Cityflo raises Rs 57 cr funding led by Lightbox Ventures

Venad said the company continuously invests in improving customer service and operations. "We will use the proceeds from the fund raise to offer our services in more areas within Thane, and increase our frequency on current routes.

Cityflo, a Mumbai-based app-based bus service provider, on Wednesday said it has raised Rs 57 crore in a funding round led by Lightbox Ventures. India Quotient, which had infused a seed amount of Rs 3 crore into Cityflo in 2019, along with other angel investors also participated in the latest series A round, a statement said.

The company has raised a total of Rs 60 crore till date. The post-money valuation is roughly Rs 180 crore, Cityflo CEO and co-founder Jerin Venad told PTI.

"Cityflo was founded in May 2015 with an aim of providing a safe, convenient and reliable alternative to driving through Mumbai traffic. For a person accustomed to the car, using mass transit is not the natural choice...Cityflo works because it upgrades the bus experience to be better than one's personal car," he added. Venad said the company continuously invests in improving customer service and operations.

"We will use the proceeds from the fund raise to offer our services in more areas within Thane, and increase our frequency on current routes. Over the next 2–3 quarters, we will launch along a handful of high traffic routes across Mumbai. We stick to a few routes, and serve them well," he said. Cityflo connects residential areas in Mumbai, primarily routes originating from Thane and from Navi Mumbai and Western suburbs, to major commercial hubs in the city.

It has expanded its presence to office hubs in Lower Parel, Colaba, BKC, Powai and Andheri. It runs 160 buses and logs over 8,000 bookings daily. "Going forward, we will look at improving connectivity and frequency by adding more buses on existing routes and also look at creating more routes within the city. Over the next 12 months, we expect to be serving over 25,000 customers," Venad said.

In doing this, the company will launch 15–20 new routes within Mumbai, and operate over 400 buses, he added. Cityflo is also investing in the welfare of its drivers, Venad said.

"We look into both their professional and personal growth. We are working on a facility for our buses to be parked, and for our drivers to relax," he said, adding that the company is also working towards skilling drivers in areas like customer service etiquette, soft skills and grooming.

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