Uber Express Pool Expected to be a Cheaper and More Efficient Ride-Sharing Option

Especially in crowded metropolitan areas like San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles, fewer and fewer people are choosing to drive. Between the cost of gas/maintenance and often the complete inability to find parking anywhere, many would-be drivers opt to use ride-sharing services like Uber or Lyft instead. For those who drive long distances on a daily basis, it still makes more sense to own a car, but for those who don't drive often, ride-sharing is the cheaper alternative. The cheapest variation of ride-sharing is UberPool, which lets multiple riders share an Uber and split the cost. According to an L.A. Times article written by Tracey Lien, an even cheaper and more efficient alternative, called Uber Express Pool, is on its way to LA.

Uber Pool, while great in that it can save a rider a few dollars on a trip and can give the driver the ability to pick up more fares in a shorter time, also has its downsides. One of the biggest complaints about the Uber Pool service is that it isn't a very fast way of getting anywhere. Inherently, when you opt to allow the driver to pick up other riders on the way to your destination, there will be a little bit of time added to your commute. However, because of the way Uber Pool is set up, it ends up being even longer, as the driver is directed to strange circuitous routes that the app calculates to "maximize efficiency," but which actually does the exact opposite. Additionally, for people taking a longer distance Uber Pool, the driver may pick up multiple passengers along the way, and then will have to go out of the way to drop them off before ever reaching the original rider's destination.

Uber Express Pool is expected to retain Uber Pool's upsides (especially its lowered prices) with fewer of its drawbacks. Some have compared Express Pool to a bus service in that it has designated pick-up and drop-off locations along routes created at a rider's request. Riders will have to walk a bit to get to where they're going, but this system avoids the wasted time of giving each rider door-to-door service, which makes each ride more efficient. It also allows riders to have a better approximation as to the time frame of their arrival. If the car isn't going off in random directions to pick up extra fares, then it's pretty easy to figure out how long the ride will take, even with multiple stops in the middle.

A somewhat similar system is already in place on several college campuses and airports, but that's more for ease of use and to ease traffic congestion. At those locations, there are designated pick-up and drop-off locations. By having those locations, the schools and airports don't have drivers constantly blocking up traffic, and drivers and riders are more easily able to find each other. When riders used to be able to request a pick-up anywhere on campus, it was often difficult for drivers to find them, as the routes through many college campuses tend to be difficult to navigate for people not accustomed to them. In all, it seems that the updated Express Pool will be beneficial to both riders and drivers, and is, therefore, a positive addition to Uber's array of services.

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New System to Alert Passengers via Mobile App if Luggage is Lost in Transit

Many people often need to travel often in this day and age. Technology has helped people to become more connected and some businesses even operate out of multiple countries at once. Therefore, people conducting business and people looking to visit friends and family will usually need to resort to flying to their destination. Because flying has become so mainstream and efficient, it's not unheard of for some individuals to board multiple flights per month. However, with all that popularity comes mistakes. Flights get overbooked, luggage gets lost, and the whole trip can be a frustrating experience. According to Hugo Martin's L.A. Times article, American Airlines is addressing one common issue: lost luggage, in the hopes of making the experience a little bit better for everyone.

Airports, especially those located in major cities, host many flights per day, with planes from dozens of different airlines. It's no surprise that luggage gets misplaced among so many thousands of travelers. The more frustrating part for many passengers is that they have to wait by baggage claim for every piece of luggage to exit the plane before they can definitively determine that their luggage is gone. Then, they have to go through the whole process and fill out paperwork so that when their belongings are found, they can be returned. People nowadays value efficiency and look to save time in every situation, so a big time-waster like that is not appreciated.

American Airlines is beginning to use a new system of scanning luggage at multiple checkpoints along the boarding and transport process, which keeps better track of everything. Additionally, all of the data is being uploaded to their system, and an alert gets sent out to a passenger if the system finds that their luggage was lost along the way. Because the passengers are getting a text message or app alert, they are able to immediately go to fill out the paperwork instead of first waiting for baggage claim, which can make an inherently stressful situation a little bit easier. In the coming years, lost luggage may be a thing of the past. New technology has been driving down the number of bags misplaced each year, and some research shows that use of RFIDs and other similar technology could lead to a 99% success rate on tracking bags, which could save millions of dollars in the long-run.

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"365 by Whole Foods" Market Boasts Lower Prices and Higher Efficiency

This week, Whole Foods opened their "365 by Whole Foods Market" in Silver Lake, the first of a set of 13 such stores to be built around the country this year. The supermarket chain's new style of smaller store has already interested many customers in its first couple of days, and the company expects the fad to grow rapidly. In her L.A. Times article, Samantha Masunaga describes the new type of store and some of the ways it differs from the classical Whole Foods supermarket.

365 is Whole Foods' first smaller format store. However, it features many high-tech options and better deals than their regular stores, making it a highly sought-after alternative. People, especially Millennials, go to Whole Foods because they are looking for healthier, organic food options. However, eating healthier is often costly, and most people have pretty inflexible budgets when it comes to groceries. Therefore, when shoppers found out that 365's products were the same, but at a cheaper price, they flocked to the new store.

On Wednesday morning, when the store opened its doors for the first time, the parking lot was full and then some.  Interested shoppers circled the lot, having trouble finding a spot to park their cars, but when they finally got into the store, they were amazed by what they found. While the 365 has a smaller selection than a normal Whole Foods, its prices are significantly cheaper, which, too many Millennials with little disposable income, is a worthwhile trade-off. Additionally, the displays of produce feature electronic readers that measure the weight of fruits or vegetables and print stickers based on the measurement. In that way, the check-out process is quick and easy, saving time for both customers and employees.

Besides the reduced variety, the new 365 will also be missing Whole Foods' signature deli counter. However, it still has a large salad bar and a variety of pre-cooked hot food items. Analysts believe that 365 is likely Whole Foods' response to losing their share on the health food market. Other stores like Ralphs and Target have begun to provide organic options for their customers, which means Whole Foods is facing much greater competition in a once-blue ocean. Over the past three quarters, Whole Foods has shown declining sales, but the management hopes that the smaller, less cost-intensive 365 stores will help to turn that around over the coming year.

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Find out more about us at www.sepulvedaescrow.net. Any Questions? Contact our Escrow Expert! Sepulveda Escrow Corporation (818) 838-1831. Follow our company on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

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