The Challenge
Commuting is the highest-frequency, most predictable journey most people make, and general ride-hailing is built around one-off trips priced dynamically — suiting neither the economics nor the habits of the same route at the same time daily. Informal carpooling runs on messaging groups and cash.
Dynamic pricing unsuited to a daily route.
Coordination through group chats and cash.
Cost negotiated socially rather than calculated.
Nothing recorded when someone fails to appear.
Approach & Solution
smartData built the platform on Node.js with React Native and native mobile clients. The structural decision was a unified driver-passenger profile: one account acts as both, switching by activity, which matches how commute carpooling actually works and avoids the artificial split general platforms impose.
Fares calculate automatically from distance, passenger count and commission settings, removing the negotiation and cash handling informal arrangements depend on. An in-app wallet lets users load funds, pay for rides and lets drivers withdraw earnings, with commission splits handled in the transaction flow.
Key Features
One profile driving some days, riding others.
Distance, seats and commission applied without negotiation.
Funds loaded, rides paid, earnings withdrawn.
Organisations subsidising staff commuting through the platform.
Product Showcase
Final Outcome
The fare is calculated rather than negotiated, payment happens in the app rather than in cash, the same person can drive or ride depending on the day, and employers have a route to subsidise staff travel.
sD UAE
sD Australia