Think ride-sharing was just an Uber game? Think again: Google has decided to hop on the bandwagon by test-launching a commuter-only carpooling service in Tel Aviv, hooking up two respective service-oriented apps in the process.
The apps in question are Waze, an Israeli traffic-based navigation service that Google bought for $1 billion in 2013, and RideWith, a GPS app alternative to Waze. The new Google carpooling program utilizes both by serving as a rideshare matchmaker, of sorts: pairing up RideWith users and determining their set location beforehand with Waze.
There is a loose rubric for ride-sharing with the new Google test program: namely, participants must rideshare from within the same neighborhood pick-up point that is going in the same direction (and vice-versa) and are limited to two rides a day. The service is also exclusive to commuters, which significantly streamlines user traffic.
While a stress-free ride is always a nice perk, nothing in life is for free: commuters will pay drivers for the rideshare through RideWith, which links to their credit card of choice.
For now, the ridesharing program will only be available in the Tel Aviv area.
