VOGO to add electric vehicles to its Hyderabad fleet

Bengaluru-based bike rental startup VOGO on Thursday said it plans to introduce electric vehicle (EV) fleet to provide sustainable mobility solutions to commuters in Hyderabad.

The company, which has recovered 40 percent of the pre-COVID-19 revenues in Hyderabad since the resumption of its services post lockdown, also intends to be back on growth trajectory by the end of 2020, a statement said.

The company has witnessed strong month-on-month recovery post-lockdown and is expecting 25 percent monthly growth in August 2020, it said.

"...With our commitment to offer EVs in the city, we want to encourage the commuters to move towards a cleaner mobility option that will help us to reinstate the cleaner environment we cherished during the lockdown," VOGO Co-founder and CEO Anand Ayyadurai said.

Founded in 2016 by Anand Ayyadurai, Padmanabhan Balakrishnan, and Sanchit Mittal, VOGO is a dockless bike rental service that lets you pick up a scooter from anywhere and drop it off once you’ve reached your destination.

The focus on technology has helped VOGO, which lets you pick up a scooter from anywhere and drop it off once you’ve reached your destination, make a mark in the crowded market. 

IoT has also allowed VOGO to offer "keyless” vehicles to customers in a post-COVID-19 world. This ensures there’s no human intervention as users no longer need to exchange keys. Once they register with the app, they can use their phone’s Bluetooth to connect with the IoT device on the scooter, and operate the vehicle without a key. 

Today, VOGO competes with the likes of Bounce, Rapido, Drivezy, and Zoomcar. It is operational in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, available across 500 points, and claims to have clocked five million rides. The startup recently raised $25 million in Series C funding. 

(Disclaimer: Additional background information has been added to this PTI copy for context)