Manila’s most serious problem? Traffic.
I can’t stress enough how hard it is to go from point A to B these days. There’s traffic in every major route, and it’s only getting worse everyday.
If you’ve been following Vulcan Post for a while, we’ve already documented Manila’s traffic problem – from apps that can help you around the city, to train improvements and jeepney alternatives. And it looks like the startup scene in the country is also taking a look at these problem – with many trying to solve it. One that caught my eye is Tripid.
How Tripid works
Basically, Tripid is a carpooling application that lets you share rides with other people. If you have a car, you can be the driver and “post a trip” on the website. If you don’t have a car and you want to avoid using Manila’s buses and trains, you can “find a trip” and look for one that will be along your route.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBv61t5XHWQ
As the driver, the first thing you have to do is to post a route. This can be done on the website dashboard called “post route”. It’s actually pretty self explanatory – you type in where you’ll be coming from and where you are heading. Other important details can be also be noted down. For example, you should note down the meetup point, or where you want your passengers to wait for your arrival. Once this is done, Tripid users will see your posted trip in their dashboards.
Now that your trip is posted in the dashboard, users of the platform can freely select it. The drivers can accept a passenger or reject them. This is important actually, as your car can only accommodate so much. To help in selecting, the driver can assign the number of passengers he can accommodate.
After the driver taps on the “accept” button, the trip is logged on to Tripid’s system. “Start Trip” will officially start the trip, which will then be logged on to the platform’s system.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xyn2wit5zQ4
If you are the passenger, simply check the platform’s route finder and find drivers who will traveling along your route. Through the “route request”, you will also be able to request for a trip in case you can’t find one. Once you see in your dashboard the list of trips along your route, you can now check the drivers on each trip and their prices. Apart from the prices, you will also see the driver’s profile, reviews, and ratings. This helps users in making informed decisions on who to ride with. After all, you are riding with a stranger who happens to be traveling your route as well.
After the trip has ended, passengers can rate and review the driver. This helps the system give a guide to other passengers for choosing their trips.
What I like:
What I like about the app, just like what the others are saying, is its ease of use. It isn’t complicated to post a trip, rate a driver, or even for anyone signing up for the first time. If you don’t want to use your email, you can connect your Facebook account. By doing this, you can actually know which of your friends are posting trips as well.
The overall design of the product is so intuitive. There’s a search bar at the top, which you can use to find trips. The menus at the left list down everything you needed immediate access to. These include a list of one’s upcoming trips and scheduled ones.
Did I also mention that the system is incredibly fast?
The pricing
Now let’s take a look at Tripid’s pricing system. Basically, the driver who posted a trip will indicate his price. This price will be paid by the passenger through the app. There is also an electronic wallet is where you can store your money, which can be used to pay the driver. There is also an option for you can pay via PayPal as well.
What I Don’t Like
The only issue I have is that, well, you will be dealing with strangers when using this application. You don’t know who you’ll ride with, just like a normal jeep or bus or train. In an extremely close and small space like the back of the car, I think that this is something that can make people very cautious of using applications like this one.
Perhaps one of the ways to get around this issue is through the app’s feedback mechanism. After you experienced riding with the driver, you can give him feedback. Having more feedbacks means that more people trust that driver, and more people would definitely choose to take his trip.
Overall View
There are a lot of apps in the market that try to solve one of the country’s biggest problem – traffic. The list goes from taxi booking applications, to traffic information to this one – a carpooling app. Most of the trips I found on the app’s website are based in metropolitan Manila. I look forward to seeing trips in Cebu, Davao, or basically anywhere where there is traffic.
Tripid is a startup that tries to solve a real problem. With the country’s increasing number of smartphone users, the future is looking bright in the carpooling landscape.
Read also: Manila will add the COMET as a new public transport starting this March
