iPhone Rideshare App To Cut 73.6 M Tons of CO2 Annually
In an attempt to save the planet—and possibly just to piss off Canada—the company Mapflow is bringing a ridesharing app to the iPhone. The app is called Avego and Mapflow hopes it will help save the world. Hey, they had me at pissing off the Canadians.
Well, at least one Ontario will get some ridesharing play. Oh snap!
The app works by tracking a user’s driving habits and then matching them up with people looking for rides. It’s kinda like Match.com for potential serial killers and would be victims. Using the GPS-enabled iPhone, the app will track common routes the user takes. The app then notifies the user of potential victims..er, riders. From there the app will suggest a place they can meet. It will also show a picture of the person so you use a little hot-or-not in your decision making.
The neat part is that would be victims don’t actually have to have an iPhone. Which makes sense, since there are only going to be so many people sharing the same route to work. If you limit it to iPhone users, then you limit how many people you can hack up and go all Jeffrey Dahmer on.
If you are anxious to get the app or if you just like watching clocks count down, you can visit the Avego website for more information on its release.
Image: this image is a nod to Gizmodo.com (I’m not worthy!)
You Might Also Like
“Thermos Bottle” Technology Delivers Solar Hot Water in Cold Weather
James Bond Would Approve: Cleantech Open 2010 Launches Today
Columbia University Students Reinvent the Wheel
Innovalight’s Silicon Ink “Tattoo” Will Lower the Cost of Solar Cells
November 17th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Remind me how this is pissing off canadians?
November 17th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
[...] iPhone Rideshare App To Cut 73.6 M Tons of CO2 Annually [...]
November 17th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
[...] Read more of this story » Written by admin in: Alternative Energy | [...]
November 17th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
if only there were rideshare listings for hot chicks to ride on my bike handle bars…sigh…
November 17th, 2008 at 11:53 pm
I fear they will never reach that critical mass of passengers because:
1) people may only attempt it for long, regular journeys (to and from work)
2) after they find a reliable group, they will stick with them.
3) why then let avego take 15% of the cash? Would then just use avego if the driver falls ill.
I think it would be cool, and really creepy if avego tracked all their customers on gps at all times. “We know you are avegoing, we have charged you $$.”
November 18th, 2008 at 12:34 am
Uhh, i really don’t think people will do this. But maybe… My dad’s buisness cut a buildings co2 emissions by 72 % saving 130,000 tons of co2, along with millions of gallons of water, and this is just ONE system.
November 18th, 2008 at 9:11 am
Ya humorous references to serial killing, but what have the Canadians done to you? Keeping in mind I read only this installment of serial killer 101
November 18th, 2008 at 10:13 am
I would hope by 2020 we are all flying in space ships. But it is a great Idea. In Washington DC people pick up others at the bus stops just to use the HOV lanes. I think there is some merrit for this..
November 18th, 2008 at 10:18 am
@Rupes
because the Canadian government/court shut down a website that promotes ride sharing
http://redgreenandblue.org/2008/11/12/canada-fines-company-for-advocating-carpooling/
“The ridesharing website PickupPal was struck down by a Canadian court in a case brought against them by bus giant Trentway-Wagar. The company took PickupPal to the Highway Transport Board complaining that the ride-matching service fell afoul of the province’s obscenely strict ride-sharing laws which were adopted in the 1970s.”
November 18th, 2008 at 10:41 am
re: Brad Canadian
I was just poking fun at my previous article on how how Ontario was stopping a ridesharing website due to the most ridiculous rules I have ever seen.
Click the word Canada in the first sentence, all the details are there.
November 18th, 2008 at 10:43 am
Great idea except it has already been thought of. The carpooling user base is way too small. For the iphone there are carticipate and http://iphone.ridesearch.com
The ridesearch.com one integrates with their main site so that people don’t have to have an iphone to get it to work.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:05 am
haha well with a userbase of 20 million anyone can do some cool stuff, of course, that requires getting a usebase of 20 million.
it amazes me that they can “hope” to get 20 million users, and everyone covers it like that’s actually going to happen.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
re: benjo
Yes, but you don’t have an iPhone. You have an iPhoney!
November 18th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
The victim/serial killer scenerio could be minimized by making sure the first pickup is someone you know well. For women I would suggest a very large, very mean looking guy.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
If the Big Three automakers go down, we won’t be riding anywhere in middle America because the larger part of jobs will go to Asia, and we will ride our thumbs!
November 19th, 2008 at 10:33 am
OK, I think you are a very funny writer. Just in case any of your readers don’t get sarcasm, however, here are five points worth considering:
a. the riders or drivers you accept/give rides to are tracked via GPS and time (therefore criminals would have to be incredibly stupid to use this system while committing crimes)
b. the riders and drivers have given payment and mobile phone information in order to use the system, providing further verifiable identity (thus there is less anonymity than say, doing something really dangerous, like walking down the street)
c. the riders and drivers can choose to offer/accept rides from closed communities of users, like co-workers or people that go to the same college, so if you are fearful of “the other”, you can be assuaged somewhat
we do expect critical mass in most markets to take a long time to develop; in some cities, along some transport corridors, there will be a critical mass within a year; in general, this system in the current version and as reported does require critical mass.
Best!
Sean O’Sullivan
(exec Chairman, Avego/Mapflow)
November 19th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
re: Sean O’Sullivan
Thanks for the response. This is this first time someone has contacted me from a product or site I have written about – so thanks!
I really do hope they get the sarcasm, I doubt that anyone would use this app to actually murder people. For one, like you pointed out, with very little sleuthing you could determine who done it.
Secondly, I plan to use this as I don’t have a car, I do have an iPhone and I would like to not end up killed.
Thanks again for the response!
November 20th, 2008 at 12:20 am
Sarcasm aside, the question of security comes up quite frequently for us, especially in the US which some call a fear based society. In Europe this is not a concern.
But if you don’t have to wait for AveGo, you can download Carticipate to your iPhone for free now, which is the first rideshare social network application on a location aware mobile platform.
We gave a talk on Monday at the Silicon Valley iPhone Developers’ Meetup in Palo Alto where we demoed the Carticipate app.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaphdB6Wafs
November 20th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
This is an amazing application, though adoption will be the key to success. I can see it working for college kids who need a ride to/from campus from the surrounding area. Business rides will be a bit more problematic, but if you tried it a few times you might build a network of people that often are going your way.
February 10th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
My first impressions of the iPad are largely positive. Apple has once again built a product that looks good and feels great in the hand, and the familiar user interface, borrowed from the iPhone and iPod touch, is perfectly suited to the bigger screen. The iPad whizzes along, opening applications, re-sizing web pages, and zooming in and out of maps almost instantaneously. Does someone know the release date? i love it and i want it…