Startup #3: Circumvent public transportation by creating a community carpool network

If you live in Boston, you're aware that the oft-maligned MBTA is on the verge of making drastic service cuts. From Bostonist, commenting on a Globe article:

"Commuter rail folks will never be able to get home after 7pm. Three stops each on the B and C lines will be gone. The E line will stop running past Brigham Circle and stop running altogether on weekends, with the C line going up to Lechmere to compensate. It's really quite a crazy collection of cuts."

The B, C, and E lines they talk about mostly affect metro Boston residents. The commuter rail issue affects anyone who lives outside the city which must number in the tens of thousands. Someone with enough drive and web-savvy could implement the following concept:

Create a website akin to Zipcar. Users can offer to give other people rides in their own car for a set price. They create a listing with the time they are going to leave, the location, and the price. Ideally you would try to fill up all seats, but it's up to the original poster. Anyone using this site would be subject to a rating system (timeliness, friendliness, etc) so there could be some sort of screening process. I can name half a dozen companies in Boston that already have a intra-office system like this in place. Why not expand on the idea?

In a city like Boston -- and with the right type of web interface -- this would catch on very rapidly. The MBTA has been notoriously unreliable for years. Do a google search for MBTA + service + problems and see for yourself. If they make these cuts, wipe out entire bus routes, and eliminate customer service underground (all of which is planned), the service might become unusable. Capitalize!