Second car2gether Program Begins in Germany

The lateral thinking of German manufacturer Daimler's employees is slowly beginning to show results. Two months after the carmaker announced the start of a new version of the car sharing program it operates, the second phase of the project was announced this week.

car2gether is a type of car sharing service which will see members hooking up in the same car based on their destination. The driver of a car2gether vehicle posts his route on the car2gether website for others to see, who in turn get hooked up with somebody who happens to be going the same direction. The cars used by Daimler will then sweep by and pick up the passenger assigned to them.

Unlike traditional car sharing services, car2gether is a web-based ride sharing community for people who simply need a ride, and not necessarily for those who feel the need to drive.

The first pilot program has been launched in Ulm in September, with the second debuting this week in the Aachen region. Here, Daimler has partnered with Scientific Computers for the trial. Car2gether is open to all residents in the area.

"As a university and science city Aachen offers an ideal environment for pioneering new mobility solutions", said Marcel Philipp, mayor of the City of Aachen. "We look forward to working with Daimler and hope that car2gether can make a successful contribution to networking various mobility providers."

This ask-offer rides system is still being developed, so it's too early to say if it really has potential. Daimler is currently working on developing a charging system. Other details will be announced along the way, as more is learned.