Swvl has announced that its daily and city-to-city rides in Kenya will be halted. SWVL Daly, City-City, and Business-Business are the three services offered by the mass transport and shared mobility provider in the country.
SWVL Daly was designed for intra-city rides in Nairobi, while City to City rides were designed for long-distance travel and Swvl Business was designed for business trips. Swvl now says it’s suspending Swvl Daily intra-city and Swvl Travel rides indefinitely.
“In light of the global economic downturn, we are pausing our Swvl Daily intra-city rides in Nairobi next Friday the 3rd of June, 2022. And Swvl Travel on Sunday the 30th of May, 2022.” the company says in a statement.
Swvl Business will however continue to operate and cater to corporations, organisations, and private entities.
The company just announced that it is reducing its employment by a third, a move that will effect 400 individuals across the company’s different markets.Swvl claims that the move is part of its plan to become cash flow positive by next year.
Swvl covered 300 routes to over 55 destinations on daily commuter rides, giving commuters easy access to the CBD, Upperhill, and Westlands. Swvl has also increased the amount of routes available, allowing more passengers to schedule excursions to their desired locations. Utawala to CBD, Joska to Westlands, Ongata Rongai to Westlands, and Kiserian to CBD and Westlands are among these routes.
As a result of the company’s decision to halt operations in Kenya, some 100 employees who work for it directly in the country may be affected. Swvl works with around 500 bus owners that have joined the company as partners.