Tag Archives: cheap taxi

New Rideshare Service – Via

Posted on by
Share Button

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few years you will have undoubtedly heard about Uber and Lyft by now. The rideshare industry is booming and city goers across the globe love being able to hail a car with just a press of button. What you might not have realized though is that Uber and Lyft are just a couple of the many rideshare options on the market. New companies are springing up almost daily and we try our best to bring you the 411 on each and every company we come across so you can decide which company is best for you! Today we want to highlight Via, a fast paced rideshare app that takes multiple passengers heading in the same direction and books them into one shared vehicle. Or as Via puts it “Think of us as a bus that’s smart enough to come when you want it and where you want it.”

The best part about Via is that rides are only $5 -$7 (For riders who pre-paid for their rides with Ride Credit, all rides are a set $5 plus tax fare. For riders who wish to pay-per-ride, rides are charged at $7 plus tax per ride.)! We have to admit that is a pretty cheap fare, just a few dollars more than a ride on the subway, and if you choose to bring additional passengers with you they are charged only half price!

The current downside is that Via is only available Mon-Fri from 6:30am – 9pm between 110th St. and Canal St. in Manhattan. However, Via has mentioned that they are planning on expanding, so hopefully soon you will be able to hail a Via car in other cities.

 

How does Via work?

The Via app is available for free on both iPhone and Android devices. Once you sign up and open the Via app you will be prompted to select your pick up and drop off areas. Via will then calculate your actual pick up and drop off locations, which will be within a couple blocks of your desired location points. Via states that this helps them to keep their trip times as short as possible even though they are picking up multiple people. Once your vehicle picks you up you should expect to already see passengers in the car or to pick up some other Via-goers along your route. The number of passengers you might share a ride with will vary but capacities range from 3-5 passengers depending on the make and model of the vehicle picking you up.

One great benefit of Via is that you can pay with a variety of commuter benefit debit cards such as WageWorks, TransitChek, Beniversal, eTRAC, Commuter Check, and Benefit Strategies.

 

 

The next time you find yourself between 110th St. and Canal St. in Manhattan about to hail an Uber, try downloading the Via app and giving it a try. You can’t really beat their $5 flat rate price!

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Lilly is the marketing manager for TaxiFareFinder.com. She has a dream to travel to 100 countries during her lifetime but meanwhile is filling her time by instagramming pictures of her puppy and trying to figure out how to get an acceptance letter to Hogwarts.

Lyft Vs Lyft Line

Posted on by
Share Button

When Lyft first launched they only offered one simple service, a ride. Users would open the app and tap a big green “Request Lyft” button and, voila, a Lyft car arrived. Now, if you’re currently living in San Francisco or Los Angeles, you might have noticed an additional service called Lyft Line; a new service developed by Lyft to help support their growing user base and demand for alternative ride options.

What’s the difference between Lyft and Lyft Line?

Traditional Lyft

When a rider requests a traditional Lyft car, a driver will be notified via the app and a four door car will arrive at their location within a few minutes. This ride is reserved exclusively for the rider who requested the car and any passengers who might be in their party. The rider will then simply enter their final destination in the app’s GPS or will give their driver proper directions. Once the car has arrived at the destination, the app will charge the rider for the duration of the trip from pickup to drop off.

Lyft Line

Lyft Line is different from the traditional Lyft option as it functions more like a carpool. Riders who request rides through Lyft Line will be riding with other riders, allowing the cost of the ride to be split among all parties. With Lyft Line, riders are required to input their final destination prior to their trips. The app will then pair that rider with a Lyft Line driver who is already traveling along their chosen route. The catch is that there may be other riders in the car when a rider gets picked up, or the driver may stop and pick up additional riders as the trip progresses.

The benefit of Lyft Line is that Lyft claims the prices are up to 60% cheaper than the regular Lyft fares. The idea is simple, riders are splitting the bill with several people, so everyone only has to pay a portion of the overall cost instead of the whole bill.

Have you tried Lyft Line yet? Did your Lyft Line car make many stops along your route to pick others up? Let us know your experiences and opinions below!

 

David Pemberton is a Bay Area writer, currently serving as the Communications Manager for Breeze. Breeze offers a flexible lease option on fuel-efficient Prius cars, specifically for drivers interested in driving for rideshare or on-demand services. Learn more at www.joinbreeze.com.  

New Rideshare Service – Bandwagon

Posted on by
Share Button

The rideshare industry has truly become a modern day phenomenon that is continually growing and expanding beyond many experts expectations. With such promising growth and revenue, new rideshare companies are incessantly entering the scene hoping to catch a piece of the prize. With many new companies in one industry, it can be hard to fully understand what makes each company unique. Our team at TaxiFareFinder works hard to research and share industry trends and information on the numerous new rideshare companies to help educate our readers and make sure everyone is aware of their rideshare options! Today we are focusing on a brand new company, Bandwagon.

The Bandwagon app, is principally a way for taxi passengers who are heading in the same direction to connect with one another to share a taxi ride, saving the users time and money. This app was mainly designed for passengers who tend to wait in long taxi lines at airports or other crowded venues like convention centers, and is currently managing taxi lines during peak travel periods at Laguardia Airport through a contract with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. Bandwagon boasts that it reduces the ‘curb crunch’ in taxi lines and gets everyone to their destination faster, all while decreasing CO2 emissions! While Bandwagon is a rideshare company it does not have its own fleet of cars or drivers, instead it uses the regulated taxi system in each city.

Once a user opens their app and plugs in their location/destination, the app searches for others in the same location (ideally in the same taxi line) who are heading similar ways. Matched passengers can then text each other to meet up. Bandwagon, does ensure that you will never go more than 20% out of your desired trip route by sharing a cab with fellow Bandwagon users! Payment is fairly basic and works like this; Bandwagon will calculate how much each passenger owes and the last person to be dropped off is to collect the money throughout the ride from each passenger and pay the driver at the end of the trip when they exit the vehicle. While users can send other users money via credit card for their portion of the trip through the app, or reimburse eachother in cash if they choose, there is currently no way to pay your taxi driver through the app. Also it is important to note that Bandwagon does charge a small fee ($1) for the service. If all goes well at LaGuardia, Bandwagon will roll out at JFK and the rest of Newark Airport. (Currently they are available at Newark Terminal C only through a partnership with United Airlines.)

One benefit of Bandwagon is it claims that it will currently work in any location where there is heavy taxi usage, meaning there is no waiting for this app to arrive in your city! Also they recently rolled out a new feature that lets you book shared cab rides in advance on Bandwagon’s app. Have you tried Bandwagon yet? Let us know your thoughts below!