Software engineer
Rohan Sharma
The problem
Shared rides that waste time instead of saving money
Carpooling should be the cheaper, greener way to commute in Indian cities. In practice, riders complained about long detours, poor matching and not knowing who they would share the car with or where it would go.
- Long waits before a match is found
- Multiple unnecessary stops
- Inefficient route planning
- Poor passenger matching
- Unpredictable arrival times
Using Uber in India: before and after
How might we
Reduce long wait times and inefficient routes in ride-hailing?
Research
What riders and competitors told me
I mainly followed a design thinking process. Before touching any design, I read white papers on what motivates people to share rides and set goals, then looked at how the main alternatives handle carpooling, and finally talked to riders.
Competitive analysis
The gapNone of them combined good route optimisation with good co-rider matching. That became the focus.
What was going wrong
01
No real-time ride matching, so riders face delays and inconvenience.
02
Unclear co-rider profiles and safety, so people hesitate to carpool at all.
03
Inefficient route optimisation, which means longer trips and higher costs.
04
Hard to find reliable carpool partners, so ride availability is inconsistent.
Talking to riders
User interviews30+
data points from card sorting during primary interviews with riders. The questions I asked:
- Describe your last carpool. What frustrated you most?
- Have you had unnecessary detours or delays?
- How comfortable are you sharing a ride with strangers? What would make you feel safer?
- Are carpool fares predictable and fair?
- What makes you pick carpooling over other options, and what would make you use it more?
Personas
Three commuters, three journeys
From the interviews I built three personas and mapped each one's journey through a shared ride, to see exactly where time and trust were lost. Click any image to see it full size.
Marketing executive
Meera Kapoor
Sales manager
Ravi Verma
Ideation
From opportunities to paper sketches
I mapped the opportunities from research, picked the ones with the most impact on waiting and routing, and sketched low-fidelity flows on paper before moving to screens.
How might we
Make carpooling more accessible and convenient, with a seamless and trusted experience?
The design
Five changes to the shared ride
FEATURE 01
Shared rides on the home page
I added an "Introducing Shared Ride" entry point next to the existing ride options on the home screen, so the shared option is right there when people choose a ride.
FEATURE 02
Pre-booking and instant matching
Riders pick a destination or a saved location ahead of time and get matched instantly, with the fare and passenger details shown before they confirm.
FEATURE 03
Co-rider profiles and ratings
Before booking, riders can see who they will share the ride with and how they are rated.
FEATURE 04
Route details
The route shows each co-rider's destination and the estimated arrival, so detours are visible up front instead of a surprise mid-ride.
FEATURE 05
Arrival and safety
Destination and arrival information stays visible, alongside safety features: verified profiles, an in-app emergency button and real-time tracking, with women-only and dashcam options as possible additions.
Measuring success
The metrics I would track
This was a concept, so there are no launch numbers. These are the metrics I proposed to know whether the redesign works.
Ride matching
- Match rateShare of ride requests matched with co-riders
- Average wait timeTime to match and assign a shared ride
- Seat utilisationShare of available seats filled per ride
Pricing & revenue
- Fare per shared rideRevenue from each carpool trip
- Rider savingsCarpool fare vs. a solo ride
- Driver earningsPer shared trip, compared with regular trips
Experience & retention
- Completion rateBooked shared rides that finish
- Cancellation rateRiders or drivers who cancel
- Rating & feedbackAverage rating and top concerns
Safety & compliance
- Compatibility scoreMatching on preferences like gender and route
- Incident reportsComplaints or SOS activations per trip
- Driver complianceFollowing carpooling policies
Environmental impact
- Trip time & distanceShared trips vs. solo rides
- CO₂ reductionLower footprint from sharing
- Private vehiclesNon-Uber drivers offering shared rides
Testing plan
How I would test it
Usability testing is the next step. This is how I would run it with real riders and drivers.
Ride experience testing
- Surveys and interviews with riders and drivers
- Dig into delays, detours and co-rider discomfort
- Collect real stories and quotes for the report
Analytics
- Heatmaps and session recordings
- Find where people drop off while booking
Also
- Forums for frequent riders
- A/B testing
- Customer support feedback
- On-ground usability studies
- Social listening & support tickets
Challenges
Problems I expect, and how to solve them
Challenge 01Unreliable ride matching
Riders face long waits or mismatched routes.
SolutionAI-driven route optimisation that matches riders with minimal detours.
Challenge 02Safety, especially for women
People worry about sharing a ride with strangers.
SolutionA women-only carpool option, real-time ID verification and dashcam recording.
Challenge 03Unclear routes and pricing
Riders don't know where co-riders are going or how the trip will change.
SolutionShow full co-rider trip details before booking, with fares that adjust to the shared distance.
Challenge 04Few private vehicles in the pool
Car owners hesitate to list their vehicles.
SolutionClear earnings breakdowns, insurance coverage and easy onboarding.
Next steps
What I would do with more time
Product features
- Group riders so detours and waits stay short
- At least one female co-rider when a woman books
- In-car recording on shared trips
- Live co-rider locations, ETAs and trip changes
- Fares based on shared distance and stops
- Mandatory government ID and driving licence checks
Design improvements
- Real-time updates on ride status and co-riders
- Detailed post-ride feedback
- Emergency button, live tracking and verified profiles
- Rewards, badges and leaderboards
- A "Private Vehicle Carpool" option on the home page
Honest noteWith only 7 days, I skipped usability testing. It would be the first thing I do next.