CrowdPool

Inspiration

I made CrowdPool to connect people looking for rideshares with drivers, so that both sides could have most fun, efficient, and cost-effective trip possible.

Current ride-sharing solutions focus on on-demand rides which, while convenient, limits drivers' ability to plan and optimize their routes; given that people tend to plan trips ahead of time (e.g., daily work commute or weekly grocery shopping), these existing solutions miss opportunities to provide the best ride for their users by only allowing on-demand ride requesting.

Using crowdsourced and community-based route-planning, Crowdpool is able to aggregate and optimize driver routes, which results in better prices for the rider, better efficiency for the driver, and a happier experience for all.

Additionally, I chose to open-source CrowdPool because I believe that community-based apps should be open to the community they serve and not be a blackbox.

What it does

CrowdPool is a marketplace that connects drivers with carpoolers by mapping out popular stops throughout cities (starting in Mexico City) where carpools depart from/arrive at. Rides and stops are determined by crowdsourcing: for example, if enough riders request to go from Del Valle to Centro at 9am on Wednesdays, a new trip is added for these riders and they are then signed up for the trip in advance; this advanced-planning allows drivers to maximize occupancy and routes, resulting in better prices for riders.

Additionally, CrowdPool is built for its community: from its open-source codebase to its transparent review system, we believe that strong communities

How I built it

Sketch, iOS, Parse, ☕️

Challenges I ran into

Time! I had lots of features that I wanted to implement but little time to do so.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

Shipping an initial version!

What I learned

Things always take longer than planned.

What's next for CrowdPool

Adding notifications for upcoming rides and a more interactive voting system as well as a better driver dashboard. Also, a better logo and possibly new color scheme