Earlier this month, tons of technology companies gathered in San Diego at DEMO to debut a plethora of cool new products. Being a self-professed geek -- and a penny pincher -- I was excited to see a new program called Avego, which was demoed by Mapflow and put an interesting spin on carpooling.

We all have a rough idea of how traditional carpooling works in the US. An area where it is weak is that for the most part you are only carpooling with people you know rather than individuals who are going the same route as you.

Avego turns this model on its head and uses real time location data and cell phones to find other riders who want to be part of the route you are currently taking. For example, you could advertise an opening on the way to work in the morning and another person halfway there may ask to join your carpool for that trip only. These same kinds of interactions occur whenever you take a trip be it to the grocery store, movies or wherever.

Avego isn't just looking to change carpooling, but also human behavior by trying to get people to start sharing rides and also sharing them with a stranger, no small task on any front. It seems it has thought this through and it's using two of the best motivators currently at its disposal; the desire for many people to go green and the desire of more people to earn green! To facilitate the ride sharing Avego charges the rider 30 cents per mile, an amount cheaper than driving on their own or grabbing a taxi, and then pays the driver about 85% of that for the trip, thus providing motivation for all of the involved parties.

Every empty seat in every car clogging up the freeway in the morning is an opportunity lost: an opportunity for the driver to reduce the cost of his/her commute, for the traffic congestion to lessen, for the environment to breath a little easier. At present, we use only 15% of our car passenger carrying capacity in this country. If only there were a way for a driver and others sharing the same destination to match up....

This is the concept behind startup Avego. The internet site, currently recruiting beta testers, pairs up drivers with seats to spare with those willing to share the cost of the trip. Drivers use their iPhone and its GPS feature to register their location and destination. Avego attempts to hook them up via voice response, texting, or web interfaces with like-minded passengers. The passengers can use any cell phone; only the drivers need an iPhone.

Avego also calculates and apportions the passenger's share of the commute cost beforehand. Companies and other communities of users can create their own circles within Avego. The site also gathers feedback to identify and avoid inharmonious matches, and allows both driver and passenger to limit selections to those of his/her own sex.

Drivers in areas with high-occupancy vehicle lanes might find this service particularly useful in allowing them access to this time-saving turf. Avego, and the similar Pickup Pal, could really be useful if enough people embrace it. Critical mass is the key, and if this or a similar system were to click with the public, we could dramatically drop our energy use and pad our pocketbooks.

Register here if you're interested in being a beta tester.

Read also:

Commute for free- become a slug
Pickup Pal: Thumbing a ride in the 21st Century