Aventage Carpool: A solution for the fuel crisis in Sri Lanka?
View(s):By Mahesh De Andrado
With Sri Lanka going through what is possibly its most vicious economic crisis yet, each and every one of us is feeling the strain in some way or the other. The lack of fuel has affected all of us who travel to work and even those who need to go about their day to day activities. Queues to get petrol or diesel are now 2-3 kilometers in length (sometimes even longer) with no clear date of a fuel restock in sight. If you travel using public transport then you will know how jampacked buses and trains are. Hailing a tuk is a pipe dream and even if said dream comes true, you’ll end up forking a bit of your kidney as a payment.
One solution to this that has been strongly considered is carpooling. This is basically where an owner of a vehicle is able to give lifts or transport to people who are along that individual’s route, thereby alleviating the need for others to go along the same route and giving them a mode of transportation as well. It’s seen as quite an economical solution, as it reduces air pollution, carbon emissions, traffic congestion, and the need for parking spaces. It is also a good way to utilize the full seating of a vehicle which would usually not be used up if it was only the person driving the car.
A solution for the fuel crisis?
Taking all these points into consideration, Aventage Labs, a part of St. Anthony’s Industries Group, launched Aventage Carpool, a free-to-use app that allows users to publish rides or book rides. The app is trilingual, and is available on the Google Play Store as well as the Apple App Store.
Signing up for Aventage Carpool is a straightforward process
Signing up for Aventage Carpool is a straightforward process
The signing up process is straightforward and you can login either using your Facebook or Google credentials. I signed up using my Google account and was asked for a verification code, once I got the code, I was good to go.
The app is divided into two sections; “Find A Ride” and “Offer A Ride”. Under the “Find A Ride” section, you can select your pickup city, and your destination city. The app uses the Google Maps API so you can pick the locations with ease. Locations can be picked either by scrolling on the map, or you can type in the location directly. You can also select the number of seats you’re looking to book and the date you’re looking to book as well. Once the details have been entered, all rides that are available for that criteria will be shown. If there are no rides available for your given route, you can create a ride alert which will notify you if a ride is going along your route.
Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis with severe shortages in gas and fuel
In order to offer a ride, you will need to add the details of your vehicle first. The details required include vehicle size, manufacturer, model, engine capacity, year of production, license plate number, number of seats available and the color of the vehicle. In addition, you can also add if our vehicle has handicap accessibility and a child seat as well.
Once you have filled out the vehicle details, you are then able to offer your vehicle for a ride. You can choose whether the ride is a one way trip or a round trip. If it’s a one way trip, then the trip will be from Point A to Point B. In the event of a round trip, you can choose your pickup and drop off location as well as the date and time of your departure and return. You can also delegate the number of seats as well as setting a price per person for a seat.
How viable is Aventage Carpool for Sri Lanka?
Off the top of my head, a platform of this nature is actually quite a viable option for Sri Lankans. For example, given the current fuel crisis, if you own an electric car and you’re looking for some additional income while you drive to work, this can be the perfect way to do so. You’ll just have to make sure your vehicle has sufficient charge to do the route. If you’re also the type to work from home and you have a few hours a day to drive around the city, you can also consider joining the Avantage Carpool platform.
One concern that I have, that many of you will also have, is safety. After all, you’re either going to be picking up random strangers (if you’re offering a ride) or getting into a complete stranger’s car (if you’re making a booking). While Avantage Carpool does offer a rating system for those offering rides, there’s no exact method to ensure safety of both the driver and the passenger.
While the app does have an emergency contact feature, there are still things that can go wrong. So it’s best to always be aware of your surroundings. In addition, if you do find yourself making a booking, my suggestion would be to see if you can book it with a group of friends or colleagues so that you’re not alone when traveling. If you’re offering your vehicle up for a ride, you can also make sure that you keep an eye on the passengers in your vehicle and immediately stop the ride in the event of any suspicious activity. Also, make sure your vehicle has been safety tested and ensure that the basics such as lights, brakes and steering are all in order.
Another concern I had was that there didn’t seem to be any rides available for the pickup and dropoff locations I entered. These included popular locations such as Fort, Galle Face, greater Colombo and slightly further distances such as Moratuwa and even Galle. This may be because vehicles are not available due to the shortage of fuel, but that can also negatively affect Aventage Carpool as people will not use the app if vehicles are not available.
Carpooling is still a novel concept for Sri Lanka and might not be to everyone’s liking, but initiatives such as Aventage are a good way to introduce the concept and get people on board. This is especially viable when even the simplest things like getting to work or going to see a loved one becomes a hassle. If you are willing to give it a shot, you can download the app and try it out for yourself.
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