Carpool service startup Via arrived in D.C. on Monday with a tempting, $2.15 flat rate for a ride. Though the map and hours are limited, timing the launch to when Metro's SafeTrack program reached the Red Line could well make up for it.
Hailing
I've used pretty much every public and private option for getting around D.C. and am very fond of the Metro, but there's no denying this summer has been rough on my commute. I decided to give Via a test run and see whether it could really challenge the dominance of other carpooling options like Uber, Lyft and the homegrown Split.
Step one was getting to within Via's service area. I recently moved to Brookland, so that meant taking the Metro two stops to NoMa. The SafeTrack work farther north meant the train was more than normally crowded, but hardly unbearable around 8 a.m. I stepped out at NoMa and opened up the app as I exited the station. I signed up and set my payment system, then went to the map. I set my pick-up location to the street corner I was standing at and my drop-off point as Foggy Bottom Metro, the fastest way to get to Rosslyn. With a tap, Via started hunting for a car for me. So far, so identical to every other ride-hailing app.
It took less than a minute for the app to announce a car was on its way to a spot about a block away. I'd expected something like that since I knew that the pick up and drop offs were set within a radius of the request. The car was marked as just four minutes away, not bad relative to other services, and I was somewhat surprised how direct the route was to get to me.
Riding
When the dark blue SUV pulled up, it was easy to spot that it was my ride. The large Via sticker on the side of the car made it obvious even before the driver asked for my name. I commented to the driver that it stood out more clearly than the usually discreet Uber and Lyft stickers used. He agreed and said it was a positive since there was less confusion from passengers about where to find him.
There was plenty of space in the car. Only one of the back row seats was occupied, and the young woman sitting there didn't even look up from her phone as I climbed in and sat in the leather seat, which certainly matched the requirements Via outlined for its fleet.
The ride was quiet, with the radio playing a Top 40 station and only the slightly tinny music coming from the other passenger's headphones accompanying it. I asked the driver how it had been driving with Via so far, and he said he'd enjoyed it so far. The minimum $20 an hour was great, and the relatively limited hours of operation right now gave him time to do other things during the day, including driving for Lyft.
I'd expected a lot of pickups and drop-offs along the way, but in the course of the around 30 minute ride, there were only a couple more people picked up, all completely quiet once they'd said hello and all wearing headphones the whole time. One person was in the car for all of five minutes and as many blocks. My guess was that her goal was to avoid getting sweaty as the day warmed up, but a lot of those quick rides would really slow down my trip.
My driver said the afternoon drive had been busier so far that week. Apparently, a lot more people were interested in avoiding the Metro on the way home than on the way to work. I wondered if it might also be about growing awareness of Via as an option, which he agreed could be a factor, as could the map of coverage, which hits a lot of the places people in D.C. go for happy hour, but not so much for a weekday breakfast.
Verdict
Two blocks from the Foggy Bottom Metro, my stop had arrived, and another passenger and I got out. I checked the Metro tracking system to try and work out if I'd saved any time. Possibly, but not a lot if at all. On the other hand, the comfortable car ride had only cost $2.15 and had a guaranteed seat, air conditioning (never certain on a Metro car) and wasn't pressed on all sides by sweaty strangers as cranky as I was.
Would I take Via again? Maybe. The borders of the map were an annoyance but the cost beat out by a couple of dollars even the vastly reduced rate Uber and Lyft's carpools are offering this summer. Certainly, if I both lived and worked where Via operates I'd probably use it a lot. Via will have to work to snap up as many users as possible while the current price stands as that might be the only way to get people out of the habit of using whatever service they do at the moment. And leather seats won't be enough to change anyone's mind.
