Back in June, an Egyptian transportation startup Swvl raised a series B funding of $42 million. The company aspires to be an international leader in tech-enabled public transportation. It has so far managed to raise $80 million in total.
Swvl -which operates from Cairo- provides an app-based mass transit solution. It allows riders going on the same route to share the trip for a flat price. There’s no surge pricing and the service is 70% cheaper than the likes of Uber and Lyft. Swvl is currently available in the cities of Cairo, Alexandria, Lagos, Nairobi and Karachi among others.
Like Uber, Lyft and other ridesharing companies, Swvl does not own the buses that operate under its banner. Instead, it has established partnership with drivers and operators for financing the vehicles.
IMG source: https://www.menabytes.com/swvl-nigeria/
Speaking to Reuters, Swvl’s co-founder and CEO Mostafa Kandil, said that the company is currently losing money but expects to turn a profit in two to three years. He believes that in the coming five years, Swvl will be able to reach one million trips a day in Egypt alone.
Bus-Hailing: The Next Big Thing?
Swvl is not the only startup seeking to empower a mass transit system through a mobile app. Uber and middle-eastern ridesharing company Careem have launched a similar service in Swvl’s home territory of Cairo. Careem –which has been acquired by Uber in March –is even considering taking its Careem Bus to Saudi Arabia and Alexandria.
IMG Source: https://www.menabytes.com/airlift-2-2-million/
Similarly, Airlift is a Smart Bus service that operates in Pakistan. It’s available in the country’s three major cities and currently sees tens of thousands rides on a weekly basis.
A More Green Option
Climate change has never been as big a concern as it is today. Activists are calling for people to rethink everything from their food consumption to their choice of clothing brands. Of course, transportation is at the centre of it all.
Environmentalists strongly advocate for more public transportation as it reduces the number of cars on the streets, resulting in better air quality.
IMG source: https://e360.yale.edu/assets/site/_1500x1500_fit_center-center_80/GermanCarsA100Berlin_SeanGallupGetty.jpg
According to the Environmental Literacy Council, a public transit company is estimated to save more than 1.4 billion gallons of gas and decrease carbon emissions by 1.5 million every year.
Meanwhile, ride-hailing services are being blamed for causing traffic congestions in major metropolitan. In fact, cities like Chicago are increasing fees on single rider Uber and Lyft trips to ensure a better flow of traffic.
Going by this, projects like SWVL can be considered as a part of the growing green entrepreneurship trend, where startups are seeking to resolve environmental problems through sustainable business models.
Factors Behind the Rise of Smart Buses
The inefficient transportation infrastructure in developing countries is one of the primary reasons bus-sharing services have gained traction in recent years.
Services like Swvl and Airlift mostly target middle-class customers who travel to remote areas for work and cannot hire an Uber every day due to their budgetary constraints.
Likewise, in some developing countries, the mobility of women remains an issue due to social, economic and infrastructural reasons. Bus-sharing apps make transportation much easier and accessible in this scenario.
Speaking to Dawn, executive director of Airlift, Syed Mehr Haider stated that 47% of app users are women. The company is even planning to introduce a separate women-only bus service in the near future.
What’s In the Future?
It’s still early days for bus-hailing services. Some are planning to create their own mass transit systems. Others are figuring out a sustainable business model.
In any case, the emergence of app-enabled public transportation in developing countries is just another example of how tech entrepreneurship is transforming the world.
