because they have errands before and after work-- bringing kids to daycare or school, stopping for groceries on the way home.

In my line of work-- hospital work, we have rotating shifts and often can't get out on time. Last week my 7-3:30 shift was extended to 5pm due to 3 admissions coming at once. The next day I was asked to work an extra 4 hours as staff is short (all the time this happens....). I can't imagine having anyone rely upon me for a ride home in this case. However, I am happy to give someone a ride home if they need it and plan to share my car with my college student. If he can get his butt out of bed early enough to drop me off at work, I can probably take a bus home if I am not working late. No buses after 10:30 at night.

I'd like to live close enough to work I can easily bus or ride my bike.

However, the reason most American men don't is because they can never tell when the work day is going to end. Office types in other countries have regular hours and can turn up within a predictable time frame to carpool home. Here, people have to stay late at the office on a moment's notice and are generally worked to death because corporations are too miserly to hire enough help. Health care workers face the same thing.

I always tried to keep my work and home close enough together that I wasn't wasting time and gasoline sitting in traffic. The longest commute I faced in this town was 7 miles and I was happy to cut that down to 3.

Americans don't carpool because of the different nature of their jobs in this country.

That's women's work.

and the factory whistle blew signaling the start and end of the work day are long gone.

People pick up strangers so they can use the HOV. It's been in place for years, and it works well.

I would bet at that point that North Americans would be willing to down size on vehicles as well.

Distances in the wild west are huge and there is no way people can afford to drive them in the behemoths these days. Most of the pickups I see around town are now working for a living, not being driven by urban cowboys. I haven't seen a huge Explorer in months. I did see an H2 driven down near the base about a month ago. It was probably six months or more since I'd seen another one.

Smart Cars and Minis used to be so uncommon that people would gawk and point. Now they're not remarkable any more.

$8.67 US per US gallon.

We generally can't stand each other enough to spend that much time in a car together for any amount of time much less stuck in rush hour traffic.

and besides, carpooling with Europeans is probably at least fun and interesting

works starts at a certain time and FINISHES at a certain time. Knowing there's a possibility I may not get out of work for more than 5 hours after the end of a normal day, I don't want to be tied to anyone else's work schedule or tie them to mine.

One can't reasonably anticipate that a significant number of adults are all going to be leave at the same time and all heading to an area within several blocks of each other.