Karos and Edison Next turn carpooling into certified energy savings with a direct impact on the user

Carpooling has taken a further step in transforming the urban mobility model in our country. Karos, a carpooling app for daily commutes, has integrated — in collaboration with Edison Next Spain, an energy and environmental services company — Energy Saving Certificates (CAEs) into short shared journeys, turning each trip into a direct benefit for the user and a measurable contribution to Spain’s energy transition. With the help of Edison Next Spain, Karos has integrated CAEs into its fare system as a standard incentive, marking a turning point in the use of the CAE system and consolidating its applicability beyond sectors such as industry or the tertiary sector. Since last July, all shared journeys of more than 10 kilometers within the national territory are eligible to receive CAEs. The benefits are shared between drivers and passengers. Drivers receive an additional bonus of €0.30 per journey, while passengers enjoy the same amount as a direct discount on their fare. The carpooling app itself is responsible for automatically tracking and verifying each journey, while Edison Next Spain handles the certification, validation before MITECO and monetization of the CAEs generated. The process is fully automated. The financial return reaches the driver’s digital wallet directly, or is applied as a discount to the passenger, with no additional management required. This system, in addition to recognizing the individual effort of vehicle sharing, succeeds in rewarding users in a tangible way, thereby encouraging the long-term adoption of a new sustainable habit. Karos states that “small, consistent rewards are the key to generating lasting behavioral change.” The incorporation of carpooling into the CAE system represents a major shift in the field of sustainable mobility. It also represents an official recognition by the Government of the role of carpooling — a practice in which several people with a similar destination share the same vehicle for a journey. Edison Next Spain highlights the importance of continuing to explore new applications for CAEs: “This use case demonstrates how CAEs can become a useful tool to empower citizens, reduce emissions and strengthen digital solutions that are already transforming our cities.” With this model, a new avenue opens up for obligated parties and other actors in the energy ecosystem to actively contribute to the country’s energy transition, while reinforcing an urban mobility solution that is already demonstrating its capacity to reduce costs, emissions and congestion.