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Uber and Lyft have had to tackle so many legal issues already. Drastically improving and modifying how they deal with drivers on a daily basis from both an oper

Uber and Lyft have had to tackle so many legal issues already. Drastically improving and modifying how they deal with drivers on a daily basis from both an operational and legal standpoint. If what the article says is true about google vetting problem drivers with mere user reviews, they don't know what they are getting into. I think the idea is great of course, and I imagine it would cut down on freeway traffic during commute hours. It just seems that the legal web of trust, insurance, safety, etc will be a lot to handle.

moefogs 10y ago
Fortunately, Google has regulatory contacts and an armada of lawyers. They're fully capable of working on this.
imgabe 10y ago
If this is strictly to more easily facilitate carpooling during rush hour, there's some precedent. In the Washington DC area, for at least a decade, possibly more, there have been "Slug Lines" outside the city for people commuting in. The idea is you go to a specific place via public transportation or park there, then drivers heading into the city pick you up so they can use the HOV lane. There's a similar setup in the evening where you'll catch a ride back with a different person. I've never used it, but as far as I've heard it works well. I don't think there's any compulsion to pay, but maybe it's generally polite to offer a few dollars for gas. This sounds like a more automated version of that.
- vthallam 10y ago
  This happens in many places i guess. But when a company gets into picture to facilitate this, things like safety/insurance comes into picture. I am sure Google might have already figured that out, if not any small crime incident by a driver would cause huge reputational damage.
  - bduerst 10y ago
    It's different because it's carpooling, which is typically covered by most insurance policies. https://www.waze.com/carpool https://www.waze.com/carpool >Auto insurance policies in many states including California typically allow not for profit, share-the-expense carpooling. Waze Carpool is designed to help riders and drivers share the cost of carpooling on a given ride. It is not designed to allow a driver to make a profit or to earn a salary. Payments to the driver, by the rider, will always be less or equal to the cost of the particular drive, taking account of such factors as gas and vehicle depreciation.
    - dgacmu 10y ago
      Underscoring that, the WSJ article notes that "Waze’s current pilot charges riders at most 54 cents a mile". This is equal to the federal standard mileage reimbursement rate for 2016 (https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/2016-standard-mileage-rates-for-business-medical-and-moving-announced https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/2016-standard-mileage-rates...). Which suggests they're trying to aim for exactly that, using an established standard for the per-mile cost.
- ddlatham 10y ago
  I use it regularly to SF http://sfcasualcarpool.com/ http://sfcasualcarpool.com/
oneloop 10y ago
> If what the article says is true about google vetting problem drivers with mere user reviews, they don't know what they are getting into. And I think you underestimate how much google knows about us. Do you think one can't tell a.... "problematic person" from the shit they're watching on youtube?
adevine 10y ago
The article doesn't really make clear that this is really shared carpooling (which has existed for decades), NOT driving for hire a la Uber and Lyft. The reason for the 54c/mile limit is that is the IRS standard mileage rate, so anything that and below is not considered drive-for-hire.

moefogs 10y ago

Fortunately, Google has regulatory contacts and an armada of lawyers. They're fully capable of working on this.

imgabe 10y ago

If this is strictly to more easily facilitate carpooling during rush hour, there's some precedent. In the Washington DC area, for at least a decade, possibly more, there have been "Slug Lines" outside the city for people commuting in. The idea is you go to a specific place via public transportation or park there, then drivers heading into the city pick you up so they can use the HOV lane. There's a similar setup in the evening where you'll catch a ride back with a different person. I've never used it, but as far as I've heard it works well. I don't think there's any compulsion to pay, but maybe it's generally polite to offer a few dollars for gas. This sounds like a more automated version of that.

vthallam 10y ago
This happens in many places i guess. But when a company gets into picture to facilitate this, things like safety/insurance comes into picture. I am sure Google might have already figured that out, if not any small crime incident by a driver would cause huge reputational damage.
- bduerst 10y ago
  It's different because it's carpooling, which is typically covered by most insurance policies. https://www.waze.com/carpool https://www.waze.com/carpool >Auto insurance policies in many states including California typically allow not for profit, share-the-expense carpooling. Waze Carpool is designed to help riders and drivers share the cost of carpooling on a given ride. It is not designed to allow a driver to make a profit or to earn a salary. Payments to the driver, by the rider, will always be less or equal to the cost of the particular drive, taking account of such factors as gas and vehicle depreciation.
  - dgacmu 10y ago
    Underscoring that, the WSJ article notes that "Waze’s current pilot charges riders at most 54 cents a mile". This is equal to the federal standard mileage reimbursement rate for 2016 (https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/2016-standard-mileage-rates-for-business-medical-and-moving-announced https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/2016-standard-mileage-rates...). Which suggests they're trying to aim for exactly that, using an established standard for the per-mile cost.
ddlatham 10y ago
I use it regularly to SF http://sfcasualcarpool.com/ http://sfcasualcarpool.com/

oneloop 10y ago

> If what the article says is true about google vetting problem drivers with mere user reviews, they don't know what they are getting into. And I think you underestimate how much google knows about us. Do you think one can't tell a.... "problematic person" from the shit they're watching on youtube?

adevine 10y ago

The article doesn't really make clear that this is really shared carpooling (which has existed for decades), NOT driving for hire a la Uber and Lyft. The reason for the 54c/mile limit is that is the IRS standard mileage rate, so anything that and below is not considered drive-for-hire.