Eye-watering cost of travel and occupying empty passenger seats has helped drive a carpooling app which has recently shifted gears.
Since March, Māpua-based Vincent Revell and Motueka-based Benjamin Walch have put Pooly through its paces on the Nelson-Tākaka corridor, and are now strapped in to clock up rideshare journeys.
Similar to overseas rideshare service BlaBlaCar, Pooly allows volunteer drivers who do not require a passenger endorsement to register and share upcoming trips. Registered passengers can then book a seat if they are travelling to the same destination, or somewhere along the route.
“It's just a win-win situation because it's providing affordable transport for people who need it between towns and cities, and it's money in the back pockets of people who are driving those trips,” Vincent says.
“It’s about making use of those empty seats, which are moving around New Zealand every day in cars.
“We've had more than 200 people sign up to the platform, but what we really want to focus on is getting lots of people posting rides, and then we want to really push to get people booking those rides. It's at a really pivotal moment to get enough usage so that it then naturally takes off.”
During the trial period, Vincent says two journeys were key examples of Pooly's potential.
“One was a guy who was driving from Tākaka to Christchurch, he posted his ride, and he got a booking and he got an extra $85 or something to go towards his petrol, which was great,” he says.
“His passenger had no other way to get from Tākaka to Christchurch, and so this solved a big problem for her.
“Another cool story was a guy was driving from Nelson to Tākaka, I'm not sure which direction, but he managed to book out all three seats in his little car, he got about $20 a seat, and it was affordable transport for those other people who were needing to get between Tākaka and Nelson.”
Vincent says Pooly trips are often cheaper than bus services, with prices capped for drivers.
Usage across New Zealand is the next stop for Pooly’s journey.
“We've got Canterbury University coming to an end in early November, and so we want to really do a push for any students there who live in Nelson and need to get home for the summer to join Pooly, post a ride if you're doing it, and encourage other students to either book a seat in your car or push to book their own rides.”
Visit: Pooly.nz for more information.
