PERTH’S Uber riders could soon be able to share the cost of their trips around the city with the ride-sharing app launching its carpooling service in Australia.

Unveiled for the first time in Australia this week, customers will be able to carpool with other riders heading in the same direction, in a bid by the ride-sharing company to reduce the number of cars on the road.

The carpooling technology, which automatically partners customers up into the same car, will start a trial period in Sydney tomorrow and is expected to be available in Melbourne in the next three months.

The service will run as a feature inside the existing Uber app, with customers directed to walk to a location where a driver and fellow customers will collect them.

Uber spokeswoman Megan White said Perth was high on the list to be one of the next cities to have the feature before the end of the year.

“The whole premise is getting more people in fewer cars,” she said.

Uber Australia and New Zealand general manager Henry Greenacre said the service, which is already available in major cities across the world, was popular with riders.

“The first version of UberPOOL was about picking people up from their front door, and what we found was this was the not the most efficient way,” he said. “Under this new scheme, it takes a few minutes to match you with someone heading in a similar direction and then you’re taken from one convenient spot to another.

“You share the cost of the trip with other passengers in the car heading that way — the more likely we are to match you with other people, the bigger the discount we can offer.

“Safety is our No.1 priority at Uber and people who already love the app because it is safe and reliable will find the same regulatory checks with this new service.”

The decision comes days after the company rolled out a new pricing structure in Perth which offers riders an exact price of a trip, as well as allowing them to add stops on the way to a destination.