Grace Ashiru
Ride-hailing app Bolt has struck a deal with Zuru, an app for renting cars, so that cab drivers who use Bolt can rent cars from Zuru.
The plan is meant to make up for the fact that Bolt doesn’t have enough cars for all qualified drivers who have signed up.
“We’ve thousands of drivers, but we do not have the cars to supply them, and Zuru ought to assist us to plug the hole by providing a great deal of flexibility.,” “Felix Antwi, head of supply growth for Bolt Africa, said
Zuru allows Kenyans to advertise their vehicles for rent everywhere in the country while also assisting passengers in booking and operating those vehicles for their journeys. To jump from the need for car ownership, Zuru’s goal is to assist in bringing Kenya’s 3 million cars and 10 million licensed drivers into parity with one another.
Ride-hailing app operators are currently dependent on bank funding to assist plug the gap caused by the shortfall caused by vehicle supply difficulties, which continue to be a critical barrier for the industry. However, because interest rates are currently on the ascent, the bank financing cost is rising.
As part of the agreement, Bolt drivers will visit the Zuru website or use the Zuru app to rent cars, which they will then use to complete their shifts for Bolt throughout a predetermined amount of time.
Rawlings Otani, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zuru, said, “The first-ever transaction between the car rental sector and ride-hailing in Kenya will help grow the shared mobility economy in the country and make the transportation sector more efficient.”
Zuru says that car rentals are a quick, cheap, and flexible way to get a car on demand without having to worry about bank loans or car auctions, which can happen when the economy is bad.
Bolt opened their Africa office in Nairobi, Kenya, earlier this month. They want to improve their operations in Kenya and across the continent.
Bolt drivers can rent the cars at prices agreed upon on the platform, which will help them run a business that makes money.
Because drivers would pay for the cars in advance; it will also assist in eradicating mistrust between drivers and car owners. This is because vehicle owners in the car market have previously voiced fear about whether or not drivers were providing them with a fair part of their income.
As a company, Zuru sees this as a means to increase the number of work options available to young people while also providing them with the flexibility they require to pursue other interests. the online marketplace for car rentals that are situated in Kenya has been operational since the year 2020 announced in a press statement.
Mombasa, Nairobi, Eldoret, Kisii, Kisumu Nakuru, and Kisumu are among the six cities in Kenya covered by the automobile listings available through the Zuru app.
The program gives car owners the ability to run companies by putting their vehicles for rental while also utilizing them for their own needs, thereby achieving a gain that is multiplied by two.
It is believed that there are 70 automobiles owned for every 1000 people in Kenya and the rest of Africa, but there are 700 cars owned for every 1000 people in industrialized countries. Sharing automobiles helps reduce the need for new vehicles, which in turn helps lessen traffic congestion.
