A friend took a bus from Ajah roundabout to Lekki and had to cough out a staggering N500 for the fare which was three times what she would have paid when the price of fuel was N86.5 or N87. Some car owners have resorted to putting off their car ACs to conserve fuel because of the new pump price at N145. Whether you are a car owner or a passenger, it affects you. For the car owner it means more money spent on buying fuel, while for the passenger it is more money spent on increased fares.
But these are difficult times for everyone who has to commute from one part of the city to another no doubt. Several commentators say removing subsidy was a necessary evil; a pain everyone has to share for the greater good.
However a brilliant innovative platform offers both the car owner and the passenger the opportunity to share the burden, save money and possibly make connections. GoMyWay is a ridesharing marketplace that connects passengers with ride owners going along the same route anywhere in the country.
“We are connecting people who live in the same direction,” said Damilola Teidi, CEO and Co-founder of the company.
Although there are plans to develop it into an app in the near future, but for now the platform is web-based. A user that wants to access the services will need to go online to the company’s website www.gomyway.com.
Teide explains that to register as a car owner or passenger, “you have to sign up before we get you a ride. Once you signed up, we have a place where you can complete your profile and put in as much details as it is required on the website.” A passenger can also make selection by following the company handle on Twitter. There, he or she has the opportunity to see the profiles of the car owners.
The car owner’s process and the passenger process are not the same but they are easy and necessary to protect both parties.
“We have processes that you go through as a car owner; like car license verifications alongside putting things like emails and phone numbers. When you do that you fill in your car details, for instance “What car do you drive?” “What colour is the car?” and put up your car picture. You can also add when you leave home to work and when you come back. You also select the price.” Prices are flexible with limits to ensure the passenger save money while the car owner earns returns for service delivered. The limits are set in such a way that there is a minimum and a maximum price that a car owner cannot pass.
The car owner picks the price that he wants. It is left for the passenger to either accept or look for a more suitable owner. After the price has been picked more details are required such as time of departures.
“As a passenger, for example, I have my ride from Yaba to VI, and you are a passenger who wants to go from Yaba to VI, you will see all my details, time and whenever I am leaving, then you click the button to contact me to ride with me. Now once you click that person, we will ask you to sign up or log in. You also have to go through the verification. You can put up your details, your passport etc. Once you are done with all that I as a car owner will get a notification. I will check the person’s profile, see what verification he has done then I can decide whether we are compatible. Then we can start exchanging messages,” said Teidi.
Many clients who have accessed the service often discover that it is cheaper than taking a taxi to work and more convenience than you will get commuting to work in a bus. One of the clients, who simply go by the name Adebayo, said it was a “Great experience. Tunji’s a careful driver. He does it the Lagos way when required.”
“We started last year and it has been good so far. We have never passed a month where do not grow more than the previous month. We have a lot of people who said that this is a great idea. Many of them want to pick people at the bus stop and the crowd that rush at them are so much and it is always very mess. But this is a good and more organize way for them to do it. We get a lot of people like that. On the website we have about a thousand ride offers across over fifty routes across the country. In Abuja and Lagos and Ibadan we have been growing and people are accepting the idea,” said Teidi.
FRANK ELEANYA
