<p>Bengaluru: With several firms scrapping work-from-home and hybrid models, workers from Outer Ring Road (ORR) companies turn to carpooling.</p>.<p>While some companies returned to full-time office in September, more are set to follow through October.</p>.<p>Quick Ride, a taxi and carpooling platform, said nearly half its 25,000 daily carpool rides originate from ORR and nearby areas.</p>.CM Siddaramaiah's visit sparks hopes of better ORR, triggers traffic snarls.<p>“About two weeks ago, we carried out a carpooling campaign at Intel to inform employees how the feature works. While we have a main network for carpooling spread across the city, some sub-networks can be customised based on the company and gender preferences. If someone would like to only carpool with the people who work at the same office as them, that can be specified,” said KNM Rao, founder and CEO of Quick Ride. He added that the government’s push towards carpooling could help ease congestion.</p>.<p>Carpooling involves private car users sharing rides with others travelling in the same direction. Industry insiders said the model is gaining traction among women commuters, particularly in the evenings, as it is considered safer and more economical.</p>.<p>Kruthika, 29, an engineer from Bellandur, prefers carpooling while returning home. “No time constraints (while returning). It is cheaper. We are all going to end up stuck in the ORR traffic anyway, so might as well save some money,” she said.</p>.<p>Others form their own carpool groups.</p>.<p>“Some of my colleagues have come up with this plan. When we saw the news about the potential congestion tax, it just made more sense to carpool. I believe the congestion tax will push more people to choose this eco-friendly option,” said Kavish, an engineer.</p>.<p><strong>Long-distance travel</strong></p>.<p>Ride-hailing platform QuicReach, offering shared cabs for long-distance travel, sees rising demand along ORR. “About 60% of our daily rides come from East Bengaluru, and recently, more passengers have been enquiring whether we do office pick and drops. We will plan on expanding our services based on the demand,” said founder Shubham Jain.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: With several firms scrapping work-from-home and hybrid models, workers from Outer Ring Road (ORR) companies turn to carpooling.</p>.<p>While some companies returned to full-time office in September, more are set to follow through October.</p>.<p>Quick Ride, a taxi and carpooling platform, said nearly half its 25,000 daily carpool rides originate from ORR and nearby areas.</p>.CM Siddaramaiah's visit sparks hopes of better ORR, triggers traffic snarls.<p>“About two weeks ago, we carried out a carpooling campaign at Intel to inform employees how the feature works. While we have a main network for carpooling spread across the city, some sub-networks can be customised based on the company and gender preferences. If someone would like to only carpool with the people who work at the same office as them, that can be specified,” said KNM Rao, founder and CEO of Quick Ride. He added that the government’s push towards carpooling could help ease congestion.</p>.<p>Carpooling involves private car users sharing rides with others travelling in the same direction. Industry insiders said the model is gaining traction among women commuters, particularly in the evenings, as it is considered safer and more economical.</p>.<p>Kruthika, 29, an engineer from Bellandur, prefers carpooling while returning home. “No time constraints (while returning). It is cheaper. We are all going to end up stuck in the ORR traffic anyway, so might as well save some money,” she said.</p>.<p>Others form their own carpool groups.</p>.<p>“Some of my colleagues have come up with this plan. When we saw the news about the potential congestion tax, it just made more sense to carpool. I believe the congestion tax will push more people to choose this eco-friendly option,” said Kavish, an engineer.</p>.<p><strong>Long-distance travel</strong></p>.<p>Ride-hailing platform QuicReach, offering shared cabs for long-distance travel, sees rising demand along ORR. “About 60% of our daily rides come from East Bengaluru, and recently, more passengers have been enquiring whether we do office pick and drops. We will plan on expanding our services based on the demand,” said founder Shubham Jain.</p>