An experimental car-pooling scheme was introduced in central Perth to reduce traffic pollution while cutting parking costs for commuters.

The Perth City Council scheme allowed cars carrying two or more people to park for $2 a day, a saving of $1.50. It operated at four council carparks at the Entertainment Centre, Orchard, Goderich Street and West Perth.

The council said cars were a major source of pollution in cities, with Perth's air quality potentially at risk if traffic continued to increase. Similar car-pooling programs had been used overseas, including Los Angeles and Toronto, where incentives such as cheaper parking and dedicated lanes were used to encourage people to share vehicles.

After only two weeks, the Perth trial was reportedly more successful than Toronto's scheme. By 8 May, up to 160 cars a day were using the car-pooling parking bays, accounting for about 10 per cent of daily traffic at the participating carparks.

Council assistant controller of vehicle parking Russell Fishwick said the six-month pilot had been encouraging and there was hope it would continue after the trial.

The council estimated that two people travelling together could each save about $43.50 over six weeks, including parking, fuel and vehicle running costs. Over a year, the saving for each participant was estimated at about $450.