DC’s homegrown ridesharing option, Split, announces expansion

Split, the D.C.-based ridesharing app, expanded its coverage area yesterday: the service now extends to Glover Park, Woodley Park and Catholic University, the company announced. Split also recently expanded to areas of the SW Waterfront, Eckington and Edgewood.
The latest growth, Split says, means that the service has doubled its coverage in the six months since launch. In a statement, Split also celebrated other growth statistics — expanded ridership and a growing number of drivers — and teased the release of an Android app, coming in December.

The announcement comes as the ridesharing market in D.C. is becoming increasingly competitive.
When Split launched it was the only carpooling rideshare option in the District. The company recognized a pricing niche between public transportation and services such as UberX and Lyft, and built a product to fill that niche.
Since then, however, Uber’s carpooling option uberPOOL launched in D.C. in October, and Lyft’s equivalent, Lyft Line, will make its debut on Nov. 19.
So what is Split’s competitive advantage?
The company boasts no surge pricing, as well as a price point “close to” public transport. Additionally, Split seems focused on creating a grown-in-D.C. narrative. “We’re focused on creating community both on and off the road,” Split Marketing Director Sara Pierce said in a statement. “As a local company, we encourage people to not only ride local, but eat, drink and play local.”
Time will tell how the competition for D.C.’s ridesharing hearts and minds will go. For now, the carpoolers among us can enjoy more alternatives to driving, or braving WMATA, than ever before.