Would you share a cab with a stranger for half the fare? That’s the premise behind Taxi Share Chicago, an android app that makes it easy to find others going in your direction.
Daniel Fedor spent many years in downtown Chicago cabs, asking others if they were headed the same way before dreaming up the app that would do it for him. With Taxi Share Chicago, you can get a cab by pressing the ‘need a cab’ option, choosing your general drop-off zone, and waiting for a match. At the same time, anyone in a taxi heading your direction will see your color-coded icon pop up on their map, indicating the desire for a taxi share. Your phone will flash that same color, allowing the cab to easily locate you and pick you up.
The app is currently available for the android, with a formal announcement being made later this month. “Right now it works the way I originally came up with it,” says Fedor. They will be adding more features such as a mapping system and social/networking at a later date.
New York City already has a similar system, but Fedor says the mistake is in the destination. Rather than an exact address, he discovered that general areas help people travel. “You need to keep it general so it can happen more spontaneously,” says Fedor.
Saving time and money is key in this app, but there are other benefits like meeting new people and being eco-friendly. Not bad for a simple app.
You can find the app on Android by looking up “Taxi Share Chicago.”
