Chariot (company)

Chariot
Slogan Solving your commute, one neighborhood at a time.
Headquarters San Francisco
Service area
Service type
Routes
  • Chestnut Bullet
  • SoMa Express
  • California Dreamin'
  • West SoMa Direct
  • Fisherman's Flyer
  • Richmond Racer
  • Pacific Rush
  • Mission Possible
Chief executive Ali Vahabzadeh
Website www.chariot.com

Chariot is a commuter shuttle service owned by the privately held firm Chariot Transit Inc. that is currently in the process of being acquired by the Ford Motor Company. The company's mobile-phone application allows passengers to ride a shuttle between home and work during commuting hours. Chariot currently operates in several neighborhoods of San Francisco, and plans to expand rapidly to other cities in the United States. New routes are determined based on demographic information and crowdsourced data.[1][2]

History

In March 2014, co-founder Ali Vahabzadeh established Chariot after leaving a job at a real-estate start-up. After a summer in the nonprofit Tumml incubator, Chariot graduated from the program and expanded San Francisco coverage to the Marina, Financial District, SoMa, and Pacific Heights.[3]

Purchase by Ford

On September 9, 2016, Ford CEO Mark Fields announced that the Ford Motor Company would be acquiring Chariot Transit Inc via their subsidiary Ford Smart Mobility for an undisclosed amount.

Operation

The company operates 14-seat passenger vans along specific fixed routes, operating during morning and evening commute hours only, Monday through Friday. As of a June 2016, the company operates twenty five routes.[4]

A commuter can access Chariot via a mobile web browser or its iPhone or Android mobile app's. After signing up and purchasing Chariot credits, he or she uses the map to find a pickup stop. The commuter's boarding pass is displayed in the app in the form of a flashing code.

As of May 2016, passengers had the option of pay-as-you-go; multi-ride packs of credits, such as $100 in credit for $95; or an all-access pass for $119. There are also pass packages for AM only riders or Off-Peak riders from $68 and $89 respectively.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Cutler, Kim-Mai (10 Nov 2014). "As A Cohort of Bus Startups Emerge, Chariot Looks To Source New Routes Through Crowdfunding". TechCrunch. Retrieved 1 Dec 2014.
  2. ↑ Suzdaltsev, Jules (10 Nov 2014). "Crowdsourced Bus Lines: A Viable MUNI Alternative?". The Bold Italic. Retrieved 1 Dec 2014.
  3. ↑ Brownstein, Ronald (30 Oct 2014). "Forget dating apps. These millennials want to save the world". CNN Money. Retrieved 1 Dec 2014.
  4. ↑ "In San Francisco, private transit that follows public routes — at a higher price". Associated Press. May 17, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015 – via Omaha World-Herald.
  5. ↑ Lawler, Ryan (January 26, 2015). "How SF-Based Shuttle Startup Chariot Crowdsourced Its New Commuter Route". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2015-06-11.
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