Via Transportation is Landing in Israel

The Via Transportation company announced launching its collaboration service with public transportation company Dan Bus Company. The service of van shuttles, called “Bubble Dan”, will operate in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, and Givatayim by the end of March.

The company was founded in 2012, by Daniel Ramot and Oren Shoval, who served in IDF’s elite program of Talpiot. Since then Via raised $387 million in financing and operates in 32 cities across 11 countries. The company plans to further develop in Israel’s capital Jerusalem as well. The service is part of Israel’s governmental initiative to ease local traffic, to add a new category of efficient public transport at a relatively convenient price, and in general to reduce the number of vehicles on the road and thereby reduce road accidents and air pollution.

The Dan company is purchasing a hundred “10-seater Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Minibuses” for the service, which will operate throughout the week. The possibility of extending the hours and adding service on the weekends is currently being examined. The users will book a ride via the app, input pickup and drop-off locations, and recieve updates regarding the arrival of the shuttle. The app will devise a route for each driver based on specific users.

The service will be more expensive than a bus ticket, although much more comfortable and significantly cheaper than a cab. This Collaboration of Via and Dan is another step in the process of resolving congestion on the Israeli roads.