Prepare to meet new people during your ride home from the bar. Today, Uber launched UberPool in Chicago, a carpooling service that allows drivers to pick up multiple passengers who are headed in the same direction. Billed as a more efficient method of transporting passengers, UberPool results in higher payouts for drivers, who are driving multiple people at once, and lower fares for riders, who split the cost of the ride with other users.
If you decide to use UberPool, you'll be picked up by an UberX or UberXL driver who is accepting multiple passengers—usually two (and sometimes three). Your trip may take a little longer due to route adjustments to facilitate other pick-ups and drop-offs, but you'll be paying up to 40 percent less than the cost of a regular UberX. Unfortunately, you won't be able to catch an UberPool home with your friends—the service is only designed for single riders (plus, you can already split the cost of an UberX).
Of course, we're excited about the prospect of saving a few bucks on the ride home, but we're even more interested in who we might cross paths with along the way. Perhaps you'll run into possible business partners, new friends or a hot date. The backseat of an Uber is about to become a prime networking location.