UberPool to Get Real-Time Push Notifications to Reduce Wait Time; No-Show Fee Will Be Levied

Uber first introduced UberPool in India in September last year, and since then, many users have been taking advantage of cheaper rides by sharing their car journey with others. However, an UberPool ride means delay in schedule, long waiting times for other carpool riders, and short derails in route due to different carpool destinations. Now, Uber has announced that it is making some behind the scene changes to UberPool that look to reduce these pain points to an extent.

Uber will now begin to send push notifications to UberPool riders to start getting ready, and even intimate them that the driver 'will leave shortly' if they do not arrive at pick up point. This new UberPool real-time push-notification feature looks to reduce the time spent waiting for drivers.

The driver will wait for a maximum of two minutes, after which the app will intimate him to move on, and the UberPool rider will face a no-show fee to compensate for the lost time. The Uber app will now also make an automatic switch of riders more suitable to your route, even after it has assigned an initial rider for carpooling. This UberPool feature will further reduce journey time, as the app strives to pool the best suited riders together to save time. The Uber app also learns on your trip habits and matches you with regular UberPool riders on your route to facilitate convenient and efficient trips over time.

Uber has also introduced a few features keeping the drivers in mind. The map, which earlier showed only one passenger route at a time, now shows extended routes of the next drop for ease in navigation. Uber notes on its blog that more than 250 million trips have been taken through UberPool since two years of operation.