Drivers, riders and service providers: the impact of the sharing economy on mobility

Ride sharing denotes the practice of sharing a car such that more than one person travels in a car during a journey. Sharing rides was traditionally restricted to family members and close friends or long-distance journeys scheduled well before the intended time of departure. Only the emergence of mobile computing technologies and GPS location services in combination with electronic payments and online reputation systems provided for the technological cornerstones to make on-demand short-distance ride sharing among strangers viable. Typically individuals enter their trip details on an online platform1 which then facilitates the matching of riders with cars and drivers - and within minutes the individual's trip commences. Such platforms must attract both, supply and demand for rides.