Using the carpool lane can cut time out of commutes, but it comes with the hassle of coordinating with another worker. That's annoying. It's so annoying that Lyft is now willing to pay people to do it. Sort of.

Lyft Carpool is a new way for drivers to potentially make hundreds of dollars a month driving to work like they already do, as long as they're willing to drive someone who pays a few bucks to sit in the passenger seat. Drivers can make up to $10 a trip. Likewise, riders pay between $4 and $10 for a ride.

Lyft Carpool joins Lyft Line as a way to embrace carpooling, though the new option is aimed specifically at commuters and pairing a driver with one rider at a time. Lyft Line bunches together people who happen to be going in the same direction for any reason.

The new service, which is only available in the San Francisco Bay Area for now, is a partnership with the California Metropolitan Transportation Commission's 511 Rideshare program, a pre-existing initiative to get more people in fewer cars.

Plans are in place to expand to other cities in the future. People who live in San Francisco and are willing to drive can sign up right away.

In other Lyft news, the latest version of the Lyft Android app makes Waze integration, announced two months ago, available to drivers nationwide. Now Waze appears as the default navigation option.

What's New

Score. We've teamed up with Waze to make rides even more efficient for drivers and riders. New in this version:

  • Waze integration for drivers, rolling out nationwide

Source: Lyft blog