "walkability" in city planning, and a nationwide development of new transit options. As important as continued development of these alternatives is, some trips just must be made by car. The environmental (and financial) impact of these trips can be minimized, though, by including more than one passenger. Many car tips often begin and end at nearby locations, and if people were to discuss where they were going and when they were coming back, they could combine their trips to save a little cash and a lot of pollution -- in other words, carpooling.

Despite the best efforts of government transportation agencies, however, statistics show that carpooling has remained the bastard child of transportation options. It has never become popular enough to have much of an impact on pollution levels or traffic congestion, and Americans are spending more money than ever on transportation costs. You can point to several reasons for low carpooling Carpools can be difficult to set up or inconvenient, schedules are not terribly flexible, and let's face it, driving around with strangers can be plain awkward.

A new service called GoLoco aims to change all that. Conceived by none other than the founder of Zipcar, Robin Chase, according to its website, GoLoco is "a service that lets friends, neighbors, and co-workers arrange rides together." That's actually quite an understatement.

Photo by tyger_lyllie

The site works from the premise that everyone has a few places they regularly need to get to by car, such as work or the grocery store. There are also less frequent destinations that many of us also share -- a suburban shopping center, for instance. By sharing information about when and where we are going with our network of friends (and their friends), GoLoco's goal is to connect people who are heading to the same place, and as a result, reduce the amount of greenhouse gases we create through driving. As an added benefit, each passenger agrees to pay the driver for their fair share of the trip, cutting down on travel expenses.

GoLoco combines many familiar aspects of other Internet services to connect its members, known as oLos. You start by creating a profile that includes a photo and some basic information such as location, hobbies, and musical interests. You also can provide links to your blog, MySpace or Facebook account, Flickr page, and record an answer to a brief question, so others can hear your voice. You then post trips you are taking or need to take. When a match is made, the details of the trip such as the meeting place and time, side destinations, etc. are agreed to online. Once everyone agrees and confirms, an amount equal to each passenger's share of the trip is transferred into the driver's GoLoco account, similar to a PayPal transaction. (GoLoco calculates the average cost of operating a car at $0.50 per mile. The driver may add additional costs such as tolls or parking, and GoLoco charges a 10 percent transaction fee to cover their costs.) GoLoco also calculates the greenhouse gas emissions that were eliminated as a result of the shared ride.

After a trip, GoLoco members can leave public feedback about each other that rates reliability, safe driving, and even conversational skills. Similar to other networking sites, GoLoco members can establish regular trips, pick-up locations, and destinations. They can also create all sorts of subgroups and networks. For example, Groups allow you to network with people that might be traveling for similar reasons or to specific events, your Close Friends are able see all your trips, and your Trusted Network includes those people you'd trust to ride with again.

GoLoco is banking that these additional services will make theirs a more trusted and useful option than other online rideboard services, which leave much to chance. Like any networking website, the more people participating, the better and more useful the service is. GoLoco has initially focused on developing members in its home town of Boston, forming partnerships with the city's many universities and tech-savvy companies. But with gas prices, traffic congestion, and concern over global warming all rising steadily, D.C. seems like a ripe spot for this sort of service. Would you use it?