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Press Release: Demand for Carpooling App Surges 400% During Rail Disruption in Ontario

People turn to Poparide to travel between Toronto, Kingston, Ottawa and Montreal amid train cancellations which started on February 7, 2020.

February 27, 2020 – Vancouver BC Poparide, Canadaā€™s leading carpooling platform with over 250,000 registered users saw an increase of 400% in searches for rides in Ontario as a result of stranded train passengers looking for alternative means of travel.

ā€œWeā€™ve seen over 580,000 searches for rides in Ontario in the last couple of weeks, compared to about 110,000 searches for the previous period. The number of passengers travelling on Poparide went up by over 150% and drivers offering carpools is also up 50%ā€ said Poparideā€™s CEO and co-founder, Flo Devellennes. 

The disruptions are happening on a corridor where many who rely on the trainā€”students, professionals and commutersā€”are now looking for other ways to get around. Anthony Saleh recently posted a trip on Poparide and filled all the seats in his car from Kingston to Toronto. ā€œWe should be compassionate and provide a ride to those who are inconvenienced by the train operations. This is also a kinder environmental gesture because the CO2 emission footprint of the vehicle can be divided by the number of passengers so you can feel better about using your car.ā€ comments Saleh.

With recent reports of illegal carpooling in Ontario on various online classifieds, these train disruptions can be the perfect vehicle for some drivers to turn a quick buck. ā€œWe have stringent policies at Poparide around this, and we only allow drivers who are taking passengers incidentally to the purpose of their trip, and only to cover their costs, in accordance with Ontario law. We proactively detect and block drivers who attempt to post rides for profit and who donā€™t comply with Ontarioā€™s carpooling regulations.ā€ says Devellennes.

Poparide caps prices at 15c per km per seat to prevent drivers from turning a profit and carries out verifications, including ID verifications, phone numbers, email addresses, bank accounts and credit cards. Members can also rate each other after a trip and report any suspicious behaviour back to the service, which provides online support 7 days a week.


About Poparide

Poparide is Canadaā€™s leading carpooling platform, providing city-to-city services to over 250,000 members across the country. Launched in Vancouver in 2015, its members have shared over 25 million kilometres in Canada. Popular routes in Ontario include Kingston to Toronto ($30 a seat) and Toronto to Ottawa ($40 a seat).

For media enquiries, please contact Flo Devellennes at flo@poparide.com