European ride-hail Bolt enters Sri Lanka

Bolt, the leading European transportation platform committed to make urban travel easier, quicker and more reliable yesterday announced its entry to the Sri Lankan market.

Bolt’s entry is marked with a pilot launch of its service in Colombo, tomorrow, with over 2,000 drivers ready to start accepting rides. Bolt pilots its services in South Asia for the first time with the launch of operations in Sri Lanka.

Committed to affordable trips and happy drivers, the company has announced that it will be charging drivers no commission for using the platform and offer fares 20 percent lower than other competitors, for a minimum of six months.

It builds on being smart about how to grow the company, and focusing operations on efficiency, allowing Bolt to pass the savings on to customers, passengers and drivers.

Bolt has chosen to enter Sri Lanka during the peak of the COVID-19 crisis with the firm belief that people still need to move around in the city and doing its best to fulfil the mission to help them do so.

Currently available only within Colombo, Bolt services can be accessed by passengers by downloading the secure and free Bolt app from Apple App Store or Google Play Store and setting up a user profile.

Any person with their own car who wishes to join Bolt as a driver, can easily register with the company through https://partners.bolt.eu/driver-signup by completing the relevant formalities or through the Bolt Driver App available on Apple App store or Google Play Store.

Passengers looking for a ride can simply open the app, set their location and their intended destination. The app then gives an upfront cost estimate for the trip. Once passengers accept the cost estimate, the app alerts drivers nearby who accept the ride. Passenger safety is ensured by the App which allows passengers to see their driver’s details and track the driver in real-time, making it easy to get safely into the correct vehicle with the correct driver.

When the ride is complete, they can conveniently make their payment in cash. Bolt strongly advises all drivers and passengers on the platform to follow the instructions of the WHO and local health authorities and adhere to all health guidelines.

Built by founder and CEO Markus Villig with his brother Martin, in 2013, Bolt currently operates globally in over 35 countries and 150 cities, with over 30 million passengers and 1 million drivers.

Bolt Food is operational in 13 countries in Europe and Africa and the company also offers micro mobility services with e-scooters and electric bikes in 45 cities across Europe.

Bolt is the third fastest growing European company for the second year in a row according to the Financial Times, and has been named Europe’s Hottest Unicorn by The Europas Awards.