Tripda thinks intra-city rides are key to popularizing carpooling in the Philippines

The Philippines legalized ride sharing services earlier this month, opening the floodgates to a wave of such services racing to grab foothold.

Recently launched Tripda is making a big push to introduce carpooling to Filipinos.

The app by ecommerce giant Rocket Internet connects car owners who have spare seats with passengers heading the same direction. But unlike in other markets where Tripda deals with long distance travels, it’s initially offering immediate intra-city rides in the Philippines much like Uber.

“Through Tripda, car owners can publish their seat availability for commuters taking the same routes at similar hours,” says Erick Coser, country manager of Tripda in the Philippines. “They can carpool – saving money while providing a better commute and reducing traffic and pollution in Manila.”

Early this year, Tripda secured US$11 million funding from Rocket Internet and other investors. It will use the fresh capital to expand its global operations and grow its user base in 13 countries where it operates.

Coser says the funding will be key in taking Tripda’s Philippine operations and team to the next level.

He sees a lot of room for Tripda and the sharing economy to grow because of a great need. He explains, “Nearly all of the emerging markets face similar challenges. The massive urban migration created a megalopolis in just 20 years, the enrichment of the population unleashed many car purchases, and governments lacked the agility to update public transportation infrastructure. All of these factors have culminated to streets flooded with single-person vehicles.”

The Philippines suffers from extremely inefficient traffic with a lot of unused capacity. There’s huge untapped demand from commuters as seen in the overwhelming lines at train stations and public transport terminals.

“Carpooling is certainly a trend worldwide and the Philippines isn’t an exception. It might not be the magic answer for the traffic jams of Manila or the inefficient provincial roads, but it’s certainly part of the solution,” notes Coser.

Tearing down preconceptions

Yet there are challenges. Coser tells Tech in Asia the first sale was the hardest because of all the preconceptions about carpooling they had to tear down. To begin with, carpooling isn’t part of the Philippine transportation culture. “We were always told that the odds were against us,” he says. Safety is also a primary concern. How can you be sure that you’re not getting in a car with someone with a DUI or criminal record?

Coser says Tripda put a lot of effort into addressing these concerns.

Tripda does not conduct driver background checks or provide insurance. But it sources social media information about prospective drivers and passengers, and maintains a rating system based on past drives. There’s also a “Ladies Only” feature aimed at women who prefer female car mates.