Location- and time-dependent meeting point recommendations for shared interurban rides

TL;DR

This paper presents a location-based system that recommends optimal meeting points for interurban rides, reducing detours and travel time by considering motorway-adjacent locations with good public transport links.

Contribution

It introduces a GIS workflow with precomputed travel times to automatically suggest efficient meeting points based on location and time.

Findings

Reduces detours by suggesting motorway-adjacent meeting points

Uses precomputed travel times for fast recommendations

Improves efficiency of interurban ride sharing

Abstract

Drivers offering spare seats in their vehicles on long-distance (interurban) trips often have to pick up or drop off passengers in cities en route. In that case it is necessary to agree on a meeting point. Often, this is done by proposing well-known locations like train stations, which frequently induces unnecessary detours through the inner-city districts. In contrast, meeting points in the vicinity of motorways and arterial roads with good public transport connection can reduce driving time and mileage. This work proposes a location-based approach to enable a fast and automatic recommendation of suitable pick-up (and drop-off) points for drivers and passengers using a GIS workflow and comprehensive precomputation of travel times.