Uber Thursday launched a car-pooling smartphone app known as uberPOOL in the Newark and Wilmington area on Thursday.
UberPool will be up to 75 percent cheaper than uberX in Delaware, the company stated.
Uber came to Delaware in June 2015 with the support of a state government working to make Delaware more technology friendly.
Uber and rival Lyft have been met with stiff opposition from the taxi industry in neighboring Philadelphia. In Philadelphia, it is estimated that the number of taxi drivers has declined from 6,000 to 3,500, WHYY Newsworks reported. Opposition has been more muted in Delaware.
Lyft operates in Wilmington and Uber offers service in northern Delaware, Dover and coastal areas.
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Since uberPOOL was launched in San Francisco in September 2014, it has expanded to cities around the world, including: Austin, Bangalore, Boston, Chengdu, Chicago, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Miami, New York City, Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Toronto, and Washington D.C.
In New York City, during the last week of October, nearly 50,000 riders took an uberPOOL trip. In one week alone, more than 60,000 miles of car travel on New York City streets were eliminated by matched uberPOOL trips
The service works as follows:
- Choose the uberX option in the app and enter your destination.
- Choose to save money by sharing your car with another rider traveling along a similar route, and tap “Request uberPOOL”.
- Enter the number of riders in your group—there’s a maximum of 2 riders per uberPOOL request.
- You’ll see your driver’s details straight away—name, photo and the details of the car. As with uberX, these drivers have undergone an extensive screening process.
- UberPOOL will then match you with another passenger heading in the same direction:
– That person will either be in the car at the start of the trip, in which case you’ll see their name in advance; or
– Your driver will pick them up along the way, in which case Uber will notify you via the app.
- Whether you’re first or second into the car, Uber ensures that you’re never taken more than a few minutes out of your way.
- At the end of your trip, payment will be automatic and you will receive an electronic receipt.
