Author: Kaitlyn Short
Via is a transportation network founded in 2012 by Daniel Ramot and Oren Shoval. The product was first launched in New York City in September 2013. The app lets users hail a ride with other people headed in the same direction. It makes for a true rideshare experience, similar to a carpool, and costs less than private rides.
Via Cities:
- Chicago
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Washington, D.C.
- Arlington, Texas
- West Sacramento, California
The app is available for iPhone and Android devices.
While riding with Via, passengers must follow the company’s four rules of conduct:
- Ready and waiting
- Avoid phone calls
- No food or drink
- Be considerate
The goal is to one-up public transit, with rides that cost just a little bit more than public transit.
Keep reading our Via review for pros and cons of using this rideshare service.
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The Good
- Pricing
- Commuter Benefits
- Referral Program
- Better Pay for Drivers
Pricing
How does this mode of transportation compare when it comes to cost? Just a little more than the bus or public transit. A fare generally costs less than Uber or Lyft because you are sharing costs with others, but the rates depend on a few different factors, including distance, peak hours, and plus ones you are paying for.
Some service areas offer the option to buy a ViaPass. It lasts for a week and you get up to four free or discounted trips per day. Additionally, plus-ones are $1 and cancellation and no show charges are put down to $1.
Commuter Benefits
Customers have a lot of options when it comes to paying for their ride. You can use a credit card, debit card, or Google Pay.
If you have commuter benefits through your work or another organization, you can use your debit card to pay for Via. A customer can pay for their trip with the following card options:
- WageWorks
- TransitCheck
- Beniversal
- eTRAC
- Commuter Check
- Benefit Strategies
- Ameriflex
- Zenefits
- FlexFacts Commuter Benefits Card
- Igoe Administrative Services Benefits Card
Referral Program
A fun benefit for users is the referral program. Your friend will get a $10 credit. Once they take their first trip, you will get $10 worth of credits too, as long as your link was used. This can be accessed within the app.
Better Pay for Drivers
A 2018 report released by the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission found that driving for Via lead to earnings over 30 percent more than Uber (43 percent) and Lyft (35 percent) drivers.
The Bad
- Corner to Corner
- Luggage Limits
- Availability
Corner to Corner
Via is self-styled as a “corner-to-corner service” platform. This means that your pickup and dropoff points aren’t as specialized as other services. However, this helps to make Via times comparable to taxi times, and cut down on waiting time, while getting closer to a straight line for the other riders.
Within a couple of blocks of your requested destination. It's not curb-to-curb. You will not be picked up or dropped off at an exact address, but on a corner near your pickup or dropoff location.
The average wait time is five minutes and you can track your ride on its way to you.
This is Lyft and Uber on a budget. It’s cheaper, but you will have less control over your pickup and dropoff location, you may have to do a bit of walking, and you may have to sit next to a stranger.
Luggage Limits
Via’s rideshare service experience is not really like a taxi when it comes to personal items and luggage. You can’t take up much more space than your seat. Riders are limited to a small item.
Availability
If you live outside of a major metropolitan city, Via rideshare is likely not available in your area.
On top of that, it isn’t 24/7 in every service area. Because it is geared toward helping people to beat traffic during their commute, or get to and from mass transit or metro stations, it only operates at certain times of the day. Take care to know the operating hours in your area.
The Bottom Line
The Via app and transportation network offers shared rides with on-demand service in a vehicle with passengers headed in the same direction.
The customer ride experience with this on-demand shared transit service is more convenient than public transportation, less private than a standard Uber or taxi. For these trade-offs, passengers save money.
Have you used this rideshare service? Would you recommend it to others? Tell us about your experience in a review below.
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