Lyft launched its carpooling service Lyft Line in 2014. The feature let passengers heading in similar directions share a ride and divide the fare.
Lyft Line grew out of Lyft’s earlier interest in shared transportation. The company began as a service of Zimride, a long-distance carpooling platform founded by Logan Green and John Zimmer. Lyft itself launched in 2012, and its shared-ride product gave the company a way to offer lower prices while using existing cars more efficiently.
When Lyft Line debuted in August 2014, riders could request a shared trip through the Lyft app. The system matched compatible passengers and calculated separate contributions, rather than treating the journey like a traditional taxi ride. That made Lyft Line an early example of app-coordinated urban carpooling.
Lyft Line is often confused with ordinary Lyft rides or with UberPool, Uber’s comparable shared-ride service. The names differ by company, but the basic idea is similar: passengers trade some privacy and direct routing for a potentially cheaper fare and fewer empty seats on the road.