Waze Carpool • Hacker News Board

Re: Waze Carpool

#11

Post by daburninatorrr » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 2:54 PM UTC

fredley wrote: post #8

daburninatorrr wrote: post #6

I like this idea. I feel like many states already have hotlines you can call to get matched with a carpool (I'm fairly certain NY does at least), and so to me this seems like the natural progression of things. Plus, the fact that the driver would get a small amount of money would create incentive to sign up, but not create a new market like Uber/Lyft did. I'm interested to see what comes of this.

This has been the promise of Waze and their competitors since they very first went into business. I'll be fascinated to see if it works out. While on paper it's a no-brainer (cheaper for everyone involved, and potentially faster when using carpool lanes), the less tangible aspects of it (what if you hate the person who's car your stuck in for an hour? Will people sacrifice control over their timings, especially on th…

While true, I feel like that is just how carpooling mechanics work. When there is a way for you to be randomly paired with strangers for a commute to and from work, you always run the risk of not liking someone. I'm more interested if there would be any penalty for the driver leaving without you because you took too long or something. With something that is so easy to sign up for, one would assume that feedback and accountability would also be easier to handle than previously

Re: Waze Carpool

#12

Post by dawhizkid » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 2:55 PM UTC

The reason why I would not consider Google to legitimately compete with Uber/Lyft at scale in this arena is because it's not part of their nature to staff customer support at the level required to run operationally-intensive businesses.

The rate in which something goes wrong in the real world (esp where money in exchanged) is much higher than in a pure software world, and Google is going to try to take the FAQ/chatbot/no phone approach to service when it's going to need to staff entire buildings with agents if it doesn't want to completely piss off a nascent user base.

Re: Waze Carpool

#13

Post by scandox » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 2:58 PM UTC

I was in Israel last year and they just love Waze. Everything is Waze this and Waze that. They have an absolute belief in Waze as a brand. Most have no idea it is owned by Google, nor seemed very interested when I mentioned it.

So I'd say if they can get this working anywhere, it will be in a traffic-riddled country full of people who obsess over journey times and who absolutely love this brand.

Re: Waze Carpool

#14

Post by noer » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 2:59 PM UTC

I worked for a state sponsored carpool app for nearly 5 years in the late aughts/early 10s. This is exactly what I had wanted to build, but the state didn't want to take a risk on mobile and ended up hiring a contractor to develop a web app. The contractor went out of business one year into a five year contract.

I still have an interest in Transportation Demand Management, but can't stand the industry because it's almost always state sponsored and several steps behind in terms of innovation. This is really cool and I hope that it catches on.

Re: Waze Carpool

#15

Post by noer » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:00 PM UTC

jpmoyn wrote: post #7

But will it actually get used? I like the idea but I am not sure if I would actually WANT a stranger in my car when the time actually comes.

I hope so. Most large metro areas sponsor carpool matching programs, though they're usually administered/marketed through the worksite. A lot areas also sponsor a guaranteed ride home program too so that if you carpool to work and for some reason can't carpool home, your cab/transit fare will be reimbursed.

Re: Waze Carpool

#16

Post by lg » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:01 PM UTC

dawhizkid wrote: post #12

The reason why I would not consider Google to legitimately compete with Uber/Lyft at scale in this arena is because it's not part of their nature to staff customer support at the level required to run operationally-intensive businesses. The rate in which something goes wrong in the real world (esp where money in exchanged) is much higher than in a pure software world, and Google is going to try to take the FAQ/chatbo…

I had problems with my google home mini controlling my android tv and went to the help page for it. A chatbox appeared and for about an hour a support agent talked me through various things to try (the only thing that worked was factory data reset on the TV). Pretty sure it was not a bot, unless they've gotten really good.

Re: Waze Carpool

#17

Post by EA » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:01 PM UTC

scandox wrote: post #13

I was in Israel last year and they just love Waze. Everything is Waze this and Waze that. They have an absolute belief in Waze as a brand. Most have no idea it is owned by Google, nor seemed very interested when I mentioned it. So I'd say if they can get this working anywhere, it will be in a traffic-riddled country full of people who obsess over journey times and who absolutely love this brand.

A major reason it is very popular in Israel is because Waze was founded in Israel. They also got started with VC from Israeli companies.

Re: Waze Carpool

#18

Post by mabbo » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:04 PM UTC

dawhizkid wrote: post #12

The reason why I would not consider Google to legitimately compete with Uber/Lyft at scale in this arena is because it's not part of their nature to staff customer support at the level required to run operationally-intensive businesses. The rate in which something goes wrong in the real world (esp where money in exchanged) is much higher than in a pure software world, and Google is going to try to take the FAQ/chatbo…

When you put it that way, I start to think Amazon should get into this business. I'm sure everyone has one bad customer experience incident with them, yes, but overall they're one of the highest rated for customer experience.

Then Amazon would say "Hey, while you're on your way there, mind taking a few packages with you?"

Re: Waze Carpool

#19

Post by _m8fo » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:05 PM UTC

Why isn't there a service that says:

1. Hey this is my route every morning.

2. Lets you see people's routes and "join".

This doesn't need to be a centralized service. People could organize things among themselves. There are carpooling sites, but it requires a critical mass to be useful.

Re: Waze Carpool

#20

Post by dsmithatx » Thu, Jan 25, 2018, 3:05 PM UTC

dawhizkid wrote: post #12

The reason why I would not consider Google to legitimately compete with Uber/Lyft at scale in this arena is because it's not part of their nature to staff customer support at the level required to run operationally-intensive businesses. The rate in which something goes wrong in the real world (esp where money in exchanged) is much higher than in a pure software world, and Google is going to try to take the FAQ/chatbo…

This will probably be very cheap just to cover gas. They probably wont do customer support and tell driver/rider they are on their own. Since the rider pays up front they have their Identity and cash up front.

I don't see Uber and Lyft competing against this service since the driver isn't going to make a living. On the other hand this will take a lot of rides from other ride share services.