In some of the more urban parts of the country, America’s highways and byways are highly-congested and an outright nightmare to drive on during rush hour. Many Americans turn to driving to work with their neighbors in order to cut back on some of the expense and craziness of driving to work in the morning, but is carpooling the answer? There are some advantages and disadvantages that you should consider.

Advantages

1. Expenses – Most of your car related expenses, such as maintenance, gasoline and oil can easily be cut in half, or even more depending how many people carpool. Usually in-city driving is the most stressful on the engine, and minimizing that is definitely a good thing to do.

2. Stress – It sucks driving in high-traffic situations, if you only have to do that one day a week versus 5, you’ve made driving a whole lot easier. Now you can enjoy a nice rest on the way to work rather than weaving in and out of traffic.

3. Carpool Lane – When you have more than one person in the car, you get to use the carpool lane, which can significantly cut the amount of time it takes to make your commute.

4. A Regular Work Schedule – Your employer can’t fault you for carpooling, so you’ll get to leave at 5:00 rather than whenever you get the work done.

Disadvantages

1. Lunch – You won’t be able to go out to eat for lunch on days that you’re not driving

2. Emergencies – If there was a family emergency and you didn’t drive to work, you’d have to take a Taxi or get a ride.

3. Inconvenience – You have to leave for work exactly when the person picks you up, and you can’t do errands on the way too and from work.

4. Illness – Driving with 3 or 4 other people for a half hour every morning will expose you to all of the germs and viruses that they have. It’s an easy way to pickup a cold.

5. It might not be worth it – In some situations, say if you live in rural South Dakota, work at odd times or live a few blocks from work, it probably won’t make sense to carpool.