By Stacy Carmichael-James
Transport Technology Company iRIDE, within the next three weeks, is bringing to the capital city, a safe and reliable service using an application, which the Management says would be ten times easier to use than a regular app.
iRIDE is dubbed as a technology company that provides solutions for people’s transportation needs by connecting drivers and customers in a quick, safe and easy way. The service will use an app which can be downloaded from the app and play stores on mobile devices and will allow a customer to request an iRIDE driver anywhere in Georgetown.
When the request is made, a driver has some 60 seconds to respond to the customer, who will receive a photograph of the driver, the model, colour and license plate number of the vehicle being dispatched, as well as the location and route being taken by the driver, using Google maps. There will be no need for phone calls or the pick-up location since this will be identified by the app in “real time.”
When the driver is one minute away from the requested location, the customer would receive a notification. The iRIDE app took some eight months to be developed and involved a team of some 20 to 30 persons from India and the United Kingdom. It took some two months of testing.
The media was informed that the service is being requested in Jamaica and Trinidad; however, this would be done when it is completely rolled out in Guyana over the next year and a half. It is the only company of its kind in the Caribbean thus far, the company boasted.
Chief Executive Officer Melissa Davy said the company is capable of recruiting thousands of drivers and described it as the “ultimate side hustle.” Drivers are required to have a vehicle from the year 2004 and up and if the potential driver does not have a car, iRIDE has teamed up with AJ Carian Auto Sales located at LBI, East Coast Demerara, offering vehicles at competitive prices.
Manager of AJ Carian Auto Sales Yannick Charles explained that whatever is the cost of the desired vehicle, the customer would have to get 25 percent down payment, and if that down payment is not readily available, customers have the opportunity to save until they can meet that amount. For iRIDE part- time and full-time drivers, the car company would provide financing for those drivers to attain their vehicles and funds would be garnered through iRIDE. Persons can access the company via Facebook and Instagram for further details.
The two companies are calling on all interested persons to visit the iRIDE Sign-Up Fair on Saturday, March 25 at the AJ Carian location at Unit A, Regency Business Strip, LBI, East Coast Demerara.
For those with concerns regarding security, Davy said management is able to locate all vehicles on a 24-hour basis; in addition, the drivers are required to submit vehicle registration, license and a police clearance and would be subject to background checks.
In terms of payment, customers would pay $200 for the first kilometer and $100 for every additional Kilometer. Further details of iRIDE could be obtained from its Facebook Page as well. It is located on the third floor of the Gizmos and Gadgets store, 14 North Road, Georgetown.
A similar service, estimated at some 70 billion US dollars known as Uber was launched in San Francisco, California and now operates in more than 570 cities and 77 countries. Uber is described as “a location-based app that makes hiring an on-demand private driver easy.”
