Whether you’re a newbie or a certified rideshare junkie, we’ve got everything you need to make the most of every experience.  From tips and tricks to lesser known hacks and a number of ways to save a few bucks, we consider ourselves a rideshare authority.  We thrive on the wildly popular and ever-growing share economy and love to share knowledge and savings.  If what you’re looking for is an in-depth collection of step-by-step guides and ways to save, you’ve come to the right place.

 

Rideshare Works

 

Instantaneous connectivity, simplification of tasks and all of the world’s information available at our fingertips; these are just a few of the things that the internet and smartphones have made possible. It has also allowed people to get to where they are going faster, cheaper, and easier thanks to innovations like Rideshare. Simply put, Ridesharing is a service that puts together one-time, shared rides on short notice, usually through the use of smartphones and rideshare apps.

Rideshare works by combining several advanced technologies to achieve its goal. These are smartphones, social networks, and GPS navigation systems. With a simple and convenient rideshare app, riders can get paired with a driver at the touch of a button. Ridesharing is gaining traction for its numerous benefits. Not only do riders drastically cut down their cab fare, but they also contribute directly to environmental protection by using less fuel.

 

Become a Driver

 

Ridesharing has also created a very lucrative market for people looking get extra income from their vehicles. With rideshare giants like Uber and Lyft expanding their growth at very high rates, more and more people are coming aboard to get a piece of the action. But not just anyone can go and secure one of these driving jobs.

If you want to become a top earning Uber driver or a Lyft driver, each company has their own distinct sets of rules and regulations to be followed. Some common regulations include being at least 21 years old, having all the relevant documents, a clean driving history, and no criminal record. Having your own car is also preferred, but there are also opportunities for renting a car for rideshare purposes. Becoming a rideshare driver is not only a good source of income, but it also lets you work on your own time and at your own pace without someone looking over your shoulder.

 

Growth by Marketing

 

Owing to their incredible popularity and massive growth rates, rideshare companies are continually recording billions of dollars in revenue. This is the reason why companies like Uber and Lyft are throwing countless dollars in free ride credits at new users in an attempt to create a loyal following.

To get your first ride free, simply download a rideshare app on your smartphone and you should receive promotion credits and a code. The next time you want to travel, just use a promo code for Uber or Lyft promo code and you will enjoy the first ride free for new users. Users can still continue enjoying ride credits as users with the referral programs by referring their friends and colleagues to the rideshare service. Rack up enough credits and essentially you’ve got yourself a great method for gaining promo codes for Lyft customers.

Travis-Kalanick-Uber

 

What we maybe should’ve realized sooner was that we are running a political campaign and the candidate is Uber.  And this political race is happening in every major city in the world.  And because this isn’t about a democracy, this is about a product, you can’t win 51 to 49.  You have to win 98 to 2.

—November 2014 Vanity Fair, Travis Kalanick, CEO Uber

 

 

How Does Rideshare Work?

 

Basically speaking, rideshare works on a driver-partner concept where drivers who are mostly car owners pair up with a car sharing company such as Lyft or Uber to provide rides to potential consumers. The concept came about due to the people’s need to save money and reduce congestion on the roads. Ridesharing grants anyone in need of transportation immediate access to a pool of drivers through mobile apps. With an increased availability of new apps, GPS navigation devices, social media and online sites that link riders with drivers, ridesharing has never been easier.

Using the App as a Passenger

passenger-riding-rideshare

Each rideshare company has its own custom app that users download to their smartphone and use whenever transportation is needed. With the app, riders can request for a particular type of service and the destination they wish to reach. The application then uses the GPS on your phone to find your location and the nearest available rideshare driver. Users can then view the driver’s name, route, license number and more additional information. If you decide to call for the specified driver, the app allows you to track the driver’s progress and location as well as receive an automated message once the car arrives.

From a Driver’s Perspective

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As a driver, you will be grouped according to the make and class of your vehicle. If your car is small and inexpensive, it will be in the standard section. Other categories include yellow cabs, private cars, large SUVs and luxury cars for elite customers. Users can view all these classes on the app and choose which one they would like. Ridesharing has completely eliminated the need for cash fares and manual payments. However, the fares are set differently in each city based on a formula that uses either distance rates or time rates. Additionally, riders are not required to tip since gratuity is factored into the fare.

 

The Future of Transportation

 

After the explosive success of the rideshare pioneers, startup after startup is clamoring to get their own piece of the pie. With all the available companies and rideshare apps currently in existence, deciding on the best can be more daunting that you would expect. However, it is important to remember that the best rideshare company is the one which offers the safest and most convenient rides at very customer friendly rates. That said, you’ve probably heard of the leading rideshare apps that continue to dominate the market; Uber and Lyft.

The Rise of Rideshare

 

In just several short years, Uber and Lyft have gone from a couple of curious services to an ingrained reflex, a very natural way to navigate across destinations and cities. The Uber rideshare app is without a doubt the most popular mode of transportation. Especially in large cities, rideshare is a no-brainer when in need of a ride.  Backed by a company whose estimated worth is over 62.5 billion, the only way to get Uber is by downloading their mobile app. The Uber app is known for offering clear pricing, one tap rides, and reliable service. They Lyft app, on the other hand, has been considered Uber’s best competitor for a while now and holds a strong 2nd place.With just a single tap, users are matched with friendly and background checked drivers.

Beyond Uber vs Lyft

 

The choice between Uber vs Lyft may be a tough one as both companies are taking all measures to expand their customer base. But one thing’s for sure; ridesharing is the future of transportation. In addition to benefits like less stressful commutes, lower levels of pollution and fewer parking structures, who knows what the future holds for the rideshare technologies. With stronger GPS capabilities and smart manufacturing, we may just see driverless cars picking up and dropping passengers off. In fact, the Lyft CEO announced that self-driving cars could be handling most of their vehicles within only 5 years. Users can also look forward to route predicting software and ride linking that will allow people on the same route to be driven together.

 

Benefits of Rideshare

 

Since the emergence of rideshare companies, the transportation industry has been literally turned upside down. While competitors and taxi companies are recording massive losses, the rideshare companies and users are smiling all the way to the bank. This is because ridesharing has brought about an entirely new dynamic to the industry with advantages that most people could not have foreseen.

rideshare-benefits

While some benefits are obvious and out in the open, others require a little more patience to actualize. So, why exactly is ridesharing becoming more and more popular by the day? How could it improve your life both at home and on the road? The first obvious benefit of ridesharing is saving your hard earned money. Users also save some time and stress off of their daily commutes. Other benefits include creating jobs for car owners and app developers, less traffic on the road and environmental benefits that impact our planet in a very positive way.

 

 

Inexpensive

 

Perhaps the most significant advantage of ridesharing is that users can save huge sums of money in more ways than one. Since riders are essentially carpooling, this means less spending and more saving as opposed to everyone driving their own car. Ridesharing allows you to save the money that would have been otherwise used for maintenance, gas, and insurance among others. The American Automobile Association estimates that it costs drivers driving about 15,000 miles annually an average of 58 cents a mile to cover costs associated with insurance, maintenance, depreciation, taxes and finance charges alone without factoring the fuel used. This means that an entire year of ridesharing with four people could save you all as much as $8000 every year.

Another way that ridesharing saves you money is by cutting the cost or fare of each trip notably. As compared to other traditional taxi services, ridesharing services are much cheaper in almost all cities of the world. Uber and Lyft fares are actually about a third of what most taxi companies charge. Additionally, new user promo codes and credits from referrals also save you more money on rideshare apps. As a driver, you can also put your car to work and create an additional source of income. As a matter of fact, some insurance companies actually slash rates for rideshares and carpoolers.

 

Convenience

 

Another compelling and very attractive benefit of ridesharing is the convenience that comes with it. Whenever you need to go somewhere, all you have to do is open up the rideshare app on your phone and select a location. You will then see how far the nearest driver is and call them to your location while tracking their progress. Once the driver gets there, all you have to do is get in and enjoy the ride.

This is the absolute opposite of driving yourself which involves a ton of stress, hassle and time wastage. For starters, ridesharing means you have a driver who knows the way; so you do not have to worry about confusing directions or getting lost. Users also do not have to struggle with traffic or even keeping their eyes on the road. Since you also do not have to focus on driving, you can use this time to do something more productive and save more time on your busy schedule. With your own car, you never really realize just how much time you waste on the road. You have to stop for gas, cleaning, pressure addition and oil checks. With rideshare, all these time-consuming tidbits are taken care of so that you can enjoy a smooth and comfortable trip with no unnecessary stopovers.

 

Environment

 

It’s a well-known fact that vehicles are the largest culprits when it comes to air pollution in the country. The reason for this is because gasses emitted by vehicles make up a whopping 27% of the United States' total hydrocarbon emissions, 51 % of all carbon monoxide, 20% nitrogen oxide and almost the same percentage of CO2 emissions. A combination of all these harmful gasses is responsible for the greenhouse effect on the planet that has led to severe global warming. The more cars there are on the roads, the more pollution we experience.

Ridesharing drastically cuts down the number of cars on the roads and reduces the emission of harmful gasses in the atmosphere. This not only improves the overall quality of the air we breathe, but it also curbs the negative effects of global warming and erases our carbon footprint on the earth. Ridesharing also helps conserve non-renewable sources of energy. According to the US energy Information Administration, the transportation sector in the country consumes 28% of non-renewable sources such as liquids from natural gas and crude oil. While the advent of high mileage cars helps to remedy the situation, ridesharing still remains the most resource-conserving way to get around.

 

Economy

 

If we’re talking about revolutionary innovations that have emerged from a sharing economy, ridesharing definitely holds a spot at the very top. By providing everyone in possession of a smartphone with a cheap and safe way to get a ride, and everyone with a car a way to earn extra income, ridesharing has brought about many benefits to the economy. These are just some of the advantages that platforms like Uber and Lyft have brought about. To better understand the truly transformational ripple effects that these innovative services bring, we need to look at a different aspect.

Since the rideshare companies rely on mobile applications, ridesharing has significantly contributed to direct job creation for the software development industries. Millions of people have already downloaded the rideshare apps and as a result, improved the living standards of technopreneurs in the country. Additionally, drivers who had no other means of earning a living can register for driving jobs and earn a decent income. Some car owners have been reported to make more money than they would have in regular employment. Another way that ridesharing has improved our economy is by reducing traffic on the roads. Less traffic means more traveling, which translates to more productivity from the people and a rich, well-stimulated economy.