The Iowa Department of Transportation launched a new program Thursday called Iowa Rideshare. It allows people to connect to others who want to carpool.

Traffic on the stretch of Interstate 380 between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City often gets backed up, and can put a strain on those who have to get to and from work.

Program organizers say the

could ease some of the congestion.

"Transportation can be an impediment to employment so we hope to address that issue, in a small way we hope to start addressing congestion on I-380 as it exists today,” Executive Director of the East Central Iowa Council of Governments Doug Elliott said.

People can create a profile on the rideshare website and then enter in the details of their commute. The website can match people up with other commuters who live and work in the same areas.

One of the options is a partnership with vRide called vanpool. It forms groups of commuters and then gives them their own vehicle with maintenance and insurance.

"If you already have say six other friends who want to utilize it, you all register and say you want to create a van pool. If you're one person who's interested in participating you register and then vRide the vanpool vendor will create a community for you.” Elliott said.

The program is geared toward young professionals but anyone can use it.