Sydney app looking for drivers to launch its real-time carpooling service

ALL that time you spend going to and from work doesn’t have to be wasted. A new Australian service can help you make some cash on the side.

A SYDNEY start-up company is looking for drivers to help launch its new app-based carpooling service as it looks to help address traffic congestion while simultaneously taking on established ride-sharing services like Uber.

If you’re a frequent road user and like the idea of having your petrol subsidised by strangers heading in the same direction, you might consider signing up to become a driver for Carpool Club.

The app works just like Uber and offers real-time options for commuters who can log on, see the intended route of drivers and request to hitch a ride.

Through the app, passengers purchase and exchange tokens with the driver to help offset the cost of their trip. The tokens cost $1.10 each and all trips up to 7.5 kilometres require two tokens. Longer trips require an extra token for every 7.5 kilometres, or part thereof.

So, for instance, passengers could get from places like Leichhardt or Newtown to the city for just $2.20. Or from Penrith to Parramatta for about $6.60.

For each $1.10 the driver pockets 90 cents, while 10 cents goes towards paying GST and the other 10 cents goes to the app.

“Whether it’s battling public transport queues, paying tolls and parking costs or struggling with traffic gridlock, the daily grind to and from work can be punishing for many Sydney-based workers,” said Carpool Club founder Peter Ruz.

The 51-year-old works in marketing and came up with the idea for the app after growing frustrated with his daily commute from southern Sydney to North Ryde.

“One of the things that used to frustrate me was that most of the cars only had one person in them, and it seemed so illogical to me. If all the cars had two people in them, then we’d all be moving,” he told news.com.au.

“It was around the same time Uber was starting out and I thought that if Uber can connect people who want a taxi driver, why can’t I use similar technology to connect people for car pooling?”

Mr Ruz’s experience of being caught in single driver traffic is reflected in the statistics. According to government’s 2013 Household Travel Survey Report for Sydney, more than 70 per cent of private vehicles driven by workers in the city had just one person in them during peak times.

The above trip would require five tokens.

Once the app has 1000 drivers, it will launch in Sydney.

When you download the Carpool Club app, you nominate your usual daily commute. The company is currently collecting the data in order to offer passengers who sign up a choice of potential rides along popular routes.

It’s certainly not the only carpooling service out there and Mr Ruz admits he’s not reinventing the wheel.

“What makes Carpool Club different is the real-time connection. Other services require two people to pre-arrange the time,” he said.

It’s early days and after posting some adverts on social media and dropping leaflets in letter boxes, Mr Ruiz says about 20 drivers have signed up so far. When they have 1000, the plan is to launch the pilot service later this month.

“I would be surprised if we don’t have 30,000 to 40,000 (drivers) by the end of next year,” he said.

Jacqualyn Bresnahan, a physiotherapist from Peakhurst, is one who has signed up to be a driver.

“I drive around 120km from Peakhurst to Campbelltown each day to get to work as well as travelling all over Sydney to visit clients. Every day I see a huge number of cars with just one person in them,” she said.

She hopes the app will be able to reduce the number of cars on the road, improve congestion and help reduce emissions, while also earning her a little extra money.

Like Uber, drivers and passengers will give each other a star rating and passengers can apply a number of filters when selecting a driver based on gender, age, smoker/non smoker, the age of the car and the driver’s rating.

The Carpool Club driver app is live and available for download from iTunes and Android app stores and if all goes according too plan, the Sydney passenger app is set to launch in the coming weeks.

Once the app has 1000 drivers, it will launch in Sydney this month.