People explore new way of carpooling in Wuhan

With a sharp increase in the number of vehicles, traffic congestion has been aggravated in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Carpooling however is often regarded as a violation of the law. Since late October, private cars with a sign "Carpooling with neighbors" have been seen in Changqing Garden Community in Wuhan. The "Carpooling with neighbors" activity was organized by the community after consulting legal experts and agreements to carpool have been signed. The practice has explored a new way for carpooling to become a legal and normal act.

People explore new way of carpooling in Wuhan

Changqing Garden Community organized the "Carpooling with neighbors" activity because of heavy traffic.

Changqing Garden Community is a large community in Wuhan. During rush hours every day, a large number of private cars block the roads in front of the community, inconveniencing car owners.

66-year-old Zhang Aoqing, director of the property owner's committee of the No.2 sub-community of Changqing Garden Community, conducted a survey with several other people in the community and they found that over 80 percent of private cars usually only carry one passenger: the driver. On October 26, a sign advocating "Carpooling with neighbors" was hung in front of the residents' committee office of the No.2 sub-community, calling on private car owners to reduce the frequency of travelling by car and carpooling with neighbors.

Unexpectedly, 20 private car owners registered to participate in the activity on October 26. On October 27, the news of the activity had spread to the whole community and the number of registered car owners increased to 162. By October 28, the number had exceeded 200. Other communities in Wuhan have also launched the activity since the beginning of November.