What were the odds that a man named John Zimmer would think up a plan for matching up commuters interested in carpooling through a site like Facebook, then meet a man name Logan Green who not only developed and began implementing that same idea but named his concept Zimride'?

Was the name 'Zimride' destiny calling?

Zimmer and Green joined forces and launched Zimride a year ago. Green came up with the name 'Zimride' after witnessing a surge in carpooling in Zimbabwe when soared.

No longer reliant on Facebook, Zimride has its own website to allow commuters interested in carpooling partners to view each other's profiles and make contact.

Zimride is hot. So hot that after it was featured on last night, the Zimride website server overloaded and crashed.

Zimmer is currently traveling cross-country with carpoolers to promote Zimride, making the most of the fact that he needed to move to the West Coast.

Will Zimride be a Success?

With soaring and commuters desperate for relief, Zimride promises to be a workable solution for many commuters.

If people can pick partners for intimate encounters or dates that might lead to intimate encounters from social networking sites, using Zimride to find a carpool rider should be a cinch.

Finding the Right Carpool Partner

Whether using Zimride or any other carpooler finding means, it's important to select fellow carpoolers with care. I know this from my years living in the Federal where carpooling is ubiquitous.

Anyone working for the Federal government in Washington DC becomes an instant expert on carpooling. If you don't carpool yourself, you are surrounded by and co-workers who carpool. You hear about carpooling in this day in and day out.

Washington, DC's carpooling initiatives- and how they relate to what commuters using Zimride might experience- are described below.

But first, what makes a good carpooling match? And how do you find the carpooling partners that are right for you and avoid those who aren't?