South African carpooling startup uGoMyWay has released what it says are positive results of a pilot “corporate carpooling project” held in Cape Town over a period of 2.5 months.
Conducted in association with Accelerate Cape Town, the pilot included eight of Cape Town’s top-tier corporate companies and their employees, with uGoMyWay saying it confirmed the viability of a sustained carpooling programme in the city.
Launched in March of last year, uGoMyWay recently launched an app that allows users to safely find drivers and passengers who commute to and from the same area to share their journeys and travel costs.
The recent pilot saw downloads of the app increase by 120 per cent, with 89 per cent of users finding a match. Over 90 per cent of these matches were classified as “excellent”, and 50 per cent of users had more than one “excellent” match.
“The tech works! We were not expecting such an exceptional match outcome at this stage. This is an excellent sign that there is indeed a healthy appetite for carpooling and it bodes well for the future of carpooling as a viable means of transportation to and from work and other frequent car trips,” said Chris Megan, chief executive officer (CEO) of uGoMyWay.
Throughout the duration of the pilot the increase in the number of matches and the quality of matches accelerated exponentially.
“We’re keen to support the development of sustainable transport options in the city that will help reduce congestion and result in environmental benefits,” said Justin Smith, group head of sustainability at Woolworths, one of the last corporates to host a workshop in the pilot period.
Ryan Ravens, CEO of Accelerate Cape Town, said the pilot had been successful in focusing attention and raising awareness of the benefits of carpooling in Cape Town.
“That being said, we are rolling out the uGoMyWay solution to all Accelerate Cape Town members and encourage all businesses whether in the CBD or in other high traffic corridors, to consider adopting carpooling as a valuable mechanism for effecting much-needed behavioural change amongst staff,” he said.
