Citymapper, your best friend for navigating anywhere even if you’re half asleep, has launched a minibus service, known as Smart Ride, that will take passengers around set routes in London.
The company will be operating under a private hire licence from TfL, which limits the company to operate vehicles that can carry eight or fewer people. They follow set routes, which can change in the future depending on demand, and want you to view it along the same lines of a regular ride-sharing service, like Uber Pool
“It’s a bit like a bus because it has stops, it’s a bit like a cab because you book it and it has guaranteed seats, and it’s a bit like a metro because it has a network of roads,” Omid Ashtari, Citymapper’s president, told the Guardian.
They chose a private hire license because carrying more than nine people in London means “you’re a bus and have to follow strict regulations on fixed routes, schedules and service frequency. Carry eight people or fewer, and you’re a private hire vehicle that can go wherever you want, however you want, how often you want.” Citymapper explained in a blogpost on Tuesday
READ MORE: In celebration of a cheap way home after a night out, why not try our 5 best drinking games for two people...
Debrief 5 BEST DRINKING GAMES FOR TWO PEOPLE
1 of 51. Bullshit A La Deux
A perhaps much more sensible version of the multi-player card game Bullshit that always ends in fights (source: last time I played with my friend's 50-something dad he called me an 'old bitch' and threw his cards at me - alcohol was involved). Bullshit for two people doesn't require cards. Instead, take it in turns saying something outlandish about yourself that may or may not be true. Something like 'My last name actually means "Swine Shagger"' (absolutely not true) or 'One time I went on the Congo River Rapids at Alton Towers and my boob fell out and I couldn't slot it back in because my arms were pinned down by the restraint and so my boob enjoyed the whole ride hanging out' (absolutely true). The other person then has to guess whether your claim is true or bullshit. If they get it wrong, they drink.
2 of 52. Fast Questions
even gets off the ground. The two players take it in turns to quire fire a series of ten questions at each other - the questions must be yes or no and the questionee must answer 'yes' or 'no' without any hesitation. Which seems easy until you started entering grey area questions - try answering 'Do you know what a massive douchebag you are?' with just 'yes' or 'no' and no hesitation. Any faltering is served with a shot.
3 of 53. The Name Game
You've played this before but it works well for two people as a drinking game too. One person says a celebrity, and then the other person has to say another celebrity whose name starts with the first letter of the previous celebrity's last name. So for instance 'Miley Cyrus' could be countered with 'Cheryl Cole'. Impose a time limit and administer shots when one player fails.
4 of 54. Joke's On You
Get a pack of cards and leave one joker in. Shuffle the deck and set it in between the two players. Take it in turn to one by one turn a card over. The aim is not to get the joker. If you get it, the joke's on you! Which means you can A) Do a shot (standard) B) perform a dare or C) try and get out of it by telling a joke which the other person must find funny. No laughing out loud? It's option A or B for you.
5 of 55. Who's Googling Who?
One for the (awesome) nerds. Take two comparable things (eg Taylor Swift and Beyonce) and assign each one to a player. Then, head over to Google Trends. Once there, set the time to 'past hour' and compare the words 'Taylor Swift' and 'Beyonce' to find out who the most popular person was on the internet over the past hour. The loser drinks. Sorry Taylor.
The Citymapper app is already used by many to navigate their way around and last year they launched a network of shared black cabs offering journeys that were fixed at £3 and it currently operates the CM2 nightbus at £1.50 a journey, which runs between Highbury and Islington station and Aldgate East Station. A minibus service definitely seems like a natural step for the company.
Judging by the low-price points of its other services offered, Smart Ride could end up being cheaper than Uber, giving Londoners a cheaper way to get home after a night out.
It's a thumbs up from us.
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.