What is described as a “revolutionary new transport service that is set to transform the travel scene” has announced that it is launching in Bristol, with journeys to London.
For the first few weeks it is letting people try before they buy, by going to www.sn-ap.com/brizzle.” It has partnered with local quality operators including Berkeley, Centurion and Bakers Dolphin.
Sn-ap matches demand for intercity travel with the best coaches from the UK’s top independent operators, and is backed by London-based venture capitalists, Kindred Capital, the firm behind driverless car start-up Five AI, based in Temple Gate, Bristol.
Passengers can book online, choose from existing trips or create their own, and travel to the capital for pocket-money prices.
The service is already running from Nottingham to London [routeone, News, 29 November 2017].
Says founder Thomas Ableman says: “Most people don’t realise that the coaches they get through the big, national brands aren’t typical.
“There are thousands of fantastically high-quality coaches owned by independents that are frozen out of intercity routes by the established multinationals. We can use technology to change this.”
After every trip, passengers rate their experience. Sn-ap uses these ratings to allocate new trips to the operators that passengers like best, keeping quality high. 9/10 of Sn-ap’s online reviews are five-star.
Passengers book online at sn-ap.com, choosing from existing confirmed trips or creating their own custom trips and sharing them with family and friends.
Trips are confirmed, only when there’s enough demand – allowing Sn-ap to guarantee lower prices than its competitors.
Sn-ap started in 2016, backed by angel investors from inside and outside the transport industry. In 2017, the company raised a new investment round to fund expansion led by Kindred Capital, an early stage venture capital fund that “backs exceptional entrepreneurs.”
The partners at Kindred have experience in founding, operating, and scaling fast growth technology businesses.
Leila Zegna of Kindred Capital, says: “Sn-ap’s unique leadership team brings a depth of domain expertise and proven execution capability to this exciting market opportunity.”
Mr Ableman recruited Rob Brighouse, formerly MD of award-winning Chiltern Railways, marketing expert Christy Stewart-Smith, and tech specialist Tom Moreton to help launch the service last year.
More recently Paul Adcock joined the company from Arriva, as Operations Director. He says: “We only pick the best of the best operators. Because they’re local and independent, they take more pride in their work. The most common passenger feedback we get is ‘lovely friendly driver’.
