If you lived in a city like New York where parking is almost impossible, you would appreciate the full service platform that Vaya Mobility calls “Corporate Mobility Solutions”. No one in New York uses their car to get to work or for getting to meetings within the city. They completely rely on companies like Uber and Lyft, who are the US equivalents of Vaya. Now the latter wants companies in Zimbabwe to enjoy exactly the same services.
Over the last year, Vaya has rolled out three unique services which together make it very easy for companies and their employees to be transported without the hassle of having to look for fuel. Each service is designed for different levels of employees within an organisation. These are:
Vaya Corporate Shuttle, which is a bus services that transports general workers from home to work and back. It is particularly effective for companies whose workers work shifts. Thousands of people are now quietly traveling all day using this service. The same service has been made available to Schools (Vaya Shuttle) and churches on Sundays. You can even book a Vaya Shuttle for trips outside the city.
Vaya Carpool is designed for middle management employees, who live in the same area to share a car on the way to work. It is restricted to just three passengers, unless there is also a child under 14 years old, then there can be four people. Vaya wants safety and comfort to be always be part of its experience. Vaya Premium, which was the first service launched, has now taken its place as a service for the top management in a company. They can order a car for use by them and their families only.
With all three services now fully operational, Vaya has been quietly approaching companies employing more than 20 people to join Corporate Mobility Solutions. Employees are then given special access account numbers to be used when booking themselves a ride on one of the services. The charge is then made to a corporate account which can either be prepaid or post-paid.
Cassava CEO, Mr Eddie Chibi says the Digital Platform that runs Vaya is so efficient and intelligent that it can easily transport a million people a day. He says the service not only deals with the hassle of fuel cost, but will remain relevant even after the current fuel crisis.
“While the fuel crisis has accelerated adoption, I believe the business case makes a lot of sense. It is the modern way to go. The days when people drove cars to work are being phased out worldwide and it is leading to less congestion on the roads and greater comfort,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Chibi said the number of vehicles working for Vaya Mobility now exceeded 20 000. He also said each driver was vetted for criminal backgrounds by the police. The vehicles themselves are kitted with tracking devices to ensure real time information on their movements; some vehicles even have Wi-Fi, which is a feature that will be found in all Vaya vehicles.
Another important aspect of the Vaya service is constant online training of drivers. Each driver is required to train in customer care issues like courtesy and safety. Drivers are rated by their customers, and they can also rate customers, to ensure there is no abuse of the drivers themselves.
Mr Chibi said rating of both drivers and passengers was a standard feature of such services around the world.
“If a driver misbehaves or drives recklessly they will be reprimanded. Equally if a passenger abuses drivers then they will not be allowed on Vaya. We must all be accountable and courteous to one another,” he said.