Live bus tracking app BEST’s Chalo for Mumbai bus commuters, which was released last year for Android users, is now available on the iOS platform as well.
Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) made the announcement on Twitter, “CHALO App for BEST Best bus tickets, bus passes, live tracking and passenger capacity is available for iPhone users. Now you can download Chalo app from App Store for iOS.” BESTÂ recently began notifying any bus route updates, diversions, and other such information via the Chalo App’s notification menu.
Chalo, founded in 2014 by Vinayak Bhavnani and Mohit Dubey, Cofounder of carwale.com, secured $40 million in a Series C round of funding in October last year from Filter Capital and Lightrock India alongside existing investors Neeraj Arora, Raine Ventures, among others to strengthen its operations in newer locations. WaterBridge Ventures backed the startup with a Series A round in 2017 and a seed round in 2015-16. Chalo directly competes with other public transport technology startups like CityFlo and IntrCity. The company has acquired Shuttl, another app-based office commute bus aggregator, in a strategic move for an undisclosed amount.
The Mumbai-based startup digitizes buses by offering live bus tracking facilities, monitoring its arrival in real-time, removing the need for passengers to wait at bus stops alongside contactless payment options in order to provide commuters with a safer and more convenient experience.
The ‘Chalo’ app not only alerts commuters about the BEST bus routes, but it also displays alternative modes of commuting that a passenger may require to reach their location, such as taxis and rickshaws, as well as the total fare of the journey. The walking distance from the bus stop to the desired location is also displayed by the app.
The app also facilitates passengers in purchasing physical tickets, as well as, allows users to track the bus, determine the expected time of arrival, accurately predict whether the bus is crowded, and even make payments through multiple e-wallet platforms. Its Chalo offers a card that allows digital bus tickets for those who are not comfortable paying with their smartphones.
The Chalo Card minimizes cash exchange in the bus with its tap-to-pay feature. Higher the number of passengers on the buses directly benefits bus operators. Revenue losses and cash management burden on their everyday operations are also minimized by adapting cash tickets into digital transactions using the Chalo App and Chalo Card. Chalo’s app tracks around 15,000 buses across 21 cities in real-time and had over 70 lakh downloads as of July 2021 and has crossed more than 3 lakh active users.
