Rise of women-only shuttles in India with ZipGo

Safe travel for women is a major requirement in India currently. With the cases of violence in the public spaces increasing, a private company ZipGo has found out a solution. ZipGo is a conveyance service with a fleet of shuttles. It has launched shuttles specifically for women where they can book a seat in the shuttle, know the arrival timings and other such things through a smartphone app. It recently came to Delhi NCR just weeks ago after having a good response in Bengaluru.

ZipGo started in Gurgaon with its first fleet of 100 shuttles being flagged off by Navdeep Singh Virk, Commissioner of Police and Saurabh Singh, Joint Commissioner of Police of Gurgaon on December 11. Since then, around one lakh women are using the shuttles every day. The shuttles connect Gurgaon to Faridabad, Manesar, Dwarka and part of South Delhi.

“Women safety and traffic are perhaps the biggest every day concerns for citizens and police alike. ZipGo addresses both these challenges with an innovative, technology based approach. Hence, we are delighted to launch ZipGo services in Gurgaon,” said the Commissioner of Police during the launch.

On being questioned on the necessity of such effort for women, Jitender Sharma, Cofounder of Zipgo cited, “comfortable and air-conditioned mass transportation option for daily commute and help reduce the usage of personal vehicles. Every morning and evening, millions of women in Delhi NCR spend an average of 2 hours to get to work or get back home. This daily commute is perhaps the most stressful part of their everyday life. We want to replace that stress with the comfort of a door-to-door commute option at a fraction of the cost of a taxi or driving one’s own car, and thus enable our members and their families to live a healthier and happier life,” as stated in the press release.

Gurgaon is probably the only city in NCR which has the worst conveyance problem which is why ZipGo is first launched in Gurgaon rather than any other city. “We have zeroed in on Gurgaon because it lacks proper local transportation, the traffic is really bad. Plus, pollution is also severe in the city,” mentioned Jitender.

While a women’s only shuttle is a great idea, Jitender’s main goal is to “make women’s travel easy and hassle free.”

“Also, shared transportation is the best option to deal with the growing traffic and pollution problem in our cities,” adds Jitender about this new initiative.

This initiative began in Bengaluru in August and is noted to be quite effective in dealing with safety for women and traffic problem in the city. This is why, Jitender is planning to spread it in the entire Delhi NCR region within the next year.

Picture Credit- Zee News