Waze starts carpooling scheme in Tel Aviv; rep says scheme is not in competition with Uber

A Google subsidiary has started a carpooling program Monday in Tel Aviv. Israel-based mapping and navigation provider Waze, which was acquired by the Internet giant in 2013, will handle the project.

In a post on the company's official blog, Waze announced that the project will use an app called RideWith, and the service will be available only during rush hour in the Gush Dan region of Tel Aviv. RideWith connects drivers and passengers on similar routes and enables them to carpool, with drivers signing on using Waze's app and riders using RideWith. "We are conducting a small, private beta test in Tel Aviv for a carpool concept," Julie Mossler, a spokesperson for Waze said.

RideWith takes advantage of the fact that carpooling is already an accepted practice in Israel, with the government having its own ridesharing scheme for government employees.

Mashable reports that although drivers signing up for RideWith will not be charged, riders will chip in for the amount of the cost of fuel and vehicle maintenance. RideWith will calculate the cost of gas and vehicle wear and tear based on route mileage, and will suggest an amount to the driver, who may accept or decline the rate and ride. Passengers availing of the RideWith service will pay for the ride using their credit cards, with Google keeping a small percentage of the payment.

The service has apparently picked up a thing or two from the legal troubles hurdled by ridesharing services like Uber; in order to skirt the regulatory issues faced by competitors, drivers signing up with RideWith are limited to only two rides per day, and can only pick up passengers starting from the same place and dropping them off near the end point.

While the concepts may be similar, Google insists that RideWith is not in competition with Uber's business model, simply because the Internet search giant's venture capital arm has an investment deal with the ridesharing company worth $258 million.

"RideWith is an experiment in the Tel Aviv area that doesn't compete with Uber: it's a platform built to enable local drivers to help each other during busy commute hours," a Google rep told Wired.com.