Ride and commute with ease: New HitchHike site for carpooling in Cham

The municipality of Cham supports the HitchHike Carpooling Region Zug. As of April 1st, 2019, a new official HitchHike pickup and drop-off site will be available at Rigiplatz Cham, bringing the grand total of HitchHike locations in the region to six.
 

Since 2018, the start-up company HitchHike, in cooperation with the canton of Zug and the city of Zug, has been offering carpooling opportunities at four locations across Zug; another is located by the University of Lucerne in Rotkreuz. Since April 1st, 2019, the municipality of Cham now also resides over an official HitchHike pickup and drop-off point at Rigiplatz, on Schulhausstrasse 1.
 

Finding carpools
Thanks to the HitchHike web app, commuters and leisure travellers alike can easily find each other to form carpools. "The municipality of Cham wants to promote HitchHike and set an example for sus-tainable mobility," says Drin Alaj, Head of Transport and Security for the municipality of Cham. "Traf-fic congestion in Cham is a known problem that has to be solved. Carpools like HitchHike are a good alternative for commuters, relieving traffic and conserving the environment. The number of partici-pants is critical to the success of the HitchHike platform and individuals’ travel plans. When many people get involved, the chance increases to find a suitable ride."
 

Every second commuter travels by car
The number of commuters in the canton of Zug is impressive: in the years 2014 to 2016, the canton counted on average about 39,000 inward commuters and 20,000 outward commuters. Zug is one of the cantons that, in terms of size, attracts the most commuters from other cantons. According to statistics from the canton of Zug, every second outward commuter drives to their work or training place by car or motorcycle. Only 33% of inward commuters use public transport.

The municipality of Cham supports the HitchHike Carpooling Region Zug. As of April 1st, 2019, a new official HitchHike pickup and drop-off site will be available at Rigiplatz Cham, bringing the grand total of HitchHike locations in the region to six.
 

Since 2018, the start-up company HitchHike, in cooperation with the canton of Zug and the city of Zug, has been offering carpooling opportunities at four locations across Zug; another is located by the University of Lucerne in Rotkreuz. Since April 1st, 2019, the municipality of Cham now also resides over an official HitchHike pickup and drop-off point at Rigiplatz, on Schulhausstrasse 1.
 

Finding carpools
Thanks to the HitchHike web app, commuters and leisure travellers alike can easily find each other to form carpools. "The municipality of Cham wants to promote HitchHike and set an example for sus-tainable mobility," says Drin Alaj, Head of Transport and Security for the municipality of Cham. "Traf-fic congestion in Cham is a known problem that has to be solved. Carpools like HitchHike are a good alternative for commuters, relieving traffic and conserving the environment. The number of partici-pants is critical to the success of the HitchHike platform and individuals’ travel plans. When many people get involved, the chance increases to find a suitable ride."
 

Every second commuter travels by car
The number of commuters in the canton of Zug is impressive: in the years 2014 to 2016, the canton counted on average about 39,000 inward commuters and 20,000 outward commuters. Zug is one of the cantons that, in terms of size, attracts the most commuters from other cantons. According to statistics from the canton of Zug, every second outward commuter drives to their work or training place by car or motorcycle. Only 33% of inward commuters use public transport.

Already over 1,000 registered HitchHikers
According to the providers of the platform, more than 1,000 people had registered in the Zug region by December 2018. Many live or work in the region, with a significant portion also in the municipal or cantonal administration. A code of conduct governs the most important topics around the use of HitchHike. Based on their previous experience, ‘HitchHikers’ say it is important to be well organised, to arrive punctually at the meeting point and to show flexibility towards the driver.
 

Great potential of carpooling
Carpooling is designed to reduce traffic at peak times by placing on average more than 1.1 people in a car. HitchHike CEO and co-founder Jean-François Schnyder: "With HitchHike, we support better vehi-cle utilisation and bring people together with similar driving distances and travel times. I'm delighted that the municipality of Cham is now getting involved as well. The population of Cham will benefit from this."
 

Links:
Further information on the ‘Public HitchHike Carpooling Region Zug’ and free registration at zug.hitchhike.ch