Shuttlers, a tech-enabled mass transit company that operates using a scheduled bus sharing method has successfully raised a $1.6 million seed funding led by VestedWorld, a Chicago and Africa-based investment firm which will be used to scale operations into other cities across Africa.
“With this fund, Shuttlers will invest in scaling its operations to other cities across Nigeria, before expanding to other regions in Africa, the company will also look to improve and ease its processes and solve existing inefficiencies with access to more technological solutions, ” Damilola Olokesusi, co-founder/CEO of Shuttlers, said.
Olokesusi said that the start-up aims to transform mobility around the world, by building a global partner network and connecting communities of shuttlers, noting that the negative impact of inefficiencies in the mobility space is visible in the quality of life, mental health, and work productivity of commuters.
“We can’t deny the reality of public transportation in cities like Lagos but I am confident that our smart mobility solutions can solve some of these urban mobility challenges sustainably and also reduce carbon emission,” she added.
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She added that as commuters settle into the new normal and search for safer and cost-effective ways to move post the global-pandemic, the firm will expand its service offerings to provide community-focused transportation solutions and also continue to explore feasible solutions tailored towards the overall improvement of the cities’ transport system.
“We are very excited to work alongside a group of committed financial and strategic investors to scale this further, we believe our investment will help Shuttlers extend its offering to adjacent markets and help solve inefficiencies in the transportation sector across regions in Africa,” Nneka Eze, managing director, VestedWorld, said.
Shuttlers was launched in 2016 to tackle the problem of inefficient transportation in cities like Lagos, Africa’s most populous city and Nigeria’s socio-economic nerve centre by providing options for users to commute at comfortable and affordable rates on scheduled and predetermined routes regardless of the possible surge and peak period pricing.
Since its launch, the transport solution has grown from plying one route in Ajah to Victoria Island to over 30 routes with over 300 bus stops, over 100 unbranded buses within the city while recording over 2 million trips taken by commuters.
