Uber to expand its carpooling service to Los Angeles beginning Thursday

Ride-hailing app Uber plans to launch its carpooling service in Los Angeles, one of the most congested cities in the world.

UberPool will allow riders on similar routes to share travel and split the fare with strangers. It will match two users per ride but allow each to have one person accompany them — for a total of four passengers.

The service is slated to begin on Thursday, and Uber says it could reduce rates for users by about 50 percent.

Los Angeles is the fourth most congested metro area in the world, according to Inrix, a Kirkland, Wash.-based traffic research firm, with drivers wasting 66 hours in congestion over the past 12 months.

UberPool is already offered in New York, San Francisco and Paris.