Uber plans to launch car-pooling service in Bengaluru

NEW DELHI: Taxi-hailing app Uber is launching its car-pooling service in India, competing with a handful of other similar services launched since last year. UberPool will initially be rolled out in Bengaluru in the coming weeks, the company said, adding that the service can potentially lower costs for riders by about half.

Uber already offers a feature in India allowing riders to split fares, but in UberPool, a ride is guaranteed only if a user headed on the same route requests to share a ride. When Uber finds a match, it will notify users of the co-rider’s details.

"Bengaluru users will join millions of commuters in San Francisco, New York City, Boston, Austin and Paris who have been using UberPool for months now," said Bhavik Rathod, general manager at Uber in Bengaluru. Nearly half of all Uber rides in San Francisco are pooled.

France's BlaBlaCar, Tripda and Ridingo, which CarzonRent has acquired, have been offering ride-sharing services in India for several months. Taxi operator Meru Cabs launched a carpooling service last week.