What is GoLoco?

GoLoco is a service that lets friends, neighbors, and co-workers arrange rides together. It helps match someone going somewhere with a car (commonly known as the "driver") with someone else who wants to go somewhere (commonly known as the "passenger"). Each passenger agrees to pay the driver for their fair share of the costs of the trip.

How does it work?

GoLoco members post their desired trips, specifying who among their circle of friends, neighbors, and colleagues is able to see them. When a match is made, the details of the trip are agreed to online (specific meeting place and time, destination, who is the driver, etc.).

So how does the money stuff work?

The use of GoLoco to arrange ride sharing is free. Our system also allows members to share the costs of the trip, for which we charge a 10 percent transaction fee.

Once the trip begins, the passenger is charged for their share of the trip costs by moving funds from their GoLoco account to the driver's GoLoco account. By "fair share of the trip costs" we mean the total cost of the trip is shared by everyone. So if there is one passenger, they will pay the driver for 1/2 the cost of the trip. If there are two passengers, then each one will pay the driver 1/3 the cost of the trip. GoLoco charges a 10% transaction fee for each of these transactions.

The average cost of operating a car is $0.50 per mile. So we take the distance of the trip times $0.50 per mile to arrive at the total cost of the trip. The driver may add additional costs such as tolls or parking.

How do I invite someone to join a trip?

When you post a trip, one of the questions is "who can see this trip?". From that page you can choose who can see your trip. You can also invite specific people on the trip.

How do I invite people to join a group I'm in?

Go to the "My Profile" tab and choose the "Groups" link. Select the group you want to invite someone to, and there you will find a link "Invite People to this group."

What is a Friend?

A Friend is someone you like to spend time with. GoLoco makes it easier to spend this time going places! You can easily share your travel plans with your Friends on GoLoco, and you can get email alerts for travel plans your friends choose to share.

What is an "oLo"?

We call members "olos" after the olo guy in the GoLoco logo. Some members are ocos.

What is a Location?

A location is where passengers are picked up or dropped off. Locations all have names and addresses that are public (everyone can see them) and a private name if you choose to assign one (home, work, Mom's, etc.).

How can I add a location?

Two ways: 1) When you post a trip and type in the address, you can create a new GoLoco location if an existing one isn't right for you. 2) Under My Profile, is a link for locations. You can add and edit locations from there.

How can I see and edit locations?

Go to My Profile, click on link for locations. You can add, edit, or delete locations from there. You can edit the names of any location you've used. When you delete a location, you are only deleting it from your personal list. Your power is not great enough to wipe it off the face of the earth.

What if I want my money back?

If a passenger ever needs to request a refund from a driver, they may do so by sending a message to the driver by visiting their Past Trips. The driver can refund any of the passengers directly from their invoice. All fees, including GoLoco's transaction fee, are refunded immediately to the passenger's account.

Isn't my friend being cheap charging for a trip he/she is already taking?

In short, no. Here's why: 1) Your friend is spending about $8000/year on insurance, parking, depreciation, maintenance, and gas. This isn't some insignificant cost you are mooching. 2) Sure, you are just one person but your friend probably has 10 friends just like you. That really adds up from the driver's perspective. 3) If you were paying, you'd stop feeling that little twinge of guilt over bumming a ride yet again, and you'd actually travel with your friend more often. If your friend posts the ride and you are paying your share, everyone comes out of the deal even. 4) If everyone really understood and paid for the cost of each car trip, we would likely sometimes choose another more efficient way to travel: by foot, by bike, by subway, by bus, by train.

Can I use GoLoco to share a taxi or rental car?(between conferences and the airport, for example)

Yes. The first person to post the trip, designates him/herself as in charge of a taxi or rented car and uses the "other costs" category for the estimated costs. The person responsible for the trip is responsible for paying. Like every trip, GoLoco will move the other rider's share of the trip cost into the account of the person in charge.

What about insurance if there is an accident?

You should check with your insurance agent since the details of each policy are different. Many policies provide that, as long as the driver is asking each passenger to pay no more than their share of the costs of the trip - sometimes known as a "share-the-expense car pool arrangement" - passengers should be covered by the driver's policy, subject to the various limitations of that policy. GoLoco does not check driver's insurance and does not represent that drivers are insured.

You can cancel at any time -- even at the last moment when you look through the car window and decide you just don't want to travel with this person -- but we will track a history of your last-minute cancellations so that other riders can get a sense of how reliable you are.

Decision-making in the car:

Driver rules. The driver sets tone for whether this will be a silent trip, or conversational trip. He/she also has control over the radio and music, etc.